Coconut Chex Treats Recipe - Vibing with the Food Idiot (Free Edition)

Summary

Too Many Tabs with Pearlmania500

Episode: Coconut Chex Treats Recipe - Vibing with the Food Idiot (Free Edition)
Date: December 3, 2025
Hosts: Pearlmania500 (Alex, “Food Idiot”) & Mrs. Pearlmania

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Episode Overview

This special “Vibing with the Food Idiot” edition breaks out from its usual paywall home to bring listeners a holiday treat: Mrs. Pearlmania walks Alex (“the Food Idiot”) through her festive, no-bake Coconut Chex Treats—her twist on a classic with coconut caramel and chocolate. The recipe is a riff on an iconic Girl Scout cookie (hinted at, not named outright for copyright reasons), and the episode is peppered with comedic banter, practical cooking tips for kitchen novices, and nostalgic family memories. The vibe: warm, irreverent, and encouraging for even the most hapless home cook.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

Why This Recipe?

• Classic, With a Twist: Mrs. Pearlmania wanted a new holiday spin on her beloved Peanut Butter Chex Treats, this time featuring coconut and caramel for those who can’t or don’t eat peanut butter.
• Nostalgia & Family: Aimed to capture the flavors of Alex’s favorite (unnamed) Girl Scout cookie.
• Food Allergy Sidebar: Discussion on nut and coconut allergies; coconut is technically a tree nut, but differs from peanut allergies ([03:10]).

Ingredient Rundown (07:41–14:30)

Mrs. Pearlmania patiently lists every ingredient, clarifying possible confusions for total beginners:

• Unsweetened coconut flakes (2 cups): Crucial for flavor without unwanted sugar.
• Butter (one stick/eight tbsp): Salted recommended, but not vital.
• Marshmallows (one bag, regular cork-sized): Avoid jumbo or mini sizes.
• Kosher salt: For flavor balance, not iodized.
• Caramel sauce (1/2 cup from a tub, not syrup!): Buy in the produce section near apples, never use “caramel topping” from the ice cream aisle ([09:40–10:50]).
• Caramel candies (bag of Kraft caramels): For decorative drizzle.
• Rice Chex cereal (8 cups/one box): Vital for structure and crunch.
• Bittersweet chocolate bar (or chips): For the decorative chocolate “zippy” finish.

Notable Quote
“...and in your brain, you’re gonna say, ‘I want the sweet ones because it’s a sweet treat.’ No, we have many other ways we’re getting sugar into this.”
—Mrs. Pearlmania [07:49]

Tools & Prep (14:54–18:01)

• Sheet pan/cookie tray: For shaping and cooling.
• Big pot (‘spaghetti pot’, 6 quart): For mixing and melting.
• Wooden spoon or rubber spatula: For stirring sticky mixtures.
• Parchment paper or PAM spray: For lining the tray—light spray only, but parchment preferred ([17:00–20:40]).
• Paper towels: For wiping coconut residue.
• Knife: For slicing butter.

Step-by-Step Cooking Process

1. Toast the Coconut ([21:16–22:40])

• Toast unsweetened coconut flakes over medium-low heat, stirring, until light brown (about 5 minutes).
• Pour onto a plate to cool; wipe pot clean with paper towel to avoid burnt coconut residue.

Pro Tip:
“The oil is going to release, the kitchen’s going to smell like toasted coconut.”
—Mrs. Pearlmania [22:11]

2. Melt Butter & Marshmallows ([24:04–24:52])

• Slice butter stick into eight pieces for even melting.
• Melt in pot over medium-low heat, add whole bag of marshmallows, stir until fluffy.

3. Combine the Sweets ([25:09–26:33])

• Add a generous “claw machine” pinch of kosher salt (demonstrated humorously) [25:32].
• Add 1/2 cup caramel sauce (the apple-dipping kind), stir until smooth.

4. Add the Coconut ([26:36–27:11])

• Crumble toasted coconut in by hand for better distribution, stir to coat in melted mix.

5. Dump in the Chex ([27:25–28:09])

• Add 8 cups rice Chex, stirring to coat every piece.
• Alex gets literal, reminding listeners to “open the bag inside the box,” for beginner clarity.

6. Spread the Mixture ([31:58–33:13])

• Pour the gooey mix onto the lined sheet pan.
• Gently spread into an inch-thick layer—don’t press down! It keeps the treats light.

7. Let Cool ([34:04])

• Allow to sit for about an hour to set before adding finishing touches.

8. The Decorative Topping—Chocolate & Caramel Drizzles ([34:38–38:25])

• Melt half a bittersweet chocolate bar in a bowl, microwave in 30-second bursts; drizzle over with a fork for “zippy” lines.
• Unwrap 6–7 caramel squares, melt in microwave (melt much faster than chocolate!), then drizzle caramel in the opposite direction for a festive look.

Notable Quote “The prongs … make very thin lines. I thought you had like a bag or something … no, I used a fork.”
—Food Idiot & Mrs. Pearlmania [36:09–36:14]

9. Final Cooling and Serving ([38:25–end])

• Allow toppings to set before slicing and serving.
• Caution: be light with the caramel drizzle; too much can cause dental mishaps ([38:28–39:35]).

