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Caramel? Like caramel apples? I don't have a recipe at hand, but don't those harden to a shell when dry?

I also made these recently, came across them on another blog, I wish I could remember which, to give credit, but it's basically this recipe: http://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/no-bake-peanut-butter-chocolate-squares-recipe

I used only one stick of butter, and about half the amount of confectioner's sugar, and they still turned out great. Good for no baking!

@Jerzee, rice krispy treats are always a hit, I just wanted to be different. Hmm, maybe I could mold them into balls and put them on a skewer!

@cityminx, I will experiment with caramel. Caramellows!

@pooch, I am in "the valley" (think Moon Unit Zappa) in Los Angeles. It is a dry heat and feels like about 95 humid degrees in New York, but as you say heat is heat. When the wind blows, it feels like a hair dryer is pointed your way. I really miss seasons.

Thanks for the suggestions!

LearP. That's hot. I don't have the heat on yet, and it's 60 in the house this morning. Wish we could teletransport and change places for about 5 minutes.

I'm thinking maybe the caramel will be warm enough to melt the marshmallows?

Next time just lay your kebabs on a bed of graham crackers and you have Arizona s'mores!

ugh. i have a similar story once when i brought "birds nest cookies" to a picnic in super hot weather...and it led to The Messiest Day Of All Time.

Just like everyone else, I IMMEDIATELY thought Rice Krispie treats.

But, to shake it up, you could also try treats with other kinds of cereal that aren't necessarily rice-like--I think Golden Grahams would be nice, and I know kids like Cinnamon Toast Crunch as well. Candy like @chiff and others have said in the treats would be fun.

However, I have to say that in that heat I really wouldn't feel like cake or sweets at all. Another possibility is to bake something quickly or buy it, freeze it, then serve it with fruit--like pound cake or angel food cake.

Where is this being held? How will any of the treats hold up?

Taste is SECONDARY? Woman, get a hold of yourself! Don't embarrass yourself, or worse, your kids, by being the mom whose goodies don't taste as good as they look. So:

Unless you want to go to a grocery store and a craft store, go to WalMart. Yes, WalMart. It's the only store I know of that sells almond bark on the grocery side and Wilton Candy Melts in the craft section. And while you're there, pick up some Wilton cellophane candy bags or a roll of clear cellophane.

Almond bark comes in white and chocolate, costs less than $3 a pound and it tastes good. Wilton Candy Melts come in all colors (think school colors, rah, rah), tastes blah (you add your own flavoring oil) and costs about $4 for 12 oz. Both are easy to work with and will stand up better in heat than other kinds of chocolate.

Melt the pound of bark with 1 level tablespoon of shortening (not butter, margarine or oil). Dip the top 2/3 of the marshmallow skewers, Rice Krispie treats, pretzel rods, or clean, dry strawberries into the melted bark; dip graham crackers, Oreos, or PB and Ritz sandwiches entirely. Gently shake off as much bark as you can. Roll the skewers into the sprinkles (don't sprinkle the sprinkles). A thin coating and thick sprinkles should do the trick, but I'd also do what @pooch recommended and transport in a cooler. Slide a cellophane bag over each skewer, but don't tie the bottom tightlky closed. The treats should be able to breathe. Don't even think of using plastic wrap.

If you use caramels, use the Kraft brand and don't add milk to thin it out. Make turtle graham crackers, turtle marshmallows, turtle RK treats, turtle Oreos, turtle pretzels.

Or make these really, really good peanut butter balls: Stir together one stick of soft butter, two c. peanut butter and one pound of powdered sugar; add three cups of Rice Krispies and blend gently; roll into one-inch balls. Melt a half a block of paraffin (found in the canning section of any grocery store) and add a 12 oz. bag of chocolate chips and a regular size Hershey bar; stir until well blended. Dip peanut butter balls into chocolate, coating them completely; let cool on waxed paper or parchment. When firm, place in mini-cupcake liners or candy cups; put five balls in a cellophane bag and use curling ribbon in school colors to tie each bag closed. Makes about 100.

The chocolate chip/paraffin mix is the cheater's cheapskate way of getting out of tempering chocolate. It works, but it's not quality. You know what, though? I've tried dipping the peanut butter balls into ganache and into some very fine chocolate that I spent hours tempering, and I think they tasted better dipped into the cheap stuff.

Arizona s'mores! Very good idea, @lemonfair. Marshmallow skewers rolled in chocolate, then in graham cracker crumbs that look like desert sand. Honey, you should bottle it before anyone else does.