I do not usually post two days in a row, but in this case it is worth working double time, triple time, over time to bring you treats. Halloween is sneaking up very quickly & even though the temperatures are soaring over here we are celebrating Fall in a big way.
The folks over at General Mills & Betty Crocker are hosting the Big G Halloween recipe party. The recipe needs to include a Big G cereal. Since I don’t do the sugary stuff the choice was obvious –  Cheerios would be my super star ingredient. I am a former graduate of the Cheerios University. What kid in the 70’s & 80’s didn’t live on Cheerios?
I combined  these salty, savory little O’s with chocolate, dates & almond butter and put the mixture in silicone pumpkin molds. They are  tartelettes meet cookie kind of treats. They have a nice crumb and are topped with a creamy ganache. Eat with a fork or hold in your hand. Hello yum & hello fun!
As you guys know I am a big fan of Scharffen Berger chocolate so I melted up a bunch of that to give these treats a elegant twist. I like to use darker chocolate of at least 62% Cacao Semi-sweet or 70% Cacao Bittersweet. You could use milk chocolate or even white if you prefer. As long as it’s melted and you can put in in your cute molds then use what you like. It’s Halloween, just have fun!
While perusing around Micheals the other day I stumbled upon very cute Silicone Pumpkin Molds from Wilton and had to grab one. You will be seeing me use these a lot on the next month for baked and no-bake goodies.
What I love about this dessert idea is that there is minimal mess, hardly and preparation and it is no bake. Quick & easy. Other than melting some chocolate and taking out the food processor this is a no brainer.
It is also not the most guilt ridden treat out there. I tried to stick with my somewhat healthy ingredient list. The crust/dough is made from pulverized dates, almond butter and Cheerios. I have done a similar crust like this before, you might remember my No Bake Chocolate Pecan Tarts.
Have you ever used Cheerios in a recipe?
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Variations
- Add a pinch of cinnamon, nutmeg, pumpkin pie spice or chai spice to your chocolate or dough mix.
- If you don’t have Cheerios you can try grinding another unsweetened cereal in your food processor.
- Instead of dark chocolate, use milk or white chocolate.
- Instead of almond butter you can try peanut butter, sunflower seed butter, pecan butter, etc.
- Add some extract to your chocolate for added flavor: peppermint, orange, coconut, etc.
Big G Halloween Recipe Links
- Cheerio Peanut Butter Pumpkins One Particular Kitchen
- Friendly Ghost Cheerio Cookies Cookie Madness
- Little Hobgoblin Sundaes Cheeky Kitchen
- Puffy Eyeball Truffles Gourmet Mom on the Go
- Reeses Puff Crunch Monster Eyeballs Picky-Palate
*MarlaMeridith.com Full Disclosure: I am submitting this recipe to General Mills/Betty Crocker as content for the homepage of BettyCrocker.com for Halloween. Betty Crocker in partnership with Big G, are looking for fun, creative Halloween treats using their popular Big G cereal brands. As a participant, they are sending me a $50 gift card. The thoughts, recipe and photos are property of MarlaMeridith.com and are original content of Marla Meridith.
Marla, I’m amazed. My middle son, who is an adult FireFighter, still eats at least 2 bowls of Cheerios a day – it’s a family inside laugh with us how much cereal he eats. I’m SO going to make these and surprise him. Thanks for the post.
Yum! These look awesome. 🙂
Those look so cute and delicious! A great Halloween treat.
Cheers,
Rosa
These are so creative! I love them! What a great idea!
These look incredible Marla!
These sound so good. I love Scharffen Berger too. Definitely my favorite baking chocolate. Making me crave some chocolate right now!
Too cute!
Such a wonderful way to enjoy a healthy treat. I was definitely a Cherrios kid in fact, I seem to remember having a Cheerios tee also. I’d love to make these with my kiddos. Thanks for the fun Halloween treat idea!
These really are absolutely adorable and I can practically taste them. Great post girl!
These are so cute – and look absolutely delicious!
These are so cute, Marla! And yes, even though I was more a kid of the 90’s, I did – and still do – have one bowl of Cheerios every day. It was a habit my mom grew up with and passed on down. She even kept them in a little baggy in her purse if I was feeling “peckish”, and I have no doubt I’ll do the same for my future kids!
omg! I love this one! Great job! All of my favorite ingredients! I’m tweeting this now!
That is such a cool idea. My kids live off Cheerios too, or whatever looks like them and is even healthier.
Me, being a German, hardly knows about Halloween. But my son has been thinking about his dress-ups for the past few weeks. Therefore, no way for me to avoid it. Will try and make these for Halloween!!!
In fact, I just thought about it, there will be good for my marathon training too. One more reason to make them even earlier!! Thanks for sharing.
So cute! I haven’t eaten Cheerios in ages, but this looks like a great way to start.
Too cute Marla!
These treats would surely be a hit in the kids’ classrooms too. The teacher’s would even approve since there’s not a lot of sugar in them.