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Coconut confusion:
  “I’ve never thought of coconuts as a nut. I’ve always thought of them as more of a hairy melon.”
  —Food Idiot [03:27]
• Salted butter reasoning:
  “Because remember, this is caramel. And what’s really good on caramel?”
  —Mrs. Pearlmania
  “Salt.”
  —Food Idiot ([08:37–08:40])
• PAM vs. parchment paper debate:
  “Pam is right. Pam. The world was better when everybody used Pam.”
  —Food Idiot [17:27]
• Sticky treat imagery:
  “We’re treating the Chex as if they’re a villain at the end of a sci fi movie that’s been shoved into a vat of molten lava.”
  —Food Idiot [31:41]
• Dental hazard warning:
  “There was a moment where I took a bite of one earlier, and I was like, oh, I’m not confident in that tooth.”
  —Food Idiot [39:15]

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Key Timestamps for Recipe Steps

• [07:41] – Full ingredient list
• [14:54] – Tools rundown
• [21:16] – Toast coconut flakes
• [24:04] – Melt butter & marshmallows
• [25:09] – Add salt and caramel sauce
• [26:36] – Add coconut
• [27:25] – Add Chex
• [31:58] – Spread mixture on tray (don’t press down)
• [34:04] – Cool for an hour
• [34:38] – Decorative chocolate and caramel drizzles
• [38:25] – Tips for caramel drizzle & final setting

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Tone & Highlights

• Playful, supportive: Mrs. Pearlmania’s patience shines as she gently guides Alex and, by proxy, the audience through each step, celebrating “dumb but learning” moments.
• Beginner-friendly: Every possible misstep for kitchen novices gets anticipated and explained away with humor.
• Nostalgic digressions: Fun stories about cereal box prizes, kitchen tools, and family food traditions pepper the conversation.

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Final Thoughts

Mrs. Pearlmania closes by inviting listeners to join their online community for more exclusive recipes and banter, underscoring that these Coconut Chex Treats are a “present to yourself” this season ([41:22]). Alex declares them “light, so fluffy, chewy, so good” ([39:40]), positioning the recipe as approachable and a perfect shareable treat for friends and family.

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Quick Reference: Recipe at a Glance

• Toast coconut flakes (2 cups), set aside.
• Melt 1 stick butter, add marshmallows (1 bag), melt to fluff.
• Add pinch kosher salt, 1/2 cup apple-section caramel sauce, stir.
• Add coconut; stir.
• Dump in 8 cups Rice Chex; coat well.
• Spread inch-thick on parchment-paper-lined tray; cool an hour.
• Drizzle melted bittersweet chocolate (half bar) & melted caramel (6-7 squares) with a fork. Let set.
• Slice and serve.

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Mrs. Pearlmania: “That’s how you make caramel delightfuls.” [38:25]
Alex (Food Idiot): “Light, fluffy, chewy, so good.” [39:40]

For more recipes, support, and hidden gems: pearlmania500.net

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Transcript

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[Mrs. Pearlmania]

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[Food Idiot (Alex)]

That's this holiday season, we have a special sweet treat for you. That's right, this is content that's usually hidden deep behind an arctic chilly paywall. But Santa Claus has grabbed it, thrown it in his bag, hopped on his sleigh, and delivered it directly to your inbox. That's right, it's Vibing with the Food Idiot. Vibing with the Food Idiot. Welcome to Vibing with the Food Idiot, a show where Mrs. Pearlmania, that's me, explains to me the Food Idiot how to make food. Yes, this show is typically hidden, like we were saying before, deep behind a paywall on our Patreon.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

This is Patreon exclusive content right here.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

This is. This is Pearl Maniac Parasocial Patreon paywall podcasting. And typically, it's audio only. Yes, we're giving you a very special treat for the holiday season to let you guys see what Vibing the Food Idiot is like. I don't know anything about food, Mrs. P. What do you know?

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

I know stuff and things she does.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

And most, most importantly, she knows patience. Patience to explain to a effing how to make things.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yes.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

And on today's episode, we are actually going back to highlight something but a twist on a classic recipe that we've already covered on Vibing with the Food Idiot. And that is your Chex treat. But this time, a special coconut caramel.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah, I made this especially for you. Alex loves a coconutty Caramel. A very specific Girl Scout cookie that we can't name for copyright reasons. But there's a specific Girl Scout cookie that you all know and love. And it's Alex's favorite. He loves a coconutty chocolatey moment with caramel. And so I wanted to take the classic check street that I've made that is already on Patreon, that whole recipe, which is usually a peanut butter and chocolate situation. Peanut butter, chocolate situation. So good. So famously yummy.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yep. So filling.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

The family are so excited to come to Thanksgiving because they know it's going to be on the table. People are already talking about it. Oh, wait, this is right before Christmas. The people at Christmas are already asking me to bring it. I know they will. They always do. And so I wanted to develop a new recipe for the holiday season in case you have somebody who maybe doesn't like peanut butter.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yeah. Or maybe they're allergic to peanuts.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Well, there's coconut on this, so there's coconut nuts is nuts.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Oh, really? Coconuts are also allergic.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

No, they're different. So peanuts are a legume. So that's a different allergy than tree nuts, which is what coconuts are. So my brother is allergic to the coconuts, but he is not allergic to peanut butter.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I didn't even. I can I tell you. Yeah, I've never thought of coconuts as a nut. Yeah, it's right there in the name. I've never thought. I've always thought of them as more of like a hairy melon.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I was like, that's just, that's just a sturdy, hairy melon.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

No, they're.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

It's a nut.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

They're part of a. They're part of a species. I guess I don't know the all of it, but I know that my brother who has a tree nut allergy, can't eat coconut because I think they grow in a tree. They're a tree nut, right?

