Quick Candy Nests

A simple twist to your basic marshmallow crispie treats will have the kids chirping in a matter of minutes. Perfect for spring or easter treats. They’re even made with whole grains (and some fat and sugar ;-)). You’ll need a 10oz box of original, full-size Shredded Wheat, a bag of mini marshmallows, a 4oz stick of butter, Whoppers Robin Eggs (yeah baby) or Jelly Belly Jelly Beans, a big nonstick pot, a cookie sheet, and a few young helpers.

Rub a little butter on a cookie sheet. Cut 1 tablespoon of butter off and cut it into enough pieces that each of your helpers will have one when the time comes. Put the smaller bits aside, drop the rest into a large pot on medium low heat.

While the butter melts, show your helpers how to break the shredded wheat biscuits into twig-size pieces. Each box of shredded wheat comes with smaller bags of cereal. If they’ll gently smash the cereal in the bag, it will come out just right without breaking the ends and spraying bits of shredded wheat all over the kitchen (we learned about contents under pressure from one of our more enthused helpers).

Once the butter has melted, add the mini marshmallows and stir until everything is melted and creamy. Then take the pot off heat, and add the cereal. While you stir the cereal to cover it all with the sticky stuff, have your helpers coat their clean hands with the leftover butter. Making sure it’s cool enough to handle, give each child a golf-ball-to-tennis-ball sized glob of the cereal mixture to form into a nest. Let them be creative. Or if you don’t have helpers, just press each ball together so it’s nice and ‘glued’ then flatten it on the pan, pressing up the sides enough to hold a few candy eggs. Let them cool off while you tell a spring story, and enjoy 😉