Chocolate Honey Squares

The after-school snack is a pivotal time of day when you are eight.  A bad day at school can be transformed by the quality of the after-school snack.  While my eight year old self rarely turned down any kind of snack (unless it was, let's say, a tuna fish sandwich), some snacks are most definitely 5 star. While homemade chocolate chip oatmeal cookies hot out of the oven reign supreme, saltine crackers topped with peanut butter and rainbow sprinkles are good in a pinch. These, however, were one of the best after-school snacks ever.  This blew my mind when I was a kid - chocolate rice krispy squares? Mom sure raised the bar for snacks that day.  I believe this recipe originally comes from a Fry's cocoa recipe booklet - a well-used, stained slip of paper - the trademarks of a great recipe.

Chocolate Honey Squares

1/3 cup butter
1/2 cup cocoa
1/3 cup honey
3 cups mini marshmallows or 30 large marshmallows
1 tsp vanilla
4 cups rice cereal

Melt butter in a large saucepan.
Blend in cocoa.
Stir in honey and marshmallows.
Cook over low heat, stirring constantly until mixture is smooth.
Remove from heat.
Stir in vanilla.
Add rice cereal, and stir until well combined.
Press lightly into a greased 8 or 9 inch square cake pan.
Cool, cut into squares.