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

That is crazy.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

That is so wild.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Comment below. If I'm wrong, if you're in a food allergy person, let me know.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

But also, also, this is again, we're living in a. Where you can see exactly how stupid I am when it comes to food. And I'm learning something already. And we're here. And before we go even deeper into this, if you're interested in content like this or you want to find out things like the after party or get access to ad free tmt, we have a special offer for you. It's our end of year treatment to you to make sure that next year, our plan to make next year even better. Because let's face it, 2025 dark year, it stunk.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

It's Done.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

It's a dark year, right, Mrs. D?

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

It was bad.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

It was a bad, bad year.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah, it was rough. Everybody had a rough and tumble time.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Exactly 100%. And that's why our plan to make 2026 better is here. It's a promo code for 30% off an annual [e-mail] to get access to to all of our paywalled content.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

The entire backlog.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

The entire backlog.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Hours and hours of content.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

So many things. And you can use the promo code. Project 2026. That's right. Project 2026. For 30% off an annual subscription.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

That's our plan. Our big plan.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yeah, that's our big plan to make it all better. And now we're going to tell you our plan and recipe to make this delightful item right here.

[Narrator/Advertiser]

Oh, hey.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Welcome to gift wrapping. Whoa. So is Saldana.

[T-Mobile Representative]

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[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Wow. IPhone 17s.

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[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I'm the worst. I only got my mom a robe.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Well, it's better than socks.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

So I have to trade in my old phone, right?

[T-Mobile Representative]

No, AT T Mobile. There's no trade ins needed when you switch. Keep your old phone or give it as a gift.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Incredible.

[T-Mobile Representative]

In fact, wrap up my old phone too, for my aunt Rosa.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Forget that.

[T-Mobile Representative]

Aunt Liz will be jealous.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Sounds like my family drama.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Oh, I got it.

[T-Mobile Representative]

I'll give it to my abuela. I'll take reindeer paper with.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Hey, where are you going?

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

To T mobile.

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[Food Idiot (Alex)]

All right, Mrs. P. I am ready. Yeah, the people are ready. Let's get stupid.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

No, we got smart.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Oh, okay.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

It's smart.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Okay, Got it.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Okay, so I'm calling these caramel delightfuls.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Caramel Delightfuls.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Caramel Delightfuls.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I would call them Coconutty Buddies.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Coconutty Buddies.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yeah.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

So what I want to do is first go over the ingredients, because you have to go to the grocery store. If you don't already have these in.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Your pantry, I'm sure I'm going to go ahead and guarantee you right now most people aren't going to have this in their pantry.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

They might. I had most of this stuff.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yeah, but they are weird. You're a trad wife.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Not a trad wife.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

How long did it. What did you do last night? You made these delightful baked goods.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

While.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

What? These do not require baking, everybody. These are no baked dessert.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Okay, but you made this goods while I sat in the other room with our child.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

And. Yeah, okay, sure. We're wearing an apron.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Trad wife.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I'm a trad husband. All right, go ahead. What are the ingredients?

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

We're gonna need two cups of unsweetened coconut flakes.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Okay.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Now when you go to the grocery store, there's going to be sweetened coconut flakes and unsweetened coconut flakes.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Okay.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

And in your brain you're gonna say, well, I want the sweet ones because it's a sweet treat. No, we have many other ways we're getting sugar into this. Get unsweetened coconut flakes.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Got it, Got it. Unsweetened coconut flakes. Is it coming like a little bag?

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah, it comes in a bag.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Okay. There's a little, like, a bag of fluff.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

It does kind of look like a bag of fluff.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Got it. So I could use this if I was doing, like, a Christmas design. And I use.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Except for the allergy situation.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Gotcha, gotcha.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Okay. Eight tablespoons of butter is. I don't know, one stick of butter.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Oh, yeah. Okay, so one stick of butter.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

One stick of butter.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

But as we've been over before, you. You could use a tub.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

No.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

You could scoop it.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Then you have to scoop each tablespoon.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yeah, exactly. But maybe some people. You just went down that everyone will have this. Some people don't. Salted or unsalted butter, though.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

You know, it doesn't matter. You know how I cook. I don't care. I would say salted. Probably good, though.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Okay.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Because remember, this is caramel. And what's really good on caramel?

