Rice Krispie Bird Nests

So with spring and Easter in the the air, I knew I wanted to make some little edible bird nests as a craft with the girls.  In years past I have used both shredded wheat and Chinese crunchy noodles as the nest base, and both of them taste pretty much like you are eating actual twigs. Not good.  So this year I decided we would use rice krispies to make the nests, because who doesn't LOVE rice krispy treats!

Easter egg rice krispie bird nests - how adorable!

These turned out really cute and here are the supplies you will need to make them:

Think just like regular rice krispie treats, only we are going to make a slightly larger batch than normal, and add jelly beans or Robin Eggs at the end to complete the "nests".

First find a large bowl and spray down with cooking spray.  Fill with 9-10 cups of rice krispies (Tip: put in 9 cups and keep a reserve cup to the side so that after you get the marshmallows in, you can gauge if you need the 10th cup).  Set bowl aside and off to the stove to make the marshmallowie goodness

  
Melt five TBSP of butter in a pot (also sprayed with cooking spray), and then add the marshmallows.  I used the extra large 16oz bag, and even added a few from another bag to make sure there was enough ooze to go around.

Once the marshmallows are melted down to goo, pour them over the bowl of waiting rice krispies. (Tip: if you spray your spatula with cooking spray the mess won't stick to your stir stick).

Now here's where it gets ooey gooey and messy Bessy. The kids LOVED this part, but take a small amount of butter and rub it on your hands like soap.  It's a weird, greasy feeling, it might even feel very wrong, but believe me it will really help you have the sticky mess stay off your hands and where you want it to go.  Let the mixture cool to a reasonable temperature that kids can handle (just nice and warm) and form into balls.  Have some sheets of wax paper laying near by and place the ball of crispy goodness down on it.  Gently, while keeping one hand on the outer shape, use your thumbs or fingers to make a nest shape with an indented center

Slather more butter on your hands if needed and work quickly before the krispies have time to set too much.  My girls were having so much fun with the butter.  We were done with this part but my middle child grabbed an extra pat of butter just to squish between her fingers.  Ug.  But she was having fun so I let her have her fun.

Next grab the little jelly beans or mini robin eggs (I liked the speckled look) and place them however you would like in the nests.  We tried all one color (like the baby blue bird eggs) or multi colored too.  Three eggs looked best but there were many number combinations throughout all the nests.

 
Then just let sit for a while and set up into a solid shape.  They pop right off the wax paper and I stored them in a lidded cupcake storage container with wax paper between the rows so they wouldn't stick together.

So cute, fun to make, delicious, and great not only for Easter and spring time, but anytime you want your kids to have some textile tasty fun!

Here's the printable directions:

9-10 cups rice Krispies
5 Tablespoons butter
16oz bag of marshmallows
Robin Eggs or small jelly beans
extra butter for hands
wax paper
cooking spray

Spray large bowl w/ cooking spray, add in 9 cups (+1 reserve cup) of krispies
In a pot, melt 5 TBSP of butter and add large 16oz bag of marshmallows (plus a few extra if you got them)
Once melted pour over waiting rice krispies and stir (add extra reserve cup of Krispies if needed)
When cooled to a temperature a child can handle, form into balls
Place balls on wax paper and gently form into a nest shape with indented center
Place jelly beans or small Robin Eggs in the center and let them set
Store in an air tight container and enjoy!