Weekend Food Prep–Layered Chocolate Peanut Butter Krispies

I’m in holiday baking mode, and some of my family is choosing to be dairy free at the moment, so I developed this recipe to have something on the cookie platter for them. This is vegan and can be made gluten free if you know someone with celiac. (I have low tolerance for the folks who promote gluten free as a so-called lifestyle. Seems like just another diet to me, and adherence to those kinds of eating preferences seems to require holding onto a lot of self-serving pseudoscience to justify dietary restriction, and I’m generally opposed to that. But whatever. Each to your own; eyes on my own plate. Included in that population are some folks I otherwise respect and care for, and I mostly just feel sorry for them falling for another diet culture trap.)

Layered Chocolate Peanut Butter Krispies (vegan with gluten free options)

one. Grease a large baking sheet and a large mixing bowl with some vegetable shortening.

two. In the large mixing bowl, combine:
2 cups corn flakes (gluten free, if needed)
2 cups rice cereal (gluten free, if needed)

three. For the peanut butter layer: in a sauce pan, melt together until the sugar is fully dissolved and everything is lightly bubbling:
3/4 cup corn syrup
3/4 cups sugar
1/4 tsp salt

four. Remove the sugar mixture from the heat and stir in 1/2 cup peanut butter. Once this mixture is smooth, pour over the cereal mixture until fully combined. Press into the prepared pan.

five. For the chocolate peanut butter layer: Using the same large mixing bowl, put in another:
2 cups corn flakes
2 cups rice cereal

six. Using the same sauce pan (no need to wash it out): Heat until bubbling and the sugar has dissolved:
3/4 cup corn syrup
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1/4 tsp salt

seven. Remove sugar mixture from heat and add 1/2 cup peanut butter. Stir until smooth (work quickly, it gets thick).

eight. Scrape the chocolate mixture into the cereal mixture until fully covered. Press over the top of the peanut butter cereal layer. Press together until mostly flat on top and even consistency.

nine. Allow to cool and harden. Cut into squares.

Yields about 100 1-inch squares, depending on the dimensions of the pan you use.