
It is officially fall! Every fall my mother-in-law used to make bars called “Fall Harvest Bars” that had candy corn and Crispix Cereal in them. The recipe was from one of those small, monthly cookbook magazines that you find in the grocery store checkout aisle (maybe Pillsbury?). It was a rice crispy cereal bar type recipe, but it was so much better. One year she was unable to find the recipe booklet so I offered to search for it on the internet. I found a few recipes that were close, but not the exact recipe she remembered. There was one recipe that I found that sounded really good, and we both decided we wanted to try it. Although I printed the recipe, neither of us ever made it. You see, about a year after we searched so hard for the recipe, my mother-in-law passed away.
I still haven’t found the exact recipe my mother-in-law used to make. So, I decided to adapt the recipe that we had printed off and had wanted to try. I used Crispix instead of “crispy rice cereal” because that is what my mother-in-law’s recipe used. You could easily change the cereal and/or the candy and completely change these bars for any holiday or season, or to fit your taste. Although not an exact match, it is very similar to what I remember. And like hers, this is not your average rice crispy cereal bar.
print recipe

Ingredients
Instructions
DetailsPrep time: Cook time: Total time: Yield: 48 bars

Fall Harvest Bars
A fall-themed cereal bar with candy corn and peanuts.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup butter, softened
- 1 package yellow cake mix with pudding
- 1 egg
- 3 1/2 cups miniature marshmallows
- 1/2 cup light corn syrup
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
- 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 cups Crispix Cereal
- 2 cups peanuts, lightly salted
- 1 cup candy corn
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350°F.2. Combine the butter, egg, and cake mix in a large bowl until well combined.3. Press cake mix "dough" into the bottom of an ungreased 15"x10"x1" jellyroll pan.4. Bake for 12 -15 minutes or edges are lightly browned.5. Remove from oven, sprinkle marshmallows over hot crust, then bake for an additional 1 - 2 minutes or until the marshmallows have puffed.6. While crust is baking, combine corn syrup, sugar, and brown sugar in a large saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring until it comes to a boil.7. Remove from heat and add the peanut butter and vanilla and stir until smooth.8. Gently stir in cereal, peanuts, and candy corn to coat.9. Spoon over warm crust and marshmallows, then wet your hands and gently press the cereal mixture to spread it over the marshmallows.10. Cool completely, then cut into bars.
Details
The website where I originally found this recipe and printed it from no longer exists. I found similar recipes at Land O Lakes and at Recipe Quick.
Updated
I really like the mix of all the different textures in this bar! You get some grain as well as some candy. Perfect for halloween. Great post!
ReplyDeletex
ReplyDeleteThese look so good, I can't wait to give them a try. What a sweet tribute to your MIL.
ReplyDeleteYum, Jill! I've been brainstorming some kind of fall/halloween candy bark but this sounds awesome!
ReplyDeleteLooks great, I love seeing all of the fall recipes coming from blog land now, a great season.
ReplyDeleteThis looks good... yum!
ReplyDeletethey really do look delicious, and what a nice treat for kids and adults! I know my girls would love these for lunch!
ReplyDeleteThese look so festive! I wish it was Halloween tonight. I love the idea and will be making it later this month. My husband is a huge fan of rice crispy treats so I am sure he will love these too!
ReplyDeletePerfect for the fall, wonder how choc instead of candy corn would taste ~ thinking :)
ReplyDeleteI love these sort of bars...they are addicting! What a perfect Halloween treat...and a nice way to honor your MIL.
ReplyDeleteThis does look like one of those great fall treats to eat while curled up under a throw while watching old movies.
ReplyDeleteIf you figure out what year or month that recipe came from I may have it. I have a lot of those little magazines.
I'm sure your mother-in-law although not here, feels proud that you still think enough of her to recreate a favorite recipe of hers. Your husband as well!
Anything with candy corn like this sounds so good to me! What fun these are!
ReplyDeleteOh Jill, this recipe takes me to sweet heaven! It's so colorful and would be perfect for a Halloween party! Thanks!
ReplyDeleteThis is a lovely recipe. Good luck finding the original recipe...I hope one day you open a cookbook and out it falls. In the meantime, this one is lovely!
ReplyDeleteWhen I read the end of that first paragraph a great sadness came over me. Life really is short... I'm sorry you never got to make these with her. I don't know why that touched me so but it did. This looks like an amazing recipe by the way. Take care. *hugs*
ReplyDeleteWhat's great about these bars are they aren't messy...just place them in ziplock bags and handy snacks are available 24/7.
ReplyDeleteahh, this looks so great! i bet it tastes amazing!
ReplyDeleteThese look SO delicious. thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteGreat looking bars , looks great and sounds delish too , sorry to hear about your mother-in-law .
ReplyDeleteThese are so cute! Love this idea :)!
ReplyDeleteThose bars look so autumn and delicious!
ReplyDeleteI happen to love Crispix, better than Rice crispies. Such a creative recipe and yummy treat, even with cake mix and the cute little candy corn included!
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing, will for sure make this for Halloween, as a fun treat:DDD
These look so yummy! It is so frustrating when you can't find a recipe you love so much. I can't wait to try them.
ReplyDelete-Robyn from http://tipsfromtheheart.blogspot.com
Jill, my heart sank a bit in reading this touching post. Though you and your late MIL never had the chance to share thoughts on this replacement recipe, your personal touch inspired by the memory of the ones she made every year is a sweet gesture indeed. Brava!
ReplyDeleteThese look so yummy! And I really like the picture and presentation! <3
ReplyDeleteI love these! They are so festive and looks so yummy!! I may have to try these out!
ReplyDeleteThese look like "fall" and so yummy, and as always your photography is just amazing!
ReplyDeleteThese just look like so much fun, I love candy corn! Great for fall parties & I love your photo!
ReplyDeleteAnything with candy corn like this sounds so good to me! What fun these are!
ReplyDeleteJust made these last night for a get together, they were a huge hit! The recipe makes a ton! And be warned, they are super addicting!
ReplyDeleteGlad they were a hit!
DeleteI bookmarked this a year ago and rediscovered it today. So glad you made it despite the sadness surrounding the baking, and I hope good memories come from it. A question-- how do you think this would travel, say, over to Afghanistan? If you were shipping them, would you individually wrap each bar, or wrap whole sections, or bake in a disposable 13x9 pan instead? It looks like it won't dry out in a couple of days and may last longer, so I'd love to try it.
ReplyDeleteThanks Kirsten. I would think they would be fine shipped, especially if you wrap them individually. The tops are kind of like rice crispy bars, but they do have a cookie "crust" on the bottom. I would not be concerned with them drying out.
Delete