If you haven’t been able to tell by now, I really love rice krispie treats. See here and here for reference. They’re just so insanely delicious, and I love that while there’s no shortage of butter or marshmallows, there’s no actual baking required. Plus, they’re always a huge hit at parties, both with kids and adults. So, I thought it’d be fun to make some 4th of July rice krispie treats with store-bought bars and Airheads this year, and I love the way they turned out! I’m a big fan of Airheads, so I love the extra fruity kick the candies give them, but you can also easily substitute fondant, icing, or other fruity candy for the Airheads. Anyway, keep reading for my super simple 4th of July rice krispie treats recipe (if you can honestly even call it that)!

You can also click play on the Instagram Reel below for a short video tutorial. Instagram’s been keeping me in some sort of limited reach jail lately, so I greatly greatly appreciate your views!
 

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4th of July Rice Krispie Treats

Ingredients

Here’s everything you need to make a dozen red, white, and blue rice krispie treats—

• 12 rectangular Rice Krispie Treats– I used store-bought rice krispie treats to save time, but feel free to follow your favorite recipe and make homemade bars. Just make sure they’re all the same size after cutting them!
• 8 cherry Airheads– I found this variety pack at Walmart. It’s also available on Amazon! 
• 8 mystery-flavored Airheads– I found this variety pack at Walmart. It’s also available on Amazon! 
• 4 blue raspberry Airheads– I found this variety pack at Walmart. It’s also available on Amazon! 
• Small star-shaped fondant cutter– I used the smallest one from this set. It’s got a bit of everything– flowers, stars, etc. 

You’ll also need a sharp knife, plus a good dish soap to get all the gunk off the blade afterwards.

Substitutions

If you aren’t a fan of candy, here are some Airhead substitutions that’ll work (almost) just as well for these 4th of July rice krispie treats–

• Homemade rice krispie treats– I used store-bought rice krispie treats to save time, but feel free to follow your favorite recipe and can make your own homemade bars. Just make sure they’re all the same size after cutting them!
• Fondant– Yep, regular colored fondant will do the trick just fine! My husband actually prefers it. If you don’t want to make your own, Wilton sells ready-rolled fondant at most grocery and craft stores.
• Royal or glaze icing– Red, white, and blue icing will work, but I’ll be honest– fondant’s much easier to work with. It’s more firm and easier to mold. If you still decide to go the icing route, spoon the red, white, and blue icing to separate piping bags and pipe each color on separately, allow each color and section of icing to dry before applying another. Otherwise, the icing will blend together, and you’ll have purple streaks on your 4th of July rice krispie treats.
• Other candies– You can achieve a similar flag pattern by covering each rice krispie treat bar with vanilla icing and then decorating them with red, white, and blue M&Ms or Skittles. 

How to Make Fourth of July Rice Krispie Treats

To make a batch of twelve 4th of July rice krispie treats, grab your Airheads, a cutting mat, and a sharp knife. Line the red and white Airheads up with a rice krispie treat, scoring where to cut so that you’ll construct pieces of equal length. Use a sharp knife and cutting mat to cleanly cut the Airheads at the score line and set the extra pieces aside. Keep in mind that you may need to wash the blade a few times in between cuts, otherwise it’ll get pretty dull pretty fast.

Next, slice the red and white Airheads into three equal strips to represent flag stripes. Then, score and cut the blue Airhead into uniformed squares. You should be able to get at least 3 squares per blue Airhead. 

Next, use a small star-shaped fondant or cookie cutter to cut 12 stars out of the white scraps. You should be able to get at least two per scrap piece, so you’ll have some wiggle room if you make any mistakes.

Now that you’ve got all your stars and stripes, it’s finally time to assemble your 4th of July rice krispie treats! Place each rice krispie treat bar onto a plate and cover with red and white Airhead strips, alternating colors to resemble the stripes of a flag. Layer the blue squares on top of the stripes and white stars on top of the blue squares.

And that’s it! Serve at room temperature– and enjoy!