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Salt.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

There it is. Okay, we need one bag of marshmallows. Get the big guy. Not the big big. Just get the regular marshmallows. Don't get the minis.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

You don't want size. Okay.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Because right now they have, like, these gargantuan ones that are like. These are for s'. Mores.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

So it's like, oh, this is stupid.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Don't get that. And don't get the minis that are for hot cocoa.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

You don't want the ones that are apple sized?

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

No.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

You want the ones that are cork sized.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Classic cork. S. Cork size.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yeah.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

One bag of marshmallows. We're gonna need to have salt around.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Okay.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Okay. Just salt.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Kosher.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah. Kosher salts works.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Where's the other one? Iodized.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Iodized. If you. I would say kosher. Let's just kosher. Kosher.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Okay.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Okay.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

These are all, by the way, these are all things I've learned in prior episodes. We've had heated debates about.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yes, we. We have a whole entire episode about the difference between iodized salt and kosher salt. At a certain point.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yeah, we did. We had a whole long argument. One you use because it cooks higher or something. I don't remember. You went in one ear, out the other. I'm still dumb about it.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Okay.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

So the people who listen, they learn.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

They learned.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

They did.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

So, caramel sauce. We need one cup of caramel sauce.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Wait, caramel sauce.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Caramel sauce.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

All right. I have a question about. Okay, is this caramel sauce? Because I see it here. It's drizzled. It's drizzled across. It has a beautiful sheen. I'm going to hold it close to the thing. It has got beautiful sheen to it. Is this just like the Hershey's syrup? No.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

So here's the thing. This caramel sauce, this is going to be the Achilles heel to the situation at the grocery store for someone who doesn't know what they're looking for. Okay. Because they make caramel syrup that you see in the ice cream section.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yes, that's what I was going to go with. It's not that.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Don't get that. That actually has too many, like, gums and stuff in it to make it, like, gooey, and it will destroy this recipe. What I want you to do is. This is going to sound crazy in the produce section of the grocery store. The produce section.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Okay.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Buy the apples. It's always buy the apples. They sell tubs of caramel.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Got it. So there is. This is because you can get the apple slices, you can dip in the car, like. And it looks like a butter tin. Yeah, it's a butter tin. A caramel. That's what you want.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

That's what I want you to get the regular one. Because some of Them are like sugar free or like cinnamon flavored.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yeah, just spicy.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Regular tub of caramel that's in the apple section at the produce section.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

That's so crazy.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Okay, okay. Now this is not the only caramel we're getting. I also brought this one up because I knew this was going to be a thing. We're going to need a bag of these type of caramels. This is a craft caramel. This is the kind your grandma probably had in a dish.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Caramel candies.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah, they're little squares.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yep, yep. Yeah. And they're in the little plastic.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah, the little plastic. A lot of grandmas had these in candy dishes. They're delicious. And we're going to need a bag of these, too.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yeah, they're in the clear plastic that when you. After you undo them, hold up to the microphone.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Oh, asmr.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

After you undo them, it looks like you're leaving little drug bags around your house.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yes, but it's just because you had a top of my mouth. You had a dope rope, and now you're eating all the caramels.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yeah, I. I want to put this in my mouth.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Don't. You're gonna ruin everything. Yeah.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

For the next hour, I will not do that. All right.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Okay, so we need one bag of the caramel squares. Oh, also, I want to apologize because I keep saying caramel and I know some people say caramel.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Well, those people about it.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

There's nothing I can do about it.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

You know what? And we don't want [e-mail] if you say caramel.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

No, if you say caramel. Caramel. I respect it. I'm just. I'm not going to be able to change myself.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I don't know where that comes from.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

It has an A in it.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I don't know. I don't know where those people come from, though.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Oh, I don't know.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

You know what I mean? Like, there's like tomato, tomato. And it's like, oh, what? Oh, you see, Massachusetts. That makes sense. But somebody's like caramel.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

I don't know. People say it. Whatever.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I don't. I don't recognize them.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

And then we're gonna need eight cups of rice checks, which is a. Cereal checks. Rice checks. Okay, eight cups.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

What's that box look like?

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Let me show you.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

That box right there.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

One box of Rice Chex.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Wait, that. Right. That Snoopy is the same as the Snoopy on this box right here.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

This tin. Can I tell you a very funny story about that tin? I guess you can so when I was developing this recipe, I had to make it quite a few times, as you know, because you ate a lot of iterations.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I did. I've had them. They're very, very good. They're very light.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

And so I bought this box at the grocery store, and it said, buy three, get a free Chex party holiday tip. And so I had bought enough that I got this free checks tin on it. I was so excited because I remember growing up, like, the women in my family would always, like, save box tops and, like, mail them away, and then you get some random cool thing from the brand.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yeah.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

And so I was like, oh, I'm definitely doing that. That's like, so, like, throwback.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I haven't thought about box tops in forever. For me, it was always cutting the UPC codes off the back of, like, toys.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

And then, man, like, GI Joes. And I got, like, the specific GI Joe. You had to buy, like, five GI Joe's to be able to get this one.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Ye. Yeah.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

It was so cool.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

But this is a really cool thing is I thought, oh, I'm gonna have to cut all the tops off and mail them out. No, they don't do that anymore because we live in the future. I just took a picture of my receipt, and I uploaded it to the checks.com website, and then they just mailed us to the house.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

That's so crazy. And it's a. It's a Peanuts holiday one. It feels very Christmas time. No, no, no.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

We don't have that. We don't have the copyright for that. Stop it, stop it, stop it, stop it, stop it.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Okay, so you need the box.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

One box of checks.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Just one box.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

One box.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

But you bought three.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Well, I had to make this recipe.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I know.

