Rice crispy cookies are soft, chewy and stuffed with a large marshmallow. Loaded with Rice Krispies and baked to have an extra gooey center. Easy to make with cold ingredients and they need no chill time. This recipe makes 14 large cookies in about 30 minutes.
These marshmallow cookies are a spin on the nostalgic Rice Krispie treat. Kind of like my sprinkle crispy treats. The cookies are thick and as they bake, they break open to create an ooey gooey marshmallow middle. The crispy rice adds the perfect amount of crunch, just like it does in my cookie butter crispy cookies.
As a busy mom who has been baking cookies for multiple decades I love when I can turn a childhood dessert into a homemade cookie. My girls are marshmallow lovers so we made them (along with sugar cookies) for Easter. While we make a stuffed peanut butter cookie version year round and a peppermint hot cocoa cookie version at Christmas.
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🛒 ingredients notes + substitutions
I tested this marshmallow cookie recipe a few times and I learned a lot along the way! The dough can be kind of sticky; damp hands help. I have more tips for handling the dough in the recipe card. Adding more flour seemed like the way to get the cookie dough less sticky, but it led to dry, more crumbly cookies. So be ready for a little cookie dough to stick to your hands!
Please scroll to the printable recipe card at the end of this post for the full list of ingredients and baking directions.
Butter ~ unsalted butter is my choice as I like to be able to control the saltiness in my baking. The butter is used cold and cubed, so no planning ahead!
Egg ~ one large egg + one large egg yolk is needed to bind the cookie dough together. The extra yolk adds chewiness. Save the egg white for a batch of meringue cookies or crispy coconut cookies.
Crispy rice cereal ~ Kelloggs Rice Krispies is the gold standard for cereal. I also tested with generic crispy rice and either one works.
Marshmallows ~ a large (or regular) marshmallow works perfectly to stuff inside each cookie. If you only have small marshmallows, use 3 - 4. I really like Jet-Puffed for that iconic Rice Krispie treat flavor. I did a test round with a store bought brand too and either works. Marshmallow fluff can be substituted, see the recipe card notes.
🍪 how to make marshmallow stuffed cookies
Preheat the oven and prepare two half sheet baking pans with parchment paper.
In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment beat the cold and cubed butter and kosher salt until softened.
Add the granulated sugar and brown sugar and beat until fully combined and a bit fluffy.
Then add the egg and vanilla and mix on medium for one minute. Now add the baking powder and baking soda and mix another 30 seconds.
Add the all-purpose flour and mix on low until the dough is showing some large streaks of flour. Then mix in the Rice Krispie cereal with a spatula.
Take one rice crispy treat cookie dough ball flatten it into about a 3-inch circle.
Place one large marshmallow in the middle and use your fingers to wrap the cookie dough back around the marshmallow and seal the dough together.
It doesn't have to be perfect, but do your best to mostly enclose it. (if the cookies aren't enclosed enough, they will spread open while baking).
Lightly roll in the cereal again. Place on the prepared baking pan and bake.
The above photo shows three different baked variations of this cookie. The top photo is a marshmallow that wasn't fully enclosed in cookie dough before baking. The middle photo shows a cookie that was fully enclosed in dough. The third photo shows a cookie stuffed with marshmallow fluff.
👩🏻🍳 expert tips for the best chewy cookies
Do your best to enclose the marshmallow into the crispy rice cookie dough. If the marshmallow isn't fully enclosed, the cookie unrolls from the marshmallow while baking. This melts the marshmallow more, but still tastes delicious!
Sometimes the marshmallow will still leak out of the baked cookie. Using the "cookie scoot" can help wrangle in any unruly marshmallows that may have leaked out. (This is the set of biscuit cutters I use for cookie scooting).
Allow the cookies to cool for 10 minutes on the baking sheet before removing them; they will still be a little fragile at this point. I love using my fish spatula to easily remove the cookies from the pan.
Use a scale to measure your ingredients. I know I say this all the time, but weighing your ingredients is the most accurate and will give the best results. This is the scale I use in my kitchen and if your budget is tight, this Escali scale is also fantastic!
