Lotus Seed "Rice Krispie" Treats

It took two adults and a lot of Googling to make Rice Krispies treats the other night. And since I'm pretty sure the actual commercials on TV show children of about...I don't know, 48 hours after birth easily making Rice Krispies treats this was a little troublesome to the pride of my husband and myself. My name is Carlene. I work in the food world and I literally have no idea how to make Rice Krispie treats. 

So let me just back up a second and get back to why the dietitian and her husband had basically marshmallow and butter and some sort of cereal product in the kitchen sometime after 8 PM (I'm like 70% sure there were margaritas involved but....). Like many things we make, after a trip to a new Asian Market, we came how with what we were preeeetty sure were puffed rice balls. The label said "phool makhana" and we had no idea what the hell that was, but we were thinking "Yes. Definitely puffed rice". 

Wrong.

We bought puffed lotus seeds.

And naturally our first thought was: RICE KRISPIE LOTUS SEED TREATS! I mean...obviously. 

Puffed lotus seeds actually taste pretty terrible plain out of the package. If I have to give you a taste and texture equivalent, it's basically 'packing peanut'. So again, after some Googling (bless you Google), the husband found that really, these are either toasted or added to curry. Bring on the toasting. We finally got it right and are presenting unto you all cardamom, ginger and lemon Rice Krispie (not at all) treats...made from puffed lotus seeds. And they are seriously awesome and hip- restaurant-level amuse bouche material. 

I also want to touch on puffed lotus seed nutrition for a quick second, should any of you have questions about that. Five grams is about 30 calories so it's lots of volume for a little. They don't have the same fiber you would get from something like air popped popcorn, but they're pretty interesting. 

Puffed Lotus Seed marshmallow treats

Makes 1 medium batch

/// Ingredients /// 

• 5 cups puffed lotus seeds (aka fox nuts aka phool makhana), toasted in a pan with 4 teaspoons veg oil
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon 
•  1/4 teaspoon cardamom
• 1/4 teaspoon ginger, powdered
• 1/4 teaspoon, sea salt 
• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon zest
• 1 Tablespoon brown sugar
• 4 oz marshmallows 
• 2 Tablespoons butter

/// Directions /// To roast lotus seeds, heat vegetable oil in a skillet on medium high and add lotus in batches if necessary. Stir constantly until the seeds are light brown and remove. To test one, pop it in your mouth. It should be CRISPY and not squishy or styrofoam like. In a pot melt butter and stir in marshmallows, mixing thoroughly. Smaller marshmallows make it easier to get them to combine, but we buy the big ones because HELLO, we are using the extra for s'mores. You can always tear up large ones. Fold in the spices and salt to the marshmallow mixture which should be totally melted and molten. Fold in lotus seeds (if you need a larger container, switch everything to a large mixing bowl). Use a spatula and flatten out on a baking sheet. Sprinkle with brown sugar and lemon zest on top and let it cool. EAT WITHIN 6 or so hours. These are not crispy if you let them sit overnight so for quality of crunch, I say as soon as they're cool: have at it. 

Have you come across puffed lotus seeds before? How did you eat them? OR What is the most bad ass marshmallow treat recipe you've ever seen?