[Narrator/Advertiser]

And then we got.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

I knew I needed trial and error.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Okay.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Okay. And then we're gonna need, by the.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Way, the tin full of even more of the treats.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah. This is one recipe, and you can see how much it makes.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

There's a lot.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

I mean, that's all the ones we the downstairs that weren't cut properly.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

And it was. It's cookie trays. You're gonna have a huge cookie sheet of it.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah. Okay. And then one bar of bittersweet chocolate. Or you can get bittersweet chocolate chips. They're very hard to find, the bittersweet chocolate chips. So usually you just go to the bakery section, like, the baking section. I mean, not the bakery where the croissants are or whatever, the baking section, and they'll have all these chocolate Bars that are called baker's bars. And you want bittersweet chocolate, not semi sweet, not milk. Bittersweet, bittersweet, bitter.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Bum bum bum bum bum bum. And that's the ingredients, you know, bittersweet sympathy.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

You thought that was Bittersweet Symphony?

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yeah. You know that song?

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Cause it's a bit of sweet symphony that's live.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Are you just trying to get us copyright claimed?

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

No, because I'm singing. These are all covers.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

They're all covers.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I can do covers.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Okay.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

So as long as I don't play their songs. Okay, I'm fine.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Let's talk about tools. Stuff and tools.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

You know, we can play songs if we really wanted to. Behind the paywall at Pearlmania 500 on the Patreon.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

We can do whatever we want.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

We don't really do that, but we could. We could. And if we had more people join us over there, maybe we talk about it.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah, maybe we would. And then we just talk a lot of. On the Patreon.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

We do. Listen, that is where I put. Our hottest takes are buried deep behind paywalls.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

And also deep into the episode too, usually. Because I know for a fact. I'm like, okay, people, people tune in. Soon happen. I know how many you make it to the end. And that's where I talk about who I really dislike. It's. It's hidden deep.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Okay, so we gotta talk.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

And you can find out 30 off Project 2026.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Project 2026?

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yep. Go ahead.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

When's the promo end?

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

It's going to end on January 6, 2026. It ends at midnight at the end of January 6, 11:59pm we said it.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah, we did. Okay, so we're going to need a sheet pan like you said. Also, you called it a cookie tray.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I only call them cookie trays. Anytime someone's like, get the sheet pan. This is for cookies.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

This is for cookies.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

There's nothing. No reason to have a big flat tray like that.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Unless you're going to put vegetables on it. I heat up bread.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

You're just describing a series of cookies to me.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Okay, so we need a sheet pan.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Okay.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

And we're going to need a big pot.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Okay, describe this. We've had this conversation before. When you say big pot, do you mean a big soup pot or saucepan? Do you mean a big pot that has like the big double handles where you boil the water before you put all the pastas in there?

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Do you mean a stock pot?

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

I. Okay, so I think six quarts is what we're Looking for a six quart.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

That means nothing to me.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Okay. When you think about boiling water for spaghetti.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yes.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

That's what I want.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

That's what I'm talking about a spaghetti.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Pan, a spaghetti pot, two handles on the side, maybe has a lid. It holds a decent amount of water.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Do I need the lid if I'm missing a lid?

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

No.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Okay.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

If you're missing a lid, you're totally fine.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

That's fine. Because I always freak out about that. Sometimes you lose a lid.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah. And we're gonna need a wooden spoon.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Wooden.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah. Or a spatula. It doesn't matter.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Does it have to be a wooden spoon?

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

No.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

With a spatula. That should be a rubber spatula.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yes.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Okay.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

You don't want a wooden spatula. That would be a bad.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

That'd be weird. That'd be a weird day.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

So we're. The next thing we're gonna have is either parchment paper or PAM spray.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Okay.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Okay.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I love a PAM spray.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

I know you do.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I'm y'. All, I love a PAM spray.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

I hide it because it ruins things.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I don't care. I grew up. It was like, you spray some PAM on it, it just slides right off. Or store brand cooking oil spray.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah, that's fine. Whatever works.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

No, I only like parchment.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

You prefer spray, Pam, So I put both in here.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I use artisanal. Shut up. Pam is right. Pam. The world was better when everybody used pam.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah. Until they found out that like, it chemically mixes with the non stick and it like causes whatever diseases. Birds are dying.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

You talking about flavor?

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

You talk about birds dying in there.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Okay. All right, cool. I think what you're describing is Tylenol.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Okay. We're gonna need paper towels.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Paper towels?

