The last time my friend Jess [1] came to visit me from Australia, I introduced her to Rice Krispies Treats. She in turn couldn’t wait to introduce me to Chocolate Crackles (like Rice Krispies Treats, the Chocolate Crackles recipe is on the back of the Rice Bubbles (what Kellogg’s calls Rice Krispies there) box. However, she said they could only be made with Copha, a refrigerated coconut shortening, or something equivalent. We did a bit of research and found that Crisco wouldn’t work, and Copha was nowhere to be found in the United States. I offered up this solid coconut oil I saw at my local grocery store, but Jess had her doubts, and Carly (another Aussie), suggested Palmin, the German equivalent to Copha. After more research, we located a place in LA that sold Palmin.
So earlier this week, Carly and I trekked down to Torrance (a good 30 minutes from Hollywood) to go to the market at Alpine Village (a German village/tourist attraction) to purchase the Palmin. Side note: we also stopped at King’s Hawaiian restaurant. HOT and FRESH King’s Hawaiian bread–YUM! Anyway, since we had to stop at the grocery to purchase Rice Krispies on the way home, I suggested we buy a container of the coconut oil and do a quarter test recipe with that as well.
What did we learn? Chocolate Crackles can now become an American sensation, because the coconut oil worked just as well, perhaps even better, than the Palmin. As for the crackles, they are super easy to make and absolutely delicious and remind me of Star Crunch or the 100 Grand candy bar, just without the caramel. I highly recommend making them NOW. Thank you Jess and Carly!
Photos of the process here [2].
Ingredients
4 cups Rice Krispies
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
3 tablespoons cocoa
1 cup shredded coconut, optional (I omitted this)
250 grams solid coconut oil (I used LouAna [3]brand)
Preparation
- In a large bowl, mix the Rice Krispies, powdered sugar, cocoa, and coconut (if using).
- Over low heat, melt the coconut oil in a saucepan and allow to cool slightly.
- Add to Rice Krispies mixture and stir until well combined.
- Spoon mixture into cupcake liners and refrigerate until firm.
Keep refrigerated until ready to serve. I’m not sure how many it’s supposed to make, but I used 12 regular cupcake liners. You could easily make them smaller and get 24, or use mini liners.
Recipe from my friend, but it’s all over the Internet as well.