Food as metaphor - Smore's edition

yum for days 

The thing about deep, introspective people is that to them, everything is a metaphor- even food. It can't just be a cupcake - it has to be the over-hyped yet minimized version of their frosted childhood. It can't just be a box of chocolates - it has to be a heart-shaped prison housing unresolved trust issues.  
On the left is an instragram post from my buddy, James. 
In the same way, this certainly couldn't have just been a pretzel for James.
James and I talked shortly after he took this picture and he mentioned that my gluttonous food grams I had been posting only highlighted the darkness of his own.

Oh, look who stopped battling the Cloud of Darkness 

After reminding him about the errors in judging someone's life by their IG feed, I thought more about the metaphors hiding within my own kitchen.


And that bring us to....... the S'mores Rice Krispy treat.
They are sticky and sweet, homey and comforting. But underneath there is a secret: it was made in 15 minutes in a home that has not been feeling very warm and squishy.
Let me set the scene: 
It was our first snowday of the 2017 school year. My 7-year-old son left me in the kitchen to stir melting marshmallow in my own saying "cooking is boring". In the living room my husband was 5 hours deep into Final Fantasy IV, totally engrossed in a life that is not our own. My life was not feeling sweet and my home was not feeling too "homey". The thing is that once these these bars were done and I started nomming down on them, the two lackluster members of my home slithered in the kitchen with hands out and mouths open. 
 P.S. On a semi-related note, one time I turned an ex-boyfriend's firm and uncomfortable mattress into a metaphor.  Spoiler alert: our relationship didn't last long.
That being said, on to the recipe.  

S'mores Rice Krispy Treats

4 Tbsp butter
6 cups marshmallows
1 tsp vanilla
3 cups rice krispies
2 cups Golden Grahams
3/4 cup ripped up marshmallows
3/4 cup milk chocolate chocolate chips

Ganache Topping 

• 1/4 cup unsalted butter
• 1 heaping cup milk chocolate chips

Method

Prepare a 9x12 inch baking dish with some spay oil or butter (i.e. rub dat dish all down)

In a large pot melt the butter and marshmallows together and add the vanilla and then the Rice Krispies and Golden Grahams

Let the mixture cool slightly and mix in the chocolate chips and marshmallow bits 

Note: if your mixture is too warm your chocolate will melt 

Spray your hand with some oil and press the mixture into the baking dish

Put the dish into the freezer for 10 minutes

While that is chillen' melt your butter in the microwave and add your chocolate chips. Stir them to melt. 

Take the baking dish out of the freezer and pour the chocolate overtop. Smooth everything around and drop/press some more marshmallows and some crunched up graham crackers into the chocolate. At this point, I put the dish under my broiler for a few seconds to char up the marshmallows, but be careful you don't burn your chocolate layer.

Toss the dish into the fridge or freezer until everything is set (10-30 minutes). 

Pull your treats out of the dish as one big brick and use a hot knife to cut them into pretty squares.