Homemade Star Crunch Recipe

by
Stella Parks Editor Emeritus
Stella Parks is a CIA-trained baking nerd and pastry wizard, dubbed one of America's Best New Pastry Chefs by Food & Wine. She was the pastry editor at Serious Eats from 2016 to 2019.
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Stella Parks
updated Apr. 15, 2020
20160424-star-crunch-no-bake-cookies-vicky-wasik-12.jpg
Vicky Wasik

Why It Works

  • Due to its shallow depth, this caramel is easier to judge by color than by temperature, so aim for a light amber hue.
  • Chilled cream shocks the caramel to halt cooking.
  • A final cooking temperature of 245°F gives the caramel a thick and chewy texture.
  • The dairy in milk chocolate gives the cookies a fudge-like texture.

With gooey homemade caramel, creamy milk chocolate, and crunchy rice, these no-bake cookies are as satisfying as a candy bar, but way easier to make. Just boil up a pot of sugar water until it turns thick and golden like clover honey, then add some chilled cream and simmer a few minutes more. Once it's cool, stir in a handful of chopped milk chocolate and some Rice Krispies, and you're done! The hardest part is simply waiting for the molten "batter" to set.

Recipe Facts

3.5

(13)

Active: 30 mins
Total: 2 hrs
Makes: 15 cookies

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Ingredients

  • 4 ounces water (1/2 cup; 115g)
  • 7 ounces sugar (1 cup; 200g)
  • 1/2 teaspoon (2g) Diamond Crystal kosher salt; other salts may contain additives that induce crystallization
  • 10 ounces heavy cream (1 1/4 cup; 280g), straight from the fridge
  • 3 ounces milk chocolate, minimum 26% cocoa butter (2/3 cup; 85g), very finely chopped (see note)
  • 1 1/2 ounces Rice Krispies (1 1/2 cups; 45g)

Directions

  1. Combine water, sugar, and salt in a 3-quart stainless steel saucier over medium-high heat. Stir occasionally with a fork until sugar dissolves and syrup is bubbling hard, about 2 minutes. Stop stirring and simmer until syrup turns pale gold, like clover honey, roughly 8 minutes. Meanwhile, measure out cream so it will be ready to add at a moment's notice.

  2. When syrup turns pale gold, add cream and reduce heat to medium-low. Cook, stirring constantly with a heat-resistant spatula, until the foam subsides and the boiling caramel seems more molten than foamy, about 6 minutes. Clip-on a digital thermometer and continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until caramel registers 245°F, about 5 minutes more.

  3. Immediately transfer caramel to a heat-resistant bowl and allow to cool until it registers 140°F on a digital thermometer, about 40 minutes. Stir in milk chocolate until fully melted, then fold in rice. Divide into about 15 one-ounce (2-tablespoon) portions and arrange on a parchment-lined half sheet pan or cutting board, then flatten into disks with the palm of your hand. Let stand at room temperature until fully set, about 1 hour, and transfer to an airtight container with a sheet of parchment between each layer. Star Crunch will keep up to a week at room temperature, or a month if refrigerated.

Special equipment

3-quart stainless steel saucier, heat-resistant spatula, clip-on digital thermometer

Notes

This recipe requires good-quality milk chocolate, free from artificial ingredients and added fats such as palm oil. Look for brands with no less than 26% cocoa butter, or see our favorite supermarket milk chocolates for baking.

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