Holiday Scotcheroos Recipe

Fun, festive and full of chewy peanut butter taste, Holiday Scotcheroos are a must try! The kids will love helping you decorate these easy family friendly treats.

Christmas cheer found here! Whip up a batch of cut out sugar cookies with our favorite sugar cookie frosting. Feeling grinchy? Be sure to have a slurp of this delicious Grinch Cocktail.

Scotcheroos shaped like christmas tree and reindeer on glass plate.


What are Scotcheroos

It’s no secret I love rice krispie treats here on my blog. So why not take that love and mix it up a little bit for a scrumptious holiday treat?

A traditional Scotcheroo recipe is made with peanut butter, butterscotch, chocolate, and rice krispies cereal.

They are chewy and delicious, much like a Peanut Butter Rice Krispie Treat.

Unfortunately I opened my pantry and realized my love for rice krispie treats has used up all my crispy rice cereal. Did I let that stop me?

Oh no. I grabbed a box of corn flake cereal to use as a substitute. I was positive it would work as my aunt has always made delicious, chewy edible wreaths for the holidays using corn flake cereal.

And how, you may ask, do they get so chewy? The light corn syrup adds a chewy texture while giving the perfect amount of sweetness needed for the peanut butter and white chocolate to stand out in these Scotcheroos!

Each batch of Holiday Scotcheroos makes two 9-inch round baking pans that get cut into 8 triangles (for a total of 16 wedges of scotcheroos).

PLUS, there are so many fun ways to decorate these for the holidays!

Christmas tree scotcheroos with white chocolate and rainbow candy.

Ingredient Notes

  • Corn flakes cereal – You can also substitute rice krispies cereal for a more traditional Scotcheroo!
  • Corn syrup – Be sure to use light corn syrup (like Karo).
  • Peanut butter – Creamy, shelf stable peanut butter gives these the best consistency.
  • Food coloring – Green gel coloring makes the treats festive. Feel free to swap out the color or leave the food coloring gel out if you don’t care about the color.

What you need to decorate the holiday scotcheroos depends on what designs you want to make. For today’s treats, I did a combination of Christmas trees and Reindeer.

You can do a LOT with semi-sweet and white chocolate, red hots and mini pretzel twists! Feel free to change up the garnishes and experiment with your own designs too.

Reindeer scotcheroos with chocolate, pretzels, and red hot candies.

Step by Step Instructions

Knowing how to make Scotcheroos is not that different from knowing how to make rice krispie treats.

STEP 1. Line the pans

First, line your 8 or 9-inch round baking pans with parchment paper. This will make the treats easy to lift out of the pan after they have set.

STEP 2. Combine the wet ingredients

In a large saucepan, combine corn syrup with sugar over medium heat until the sugar dissolves. Bring mixture to a boil and boil for ONE full minute. Remove from heat.

Stir in peanut butter and food coloring until smooth.

STEP 3. Add cereal

Add the corn flakes to the peanut butter mixture and gently fold in to combine. Pour the mixture into your prepared pans and very gently press with the back of a spoon.

Let the treats set for 30 minutes.

STEP 4. Cut into shapes

Lift the parchment paper out of the pans (with the treats) and set on a cutting board. Cut each circle into 8 triangles.

STEP 5. Decorate

Now comes the fun part!

Step by step photos showing how to make holiday scotcheroos.

To make Christmas trees: Drizzle melted white chocolate across the triangle to create snowy stripes. Sprinkle rainbow chips or sprinkles across, then press a peanut butter cup into the bottom of each treat (using a bit of extra peanut butter as the glue) to make a trunk.

To make Reindeer: Drizzle melted chocolate over the treats covering the tops as much as possible. Press on broken pretzel twists to make antlers at the widest corners. Press on two candy eyes just above the narrowest point and finish the reindeer with a red hot candy for a nose.

Let the decorated treats set for about 10 minutes, then serve and enjoy.

Recipe FAQs

How should you store Scotcheroos?

Store them in an airtight container at room temperature. They’ll stay fresh for several days.

Where do you find candy eyes?

I buy mine online or from a craft store. If you don’t have candy eye balls you can still make these holiday scotcheroos! Two white chocolate chips or white M&Ms with a dab of chocolate in the center could make reindeer eyes in a pinch.

Why did my Scotcheroos turn out hard?

There are a few reasons that can happen. The most common is pressing the cereal mixture down too hard when you add it to the pan. You just need a light touch to ensure everything sticks together. The harder you press, the harder the finished treats will be.

Reindeer scotcheroos cut into 8 bars.