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

For real? Yeah, for cooking.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah. Well, we need to have paper towels nearby.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Okay.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Okay.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

We're getting messy.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

We're probably going to get messy.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

We're going to get sticky.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Okay. So let's get started.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

All right, we're going to get started.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

You.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

So we have our ingredients and we have the items we need to make everything.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yes. Also, we forgot a knife. We always need a knife. Just always remember a big knife.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

And you need an oven.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

You don't need an oven. This is not. We're not baking these.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Don't you need an oven to put it in a oven? No, no. This is all you could be. We could do this for real?

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Oh, my God. I thought we had to because it's always. I've always seen it on a cookie sheet. Yeah.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

It doesn't ever Go in the oven.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

It never goes in the oven.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

No.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

We could do this on, like a hot plate.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

No, but yeah, you could do it on a hot plate for sure. The. The. The sheet tray is just to hold them so that they get the right shape.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Oh, my God. All right, let's go, let's go. All right, so we need. We need. We need signed up to warm up a thing. Yeah, got it.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Okay. So the first thing we're gonna do is set up our sheet pan. You'll. You'll understand why I think we went over this in the original Check street episode.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yeah, yeah.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

But we're gonna take our sheet pan, and now if Alex is doing it, he's gonna spray it with a light layer of PAM light. A light layer. You don't want too much or it'll get on the tree and then there'll be an oily flavor. It's gotta be a light spray. Okay.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I very liberal with my PAM spray.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

I know you're all lived up.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I'm very.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

I get real lived up on. Mom, Donnie right now woke his back.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

You know, we're recording this episode pretty early. We're very early. So we don't know anything could have happened. Anything could have happened.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

We have no idea.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

We have. No, I mean right now.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Let me do this.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Mid November, let me tell you. Yeah, this is. We are. We're just before Thanksgiving.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

The last thing that. Just so you guys know, the last thing that's happened as of recording, Marjorie Taylor Greene resigned.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yeah.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

So who knows what tomorrow brings? Yeah, not us.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Anyway. She's going to be a new correspondent on her patreon. I'm kidding. I'm kidding. I'm kidding. We would never work with her unless.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

And then if you're not going to do Pam, you want to use a parchment paper, just tear off your parchment paper and lay it down on your baking sheet flat.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Okay, question for you. This parchment paper. What other things would I use parchment paper for? Because to me, I wouldn't already have that in my house. So describe to me the good things that I could also use parchment.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Okay. So for parchment paper, I use it on it all the time in our kitchen. Because instead of having to, like, clean up my sheet tray, I put parchment paper down. And then, like, let's say I'm making cookies, I plop the cookies on the parchment paper, bake them, and then I just throw away the paper. I don't have to worry about.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Is parchment paper just wax paper?

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

No. If you go to the store, there will Be wax paper. Do not buy that.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Okay.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Because the wax will melt in the oven because it's actually coated with wax.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Okay.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Parchment paper is a different paper completely.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Okay. And it won't catch on fire.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

It will. You know, it won't catch on fire.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

You.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

There have been cases where I have seen it singe, but that was because I had a really high temperature, and it still didn't catch fire.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Okay.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

I was baking a sourdough loaf of bread at a very high temperature so I could get, like, a crust on it, and it singed the edges of the parchment, but it never burned.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Got it. All right. You're selling me a little bit on parchment paper. I still a Pam boy.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Okay. Pam boy.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I love a Pam.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

So first thing we're gonna do, we're gonna take our big. What do you. How do you want to describe this pot? The spaghetti pot?

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yeah, we'll go with spaghetti pot.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Okay. So we're take our spaghetti pot. We're gonna put it on the stovetop.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Pasta pot.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Pasta pasta pot. Okay. We're taking our pasta pot and putting it over medium low heat.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Medium low.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Put it on medium low.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Got it. When you're talking about medium low, though, we're talking medium low low.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Okay. So if. If you're.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

If there. Let's say there's six.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

There's six. I want you two or two and a half.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Okay.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Medium low. Okay. So what we're going to do is we're actually going to take all of our coconut flakes, which is two cups of unsweetened coconut flakes, and we're going to put them in the pot. Donut. Anything else? Okay, there is oil in coconut, right? Because that's where coconut oil comes from.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Coconut water as well?

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah, yeah. Coconut water and coconut oil. So there's already oil in the coconut that's in there. So you don't need to add any. And what we're going to do is we're going to toast the coconut flakes. We just want to get them to a nice brown color. Light brown.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Okay.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

So it's on medium low. We're tote. We're just stirring it around. We're stirring it around. We're watching it. It takes about five minutes. Four or five minutes. Not that much time.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Am I turning them?

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah, I constantly just stir them and turn them around. Because you're just going to keep them. They're going to get warm. The oil is going to release. The kitchen's going to smell like toasted coconut.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Will it have a sizzle?

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

It should not have a sizzle. If it sizzles, it's too hot.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Got it.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Okay. So it'll take about five minutes to get them brown. Stir, stir, stir. And then cut the heat and pour them into a bowl or what? You'll love a paper plate. Okay. And we're gonna set them to the side to cool down. Love a paper cool down.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Can I tell my favorite thing about paper plates?

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

You don't have to wash them.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

You just throw them right out.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah. You are bad for the environment. Personally.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

No, they're paper.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

But what about the trees that they use to make them?

