Dried cherry and white chocolate Rice Krispie treat hearts

I started my Valentine's Day treats a little early this year.  I guess less than 3 weeks before Valentine's Day isn't technically early, but it's early for me.  Especially because I still owe you guys that Salted Caramel Apple Pie from Thanksgiving....like, gulp, 2 months ago...

But on Monday night there was an impending blizzard in NYC and there was the potential (thought let's face it, with my luck it wasn't going to happen) for a snow day on Tuesday.  And I had some goodies around the apartment (and a last minute trip to the grocery store to prepare for the impending blizzard yielded a bag of marshmallows and a 5 lb bag of flour)...so I set out to make a yummy Valentine's Day treat for my Valentine.

The answer came in the form of heart shaped dried cherry and white chocolate chip Rice Krispie Treats.  And the added bonus was that I snacked on all...of....the...scraps!  Well, not the added bonus for my waistline, but for me in general, because these are delicious!

Dried Cherry and White Chocolate Chip Rice Krispie Treats (Heart-Shaped for Valentine's Day)

Ingredients:

3 Tbsp butter (unsalted)
1 bag large marshmallows (about 40)
5 cups Rice Krispies Cereal
2/3 cup dried cherries (I used dried tart cherries, since that's what I had on hand)
2/3 cups white chocolate chips

Directions:

Spray a rimmed baking sheet with cooking spray.
Set aside.

Melt the butter in a large microwave safe bowl.
Add the marshmallows and toss to coat in the butter.
Microwave again, on medium-high heat, for 30 seconds.
Mix and return to microwave.
Microwave again for 30-60 seconds until the marshmallows are melted and mix easily.

Add the rice krispies, dried cherries, and white chocolate chips.  (I added mine in 3 batches, to ensure that they all mixed up well.)
Turn the Rice Krispie-marshmallow mixture onto the greased baking tray.
Working quickly, press down the Rice Krispie treats into a 1-1.5 inch layer.  (I used a piece of wax paper sprayed with cooking spray.0
Do not worry if the mixture doesn't cover the whole tray.  Don't make them too thin.

Again, working quickly, while the mixture is still warm, use a heart shaped cookie cutter to cut out the hearts (it's easier to do when they're a little warm, because when the chocolate chips harden again, it's harder to cut through the treats.)

Remove the hearts and place them on a piece of wax paper to finish chilling.

Eat the scraps, all of them.  Because they're so good.  And this way you can keep some for your Valentine :)

Happy Valentine's Day!