Do not grease your cookie pans, which can make your cookies spread more. Use parchment paper or silicone baking mats instead.
Don't over bake the cookies! You want to remove the cookies from the oven when the edges are set and the middle is still a little soft. They will continue to bake and set up as they cool.
🫙 how to store
Store marshmallow cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for 2 - 5 days. I find that the crispy rice cereal loses a little of its crispness after 2 days.
The cookies also freeze well for up to three months; allow them to cool completely, then store in an airtight container or zip-top bag. This is by far my favorite way to store cookies for freshness. The cookies will thaw at room temperature in about 20-30 minutes.
Remember to snap a picture and tag me on Instagram if you make these Soft and Chewy Rice Crispy Cookies. It warms my heart to see you bring these recipes to life! Thank you for being here and happy baking!
If you make this recipe {or any recipe!} from two sugar bugs please come back and leave a review and a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ star rating. I read every comment, and I LOVE hearing from you!
📖 recipe
Soft and Chewy Rice Crispy Cookies
recipe created and tested by:
I highly recommend using weight (metric) measurements when available for more accuracy and the best results.
Please note
When using 2x or 3x ingredients, the grams in parenthesis DO NOT adjust, you will have to manually do that.
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter, cold and cubed (113g)
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ cup granulated sugar (50g)
- ½ cup packed brown sugar* (100g)
- 1 large egg + 1 large egg yolk
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour (219g)
- 2 ½ cups crispy rice cereal divided (75g total)
- 14 jumbo marshmallows** (~84g)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C) and prepare two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Set aside.
- In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment beat the cold and cubed butter (½ cup/113g) and kosher salt (½ teaspoon) on medium-high (speed 6 on KitchenAid) until softened, about 1-2 minutes. Scrape up and down the bowl.
- Add the granulated sugar (¼ cup/50g) and brown sugar (packed ½ cup/100g) and beat on low until combined, then increase to medium-high and beat until fully combined and a bit fluffy, 2-3 minutes. Scrape up and down the bowl.
- Then add the egg (1 large + large egg yolk) and vanilla (2 teaspoons) and mix on medium (speed 4 on KitchenAid) for one minute.
- Now add the baking soda (½ teaspoon) and baking powder (½ teaspoon) and mix on medium until combined, about 30 seconds.
- Add the all-purpose flour (1 ¾ cups/219g) and mix on low (stir on KitchenAid) until the dough is showing some large streaks of flour.
- Then add 1 cup/30g of the crispy rice cereal and mix in with a spatula.
To assemble the cookies
- Using around 2 tablespoons of dough (I use a size 30 scoop), scoop out 14 dough balls, roll into a ball and place seven dough balls on each prepared pan. (the dough is sticky, damp hands help!)
- Lightly roll each dough ball into the remaining crispy rice cereal (1 ½ cups/45g)
- Take one rice krispy treat cookie dough ball flatten it into about a 3-inch circle. If the dough is sticking to your hand, dip one side in the rice cereal again and put that side touching your hand. Place one large marshmallow in the middle and use your fingers to wrap the cookie dough back around the marshmallow and seal the dough together. It doesn't have to be perfect, but do your best to mostly enclose it. (if the cookies aren't enclosed enough, they will spread open while baking. They still taste delicious, but aren't as pretty). Lightly roll in the cereal again. Place on the prepared baking pan. (I fit 7 large cookies on each baking pan).
- Bake for 10 minutes, if they look still very rounded, remove from the oven and bang the pan on the stove top a few times. Then bake for 1-2 more minutes, the cookies may still look a little underdone, but they should no longer be shiny on top. Cookie scoot, if you'd like to make the cookies more round.
- Allow the cookies to cool on the pan for 10 minutes before removing to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
Notes
Nutrition
The nutrition information is based on third-party calculations, is an estimate only and may not be entirely accurate. Actual nutritional values will vary based on brands used and portion sizes.
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