I love Halloween inspired cooking, such fun – even for big kids 🙂
Anna: You are so right, these treats are perfect for big kids too. My hubs can’t get enough of these tarts. When you use a really good chocolate it ups the gourmet factor. You would never know those are Cheerios in there. They blend so well with the Almond Butter and sweet dates.
Anja: Love that your son is getting all ready for Halloween and you guys don’t even celebrate it in Germany. So cute! He still deserves his treats, right??!!
Good job making a fairly healthy nutritious and boo-tiful treat, Marla! I love cheerios in homemade nuts and bolts. Not at all healthy with all of the butter poured over the mix, but soooooo yummy.
🙂
valerie
This recipe is awesome! I heart Cheerios 🙂
I love Cheerios & Chocolate too!!! you sons t-shirt is too cute!!!
What a fun idea! The pumpkins are too cute and that shirt too! great job 🙂
These look so cute! My husband loves cheerios, and I just found those new chocolate flavored cheerios, too good.
A lot of us American “kids” who grew up in the 50s also got seriously stuck on Cheerios. I still love the darned things, straight out of the box. And I’d love these treats of yours any old time of year. Easy, quick, fun, and boo-licious!
Girl, do creative juices flow out of your pores?
Oh wow, this is too fabulous. I love the flavours and actually even though its child friendly, its kind of an awesome grown up treat too. I am bookmarking this one!
Have a wonderful weekend.
*kisses* HH
A very innovative chocolate pumpkin treat!
You are genius! What a simple yet elegant yet YUMMY idea!! Great pictures too!!
These are SO SO cute and I love how healthy they are!!!!! YUM!
You are so creative with your Cheerios!
I actually swung by Michael’s at The District the other day and picked up some of the “autumn molds.” Now you’re inspiring me to do more with them than collect dust.
[K]
Oh, these are so great! Adorable… and healthy? Perfect!
You have such a lovely site; I’m so happy I found you!
Mary xo
Delightful Bitefuls
These are just amazing…wow! Love them!! Love how well you used those fun molds!
These are very cute!
I have so many memories of throwing cheerios all over the kitchen floor when I was little. Good stuff. These look like fantastic treats for halloween!
What a fun idea for Halloween!
I love these! So cute! And they sound super yummy. Cheerios are pretty popular in my house and I love that these are healthy little treats. Can’t wait to give these a try for my munchkins. Thanks Marla!
I’m not much of a baker myself, I am one to always change a recipe, but that doesn’t always work with baking. These look delicious and healthy at the same time. And your trip to Betty Crocker looked like a blast!
Marla, what a clever idea for Halloween and I’m amazed how easy it is! It looks much harder than that! 🙂
Nigella: You are right, these treats could not be simpler to prepare and they do taste like so much “more” effort has been put into them. Simple & quick when we don’t have the time or desire to measure flour, sugar, baking powders etc.
WOW!!
This sounds totally doable!! and very cute too! I bet my kids would love them 🙂
Who can say no to these tarts!! They are definitely the best halloween treats for kids! 😉
What a fun treat for Halloween! I think they are pretty healthy…dark chocolate and Cheerios…that counts in my book!
These look yummy, Marla. Perfect for a quick treat for the family.
Can’t wait to meet you next week at BlogHer Food!
Wow, these looks FANTASTIC! I love desserts with a thick ganache topping like that and a crunchy bottom. Good luck with the contest. You’d have my vote 🙂
I hate cheerios. Never got why ppl like that. But THIS?! Holy crap. Marla, you would make puke look delicious. You truly have a gift with food 3x.
I just watched somebody make treats similar to this last night. Unfortunately the ingredients for the bottom were oats, corn syrup and crisco. Now you created a healthy, yummy, and innovative alternative that won’t pollute everybody. Love it! The pumpkin shapes are adorable! xox, andrea
Your son is so handsome and getting so big… I can’t believe it! I want to hug him and I want his t-shirt too.
Andrea: I am sure my little guy would be willing to share his tee shirt but not his Cheerios Tarts. Miss you girl! You gotta move back to the OC so you can help me test our new recipes.
This sounds delish for adults too!
These are so cute, Marla! I would love to make them with my niece…she would have so much fun with them! That outfit our son is wearing is adorable!
These look great! Any idea what olther kinds of molds/pan would work?
Thanks
What a fun treat! That would be the perfect entry for our Halloween Recipe Contest! You can read all about it here. I hope you decide to enter it!
My kids used to be major cheerios fans; eating boxes and boxes of the stuff; wish I had this recipe then! Love your crust recipe, I could eat that alone!
O! O! O! for these incredible looking Cherrios tarts. Fantastic idea. Seeing as it contains cereal I’m betting they are a good breakfast item too!
Great recipe! Loved seeing your recipe featured on Betty Crocker’s website 🙂
What a cute treat! Any other ways to do it without dates? We’re not big dates or raisin people over here 😉