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Those are. That's crops.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Okay.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Those are crop trees.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Okay.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

You know, you know that we replant those. We're not just cutting down forests to not replant them. Like, we have, like, tree farms.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Okay. So the paper towels.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I don't want to get too crazy about this.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Okay. The paper towels, that's in the paper towels, which are made with trees.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yeah. We're going to same trees.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

We're going to take our paper towel because again, we've cut the heat and we're going to wipe out the inside of the pot. Okay.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Okay.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Because we just want to get. There's going to be little tiny coconut flakes in there. Just wipe them out. You don't have to wash the whole pot. Just wipe it out. There'll be like a light coconut oil residue maybe. It doesn't matter. I just want you to get all the coconut out of this pot because if you don't, it will burn.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Got it.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

And that's a terrible flavor.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Okay.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

So we wipe it out with our towel.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

And not washing it, though.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

You could. But it's. It's like a whole thing.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

It's unnecessary to fully wash it.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yes. I'm trying to save time here.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Got it, got it, got it.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

So I wipe out the coconut with a paper towel, and then I put the pot back on medium low heat. So I just put it right back on. Now I'm going to have my stick of butter, and I'm gonna slice it into eight slices. Because there's eight tablespoons in one stick of butter. So cut eight tablespoons. Right. You just slice it like little. Like you're gonna put it on toast.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Gotcha.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Okay, so we're gonna take all of our little toast slices of butter and put them in our pot and we're.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Cutting them up so that way that they'll melt evenly.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yes. Heat distribution. Look at that.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yeah. It's called context clues.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

There we go. So Our little butters are gonna be in there sliding around, starting to melt.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

They're all about this size.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah, they're all. They're sliding around the pot, warming up, Melting, melting, melting.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yep.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

And then we're going to open our bag of marshmallows. Okay. We're going to dump the whole bag of marshmallows into the butter.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

The whole bag?

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

The whole bag.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

We're not trying just a couple at a time.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

We're just going put the whole thing in there.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

All right.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

And you're going to start stirring with your spatula. Right. We're just mixing the butter. The hot oil in the butter is going to start breaking down the marshmallows. We're going to break them down until it looks like marshmallow fluff in there.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Okay. Like the stuff. Use of fluffernutter.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yes, exactly.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Okay, got it, got it, got it.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

We're going to create fluff inside this big pasta pot. Right. Then I want you to take a pinch of salt. Kosher salt. So this is my hand. We can actually do this physically. A pinch is just this. A pinch of salt, and drop it in on top of the melted marshmallows.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

For the audio listeners, Mrs. P just made a tiny butthole with her hand.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Okay.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Am I not wrong? Is that not a tiny butthole with your hand?

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

So take. Listen, listen.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I know. Hold on. Many people, when I hear pinch, I always thought it was your pointer finger and your thumb pinch. You're doing pinch.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yes.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

That is.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

I'm a claw machine.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

That's what I was gonna say. That's a claw machine pinch.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

And then you do what? But like salt bay.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yes, Salt bay drizzle over top of the melty marshmallows. Get that salt all distributed through there.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Just the one.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Just one pinch. Yeah. Okay.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Okay. We're salt bay in the marshmallow.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Now we're gonna have our half a cup of that caramel sauce, right?

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Oh, yeah, because we have that caramel.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

The caramel tub that we got in the apple section. You're gonna take your measuring cup. I probably should have wrote measuring cup down. And you're gonna scoop out your half a cup, right? It was a half a cup. Let me scroll back. Oh, nope. One. No, it's half a cup. Half a cup of caramel sauce. And you're gonna put that in the marshmallow mix, too.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Keep.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Keep stirring.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

All right.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Okay.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Because now we're making the marshmallows and no caramel. Marshmallows.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Caramel marshmallows. That Was a fun thing to say.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yeah.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Caramel. Now, once you get the car. Now, the thing is, the caramel. Caramel at its core is really just dairy and sugar, and so it's going to really heat up everything in there quickly. So we're going to get into a really gooey territory quite quickly.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yeah, yeah. Because that stuff is already pretty much goo.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

It is.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yeah.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah. And so once we have in our pasta pot all of our things together, everything is the same brown color. Right. It's all distributed evenly. We're gonna put all of our toasted coconut into this mix. Okay. What I would say is I found that when I was making it, I would pick up the coconut and kind of crumble it in my hand a little as I like, almost like salt. I'm crumbling the coconut in like that in my hands because it just gives it a little bit more distribution throughout the checks instead of the long flakes of coconut.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Gotcha.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

So just crumbling it in your hand.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Crumble, crumble, crumble, crumble, crumble, crumble. Okay.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

And then we're stirring it into the marshmallow caramel mix we've created. We've got all the caramel distributed through it. Now we're going to turn the heat off. Cut the heat, Cut the heat. We don't need anymore.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

We're going to leave it on the eye, though.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah, you leave it on the eye.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Okay.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Now we're going to dump all of our check cereal into the pot.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Okay.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah. We just take that. You've opened your cereal box. Dump it all into the. On top of the.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

You open the box, then you open the bag inside the box.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

You open the bag inside of the box.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I'll be very literal. I've met some of our fans. In real life, you can't skip steps like this.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

You're talking about yourself.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yeah, I know one else I know. Open the box. Actually, you should have had that open for the beginning. You should have had it ready, because as you're. You're stirring, you're doing witchcraft at this point. Yeah. You got a giant vat of caramel. Sticky marshmallow.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

It's the stickiest thing you've ever. Sticky.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

And now you're adding these caramel rice. Rice checks in there.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

And they're so. Oh, look at that.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Oh, no. Now he's eating. Oh, no.