4th of July Rice Krispies Storage Tips

As fun and easy as these 4th of July rice krispie treats are to make, they aren’t exactly fridge-friendly. Airheads are relatively tough to eat even at room temperature, so when you stick them in the fridge, they can start to feel like hard candy. So, if you’re planning to prep these ahead of time, you can store them in an airtight container at room temperature for up to one week. They melt easily, though, so make sure they’re kept out of direct sunlight and in a cool environment.

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American Flag Rice Krispie Treats

Yield: 12 Bars

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 10 minutes

These American flag rice krispie treats are as fun and festive as 4th of July desserts get! Made with pre-packaged (or homemade) rice krispie bars and red, white, and blue Airheads candy, there's no cooking or baking required whatsoever. Even better? These 4th of July rice krispie treats can be prepped days in advance, too!

Print

Ingredients

• 12 rice krispie treat bars, homemade or store-bought
• 8 cherry Airheads
• 8 mystery-flavored Airheads
• 4 blue raspberry Airheads

Instructions

1. Line the red and white Airheads up with a rice krispie treat bar, scoring where to cut the candy so that you'll construct pieces of equal length. Use a sharp knife and cutting mat to cleanly cut the Airheads at the score line (you may need to wash the blade a few times in between cuts) and set the extra pieces aside.
2. Slice the red and white Airheads into three equal strips to represent flag stripes. Then, score and cut the blue Airhead into uniformed squares. You should be able to get at least 3 squares per blue Airhead. 
3. Use a small star-shaped fondant or cookie cutter to cut 12 stars out of the white scraps. You should be able to get at least two per scrap piece.
4. Place each rice krispie treat bar onto a plate and cover with red and white Airhead strips, alternating colors to resemble the stripes of a flag. Layer the blue squares on top of the stripes and white stars on top of the blue squares.
5. Serve at room temperature– and enjoy!

Notes

Substitutions

• Homemade rice krispie treats- I used store-bought rice krispie treats to save time, but feel free to follow your favorite recipe and make your own homemade bars instead. Just try and make sure they're all the same size after cutting them!
• Fondant– Yep, regular colored fondant will do the trick just fine! My husband actually prefers it. If you don't want to make your own, Wilton sells ready-rolled fondant at most grocery and craft stores.
• Royal or glaze icing– Red, white, and blue icing will work, but I’ll be honest– fondant’s much easier to work with. It’s more firm and easier to mold. If you still decide to go the icing route, spoon the red, white, and blue icing to separate piping bags and pipe each color on separately, allow each color and section of icing to dry before applying another. Otherwise, the icing will blend together, and you'll have purple streaks on your 4th of July rice krispie treats.
• Other candies– You can achieve a similar flag pattern by covering each rice krispie treat bar with vanilla icing and then decorating them with red, white, and blue M&Ms or Skittles. 

Storage

• Counter (at room temperature)- If you’re planning to prep these ahead of time, you can store them in an airtight container at room temperature for up to one week. They melt easily, though, so make sure they’re kept out of direct sunlight and in a cool environment.

Nutrition Information

Yield 12Serving Size 1 bar
Amount Per ServingCalories 167Total Fat 1gSaturated Fat 0gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 1gCholesterol 0mgSodium 153mgCarbohydrates 37gFiber 0gSugar 11gProtein 2g

Nutritional information isn't always accurate and can vary based on a number of factors, including but not limited to discrepancies among brands, precision of measurements, and freshness of ingredients.

More Cute 4th of July Desserts

Here are a few other easy 4th of July snacks (I say snacks because they don’t necessarily need to be designated 4th of July desserts) to try–

• American Flag Snack Tray– This American flag snack tray is another one of my favorite easy 4th of July snacks to make! I make mine with white yogurt-covered pretzels and a handful of seasonal fruit, so it’s a great healthy dessert option. Kids actually love it, too.
• Patriotic Mini Fruit Pies– Nothing makes people smile quite like these patriotic mini fruit pies. I make mine in a cupcake tin, and they’re always a huge hit. I share both my strawberry and blueberry pie filling recipes in this post!

 
Well, that’s all I’ve got for y’all today. As always, please let me know if you have any questions about this 4th of July dessert or any of my others. I love hearing from y’all, and I’m happy to help. Also, if you’re stashing any cute 4th of July desserts in your back pocket, please share them in the comments!