Holiday Balls

 

3

tablespoons butter or margarine

40

large marshmallows

1/2

teaspoon green food color

1/2

teaspoon vanilla

4

cups Cheerios® cereal

Small gumdrops, sliced or cut into pieces

• 1 Place a sheet of waxed paper on the kitchen counter.
• 2 Place the butter and 32 of the marshmallows in a 3-quart saucepan. Heat over low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture is smooth. Remove the saucepan from the heat.
• 3 Stir in the food color and vanilla until the mixture is evenly colored. Stir in the cereal until it is evenly coated.
• 4 Lightly spray your hands with cooking spray. For each ball, shape about 1/2 cup cereal mixture into a ball around 1 of the remaining marshmallows. Press the gumdrop pieces into the balls to decorate. Cool completely, about 1 hour. Store the balls in a loosely covered container.