Orange Cardamom Peep Crispy Treats

A marshmallow Peep treat with a grown up flavor.

The Peep. People either love it or hate it. There seems to be no in between. And, for those who partake in a little Easter Peep marshmallow indulgence, one must then decide, “To eat them fresh, or to eat them stale?” That is the question. Go team stale!

This recipe is a minor attempt at winning over the TABLE team to team Peep in general. There’s not a lot of marshmallow lovers around here, let alone the embracing of cute little chick and bunny shaped marshmallows coated in colored sugars. Enter Orange Cardamom Peep Crispy Treats. This recipe gives a little grown up flavor to an otherwise ultra-colorful, childish-looking treat by adding the fresh flavors of orange and the herbaceous warmth of cardamom. Kids will love them, and you may find yourself craving them, too. Still skeptical about these icons of 20h century American food culture? Don’t knock ‘em till you try ‘em.

ORANGE CARDAMOM PEEP CRISPY TREATS RECIPE

INGREDIENTS

6 cups Rice Krispies Cereal, divided

4 (3-ounce) packages of Peeps (one each of yellow, pink, purple and blue)

6 tablespoons of Kerrygold salted butter, divided

2 tsp ground cardamom, divided

2 tsp orange extract, divided

Food coloring, optional

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Remove the black eyes from all of your Peeps.

2. Grease an 8 or 9 inch pan with butter.

3. Place 1 1/2 TBSP of butter into a medium sauce pan over a medium heat.

4. When the butter is just melted, add 1/2 tsp of ground cardamom, 1/2 tsp of orange extract, and one color of your Peeps.

5. Stir continuously until the Peeps are almost completely melted.

6. Remove from heat and continue stirring. If you would like to intensify the color, you can add a few drops of food coloring. Note: the cardamom does alter the color slightly, so if you want the colors to be vibrant, do add food coloring. I prefer gel food coloring.

.7. Pour in 1 1/2 cups of Rice Krispies Cereal and stir to coat.

8. Transfer to your greased pan. You can spread evenly in the pan and layer the next three colors. or if you move quickly enough you’ll be able to incorporate the colors into more of a tie-dye pattern being careful not to blend the colors together.

9. Repeat steps 3-8 with each of the three remaining colors.

10. Let cool for at least an hour before cutting into squares.

RECIPE AND STORY BY STAR LALIBERTE / STYLING BY KEITH RECKER / PHOTOGRAPHY BY DAVE BRYCE