More Easy Desserts

Holiday Scotcheroos

5 from 4 votes
By: Aimee
This season, make a batch of these Holiday Scotcheroos for a fun and festive dessert! Chewy peanut butter and chocolate treats!
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
Servings: 16 triangles

Ingredients 

For the Scotcheroos:

  • 1 cup Light Corn Syrup
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 cup creamy peanut butter
  • 1 drop green gel food coloring
  • 5 ½ cups corn flakes cereal

For the Christmas Trees:

  • ½ cup white chocolate melted
  • 8 mini peanut butter cups
  • ¼ cup rainbow chips or sprinkles
  • 8 star sprinkles or red hots

For the Reindeer:

  • ¾ cup semi-sweet chocolate morsels melted
  • 8 cinnamon red hots
  • 16 small twist pretzels
  • 16 candy eyes
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Instructions 

  • Line two 8 or 9-inch round baking pans with parchment paper. Set aside.
  • In a large saucepan, combine corn syrup with sugar. Heat over medium heat, stirring constantly until sugar dissolves. Bring mixture to a boil. Boil for 1 minute then remove from heat.
  • Stir in peanut butter and food coloring until smooth. Add cereal and fold gently until evenly coated.
  • Pour mixture into prepared baking pans. Pat gently with back of wooden spoon. Allow cool and set about 30 minutes.
  • Remove from pans by lifting the parchment paper. Place on cutting board and cut each circle into 8 triangles. Separate slightly so there is a space between each triangle.
  • For the Christmas trees, add melted white chocolate to a sandwich sized plastic bag. Snip off the corner and drizzle over one pan of scotcheroos. Add rainbow chips and star to trees. Using the melted white chocolate, add a drop to the top of a peanut butter cup and press into the bottom of the tree for the trunk.
  • For the Reindeer, add melted chocolate to a sandwich sized plastic bag. Snip off the corner and drizzle generously over the second pan of scotcheroos, coating the top completely. Break each pretzel and add as antlers. Add the cinnamon red hot for the nose and candy eyes!
  • Allow chocolate to set, about 10 minutes. Store in airtight container for several days to maintain freshness.

Notes

  • Store them in an airtight container at room temperature. They’ll stay fresh for several days.
  • Are your bars too hard? The most common cause is pressing the cereal mixture down too hard when you add it to the pan. You just need a light touch to ensure everything sticks together. The harder you press, the harder the finished treats will be.

Nutrition

Calories: 467kcal, Carbohydrates: 82g, Protein: 8g, Fat: 14g, Saturated Fat: 4g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 8g, Cholesterol: 1mg, Sodium: 584mg, Fiber: 4g, Sugar: 45g
Course: Rice Krispie Treats
Cuisine: American
Did you make this recipe?Mention @shugarysweets or tag #shugarysweets!

Make these easy, adorable and delicious Holiday Scotcheroos for your next family baking project!



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About Aimee

Aimee is a dessert lover (specifically rice krispie treats), workout enthusiast, self-taught foodie, and recipe creator.

Learn more about Aimee.

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Posted on December 8, 2020

Comments & Reviews

  1. I have a question what do you make with butterscotch chips ? Those happen to be on of my favorite flavors so do you have any recipes with them in it. I already make rice krispy treats with them in them so what else do you have?

    1. I love butterscotch as well! If you type “butterscotch” into the search bar of my site you can find lots of choices! From cake, blondies, cookies, and more!

  2. YUM! I love the combination of flavors and colors. Healthy, filling, and delicious.Definitely going to try! I think, my family would love it:)

  3. I’m not very crafty when it comes to making treats, but these trees and reindeer are just my speed! Plus it gives me an excuse to make scotcheroos!!!

  4. I am totally under the spell of Christmas too!!! BTW, these are AWESOME. I am going to need to buy stock in Caro for the amount of treats I plan on making this year! Great recipe!

  5. These are the cutest ever! I love the Christmas trees especially… I can’t resist all those festive sprinkles! 

  6. You know how I feel about cute treats made with googley eyes!!!  I puffy heart love these!!!  The trees are super cute too, but those reindeer have my heart!!!  You did good, girl!!!

  7. Confession: I’ve NEVER had a Scotcheroo.  I KNOW, I am missing out on all things delicious!
    Oh, and CUTE. Because these are the cutest things ever. I agree with karly, you win at Christmas! Pinned!

  8. Okay, you totally won the cute contest today! I mean, I’ll go reindeer every time. Then you get to use candy eyes, and those are the best! And corn flakes are awesome. It’s so good that you ran out of krispies so that you could get addicted to a different cereal treat!

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