Fiction-Food Café: Froot Loop Treats & Lemonade

As Yasmin had promised, there wasn't much of a selection in the cabinet beneath the kitchen sink, just bread, stale crackers, a few cans of tuna fish, and a jar of store-bought peanut butter. After digging behind some cleaning supplies, however, Alex discovered a half-filled box of Froot Loops only slightly past its expiration date.
"Look at this!" he exclaimed, showing the box to the uninterested cat. "My favorite! If it was Cap'n Crunch or Grape Nuts, I might have given up all hope, but this makes me think that everything might end up okay!" He popped a handful of Froot Loops into his mouth; they were stale but delicious.

– Nightbooks by J. A. White

Nightbooks by A. J. White (author of the Thickety series) is a wonderfully creepy modern folktale filled with mystery, magic, storytelling, and lots of food. Froot Loops play a part throughout the book once they are discovered, and homemade lemonade is also important in the story. I love Rice Krispy treats, so I thought trying Froot Loops treats would be a fun snack to go along with the book (plus, we had a half-filled box, slightly past its expiration date too so...) accompanied by a simple homemade lemonade. This would be the perfect treat for a Nightbooks book club! Check out my pumpkin pie oatmeal raisin cookies and vegetarian kusa mihshi (stuffed zucchini) inspired by Nightbooks, too!

Marshmallow Froot Loop Treats

Ingredients:
1/4 C Coconut Oil or Butter
10 oz. Bag Mini Marshmallows (~4 packed cups)
4-5 C Froot Loop Cereal (depending on the cereal density you want)

Directions:
Lightly coat an ~8" x 8" (I used an 8" x 6") baking dish with butter or coconut oil, or spray with non-stick spray. You can also lay a large sheet of plastic wrap in the dish & coat that instead.
Lightly coat a piece of parchment paper that is the same size as the dish.

In a large pot on medium-low heat, melt the butter or coconut oil.
Add in the marshmallows & heat, stirring often, until melted (some marshmallow lumps are fine).
Turn off the stove & stir in the cereal until evenly combined.

Transfer the mixture to the prepared dish & distribute evenly.
Lay the coated parchment paper on top (coated-side down) & press down to compact the mixture a bit & level it out.
Cool on the counter for about 30 minutes or so to solidify, or speed things up in the fridge.

Invert the dish onto a large cutting board, or if you used plastic wrap, pull up the edges to remove the treat block. Use a large, sharp knife to slice into pieces of your desired size.

Homemade Lemonade

Ingredients:
1/2 C Lemon Juice (~2-3 Lemons)
4 C Cold Water
1/3-1/2 C Agave Syrup

Directions:
Stir all ingredients together in a pitcher (start with 1/3 C agave). Adjust amounts to taste.
Optionally garnish with thin lemon slices &/or fresh mint.