Kellogg's® Peanut Butter Chocolate Rice Krispies Treats®

When Kellogg's reacted to spectacular sales of its Rice Krispies
 Treats with two new varieties of the popular and addictive snack,
 TSR got on the case. It seems we've all tasted the original Rice
 Krispies Treats. The homemade version is the next homework 
assignment in Cooking 101, after learning how to boil water.
 And the Kellogg's store-bought packaged version has been available
 to the lazier of us for several years now. This variety, however,
 puts that whole Reese's "You got your peanut butter in my chocolate"
 thing to work. The crunchy bar has just a touch of nutty essence
 that builds nicely on the other familiar flavors. But don't be
 fooled by that dark "chocolatey" coating on top. It's not actually
 chocolate, but rather a melt-resistant custom blend of cocoa and
 uh, stuff, that tastes a lot like chocolate; and that happens to 
work better for the product from a manufacturing, shipping, and 
shelf-life aspect. But here in kitchen cloning land, we don't have
 to worry about those things. So get ready to walk on the wild side,
 people, as we step up to the microwave and melt some real chocolate
 chips for topping our cinch of a crunchy clone.

1 tablespoon margarine
3 tablespoons peanut butter
1/8 teaspoon salt
5 cups miniature marshmallows
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
6 cups Rice Krispies cereal
1 12-ounce bag milk chocolate chips
non-stick cooking spray

1. Combine margarine, peanut butter, and salt in a large saucepan
 over low heat.
2. When peanut butter and margarine have melted, add marshmallows
 and vanilla and stir until marshmallows have melted. Remove from 
heat.
3. Add Rice Krispies and stir until cereal is well coated with the
 melted marshmallow mixture.
4. Spray a 9 x 13-inch baking dish with a light coating of non-stick
 cooking spray. Pour the Rice Krispies mixture into the dish and,
 using wax paper or lightly greased hands, press down until it's
 flat in the dish. Cool.
5. Prepare the topping by pouring the chocolate chips into a glass
 dish. Microwave for 2 minutes on 50 percent power. Stir gently.
 Microwave for an additional minute on 50 percent power. Stir gently
 once more until smooth. If the mixture hasn't completely melted,
 zap it again for another 30 seconds.
6. Use a spatula to spread a thin layer of chocolate over the top
 of the Rice Krispies mixture. Cool at room temperature 
(at least 72 degrees), or chill until firm. Slice into 16 bars.
 
Makes 16 bars.