[Jeff Bridges Character]

Morning, Zoe. Got donuts.

[T-Mobile Representative]

Jeff Bridges. Why are you still living above our garage?

[Jeff Bridges Character]

Well, I dig the mattress, and I want to be in a T Mobile commercial like you. Teach me. So, Dana.

[T-Mobile Representative]

Oh, no, I'm not really prepared. I couldn't possibly at t mobile get the new iPhone 17 Pro on them. It's designed to be the most powerful iPhone yet and has the ultimate pro camera system.

[Jeff Bridges Character]

Wow, impressive. Let me try. T Mobile is the best place to get iPhone 17 Pro because they've got the best network.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Nice.

[T-Mobile Representative]

Jeffrey, you heard them.

[Jeff Bridges Character]

T Mobile is the best place to.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Get the new iPhone 17 Pro on us. With eligible traded in any condition.

[Jeff Bridges Character]

So what are we having for lunch?

[T-Mobile Representative]

Dude, my work here is done.

[T-Mobile Legal/Disclaimer Voice]

The 24 month bill credit is on experience beyond for well qualified customers. Plus tax and $35 device connection charge credits and balance due if you pay off earlier. Cancel Finance Agreement. IPhone 17 Pro 256GB $1099.99 and new line minimum $100 plus a month plan with Auto PayPal. Best mobile network in the US based on analysis by Oklahoma Speed Test Intelligence Data 1H 2025 Visit t mobile.com okay.

[Coca-Cola Advertiser]

Only 10 more presents to wrap. You're almost at the finish line. But first, They are the last one. Enjoy a Coca Cola for a pause that refreshes.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Describe for listener what you're tasting.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Heaven.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Okay, that's a pretty good description.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

It's so good. There's no. We're not done though.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Okay.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Keep describing it.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Okay.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

We gotta get them. I cheated a little bit.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Honestly, if anything, that was a premature bite.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Okay, so we were. Now we're stirring the checks because we want to get all the marshmallow caramel goo all over our checks.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yeah, we do.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

So we're stirring, stirring, stirring.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yeah, we do.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

And then once everything.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

This is foreplay at this point. We want to cover all the marshmallow checks. Get them all covered up in that caramel. Get all that marshmallow, get it mixed in with the chicks.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Get a Christmas time this year, so.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I'm so tired. I've done so many live shows.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

And then you're just like, we got to talk about food. I'm like, oh, baby, I'm dying. All right, go, go. You got this.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

We got this Christmas sweater on.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I know. And it's so hot in here.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

It looks so cute.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Our little Christmas sweater so hot in here.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

I'm just torturing you.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I really, I am. I feel like I'm in Abu Ghraib. Like, I'm just. I'm losing my mind. All right. No, but these are really good. That bite actually put me over the edge, that little taste. Because I've been sitting here staring at them. I know how Chewy. They are, though. I know how good they are. And I know that for the audio listeners and for viewing, it's gonna sound like shit if I bite into one because you'll just be like. And then we do this. I'm like, mm. It's just gonna be asmr of me. I'll be. I'm gonna sound like a cow chewing cud. Yeah.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

So once the checks are completely covered in our marshmallow mix.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Forgot where we were. Sorry.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

I'm getting us back on the train.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

All right, so we had the caramel, we got the marshmallow all mixed up. We've been mixing them, we're adding the checks mix. We're now making sure that everything that's getting in there is getting completely covered in there.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yes.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

We're treating the checks as if they're a villain at the end of a sci fi movie that's been shoved into a vat of molten lava. And that we're finally, with every one of these checks treats is Gollum from Lord of the Rings. And you are letting them finally touch the ring. And you're gonna get them in there.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Oh, no, my precious. So once they're all completely covered, we're gonna pour out the whole mix onto our sheet tray. So again, you have a PAM covered sheet tray. I have parchment paper. You're gonna use your spoon or your spatula, and you're gonna push it out of the pot and it's gonna come all like, out like a big glob. It's gonna be all stuck together.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I'm gonna tell you right now. Yeah, you're right about the parchment.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

I'm right about the parchment.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yeah. In this moment, you're right there. I was like, oh, that's why you would use parchment because I. This is very sticky. Yeah. And Pam isn't gonna do it.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yep.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I mean, it will.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

It will.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

It'll do it. But when you want to get this thing off, that tray, you may have just made sign. That is one with the tray. The parchment paper is at the. At the minimum. It's a top sheet of the bed. Yeah. That's the way I'm viewing it.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

And we need a top sheet.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

We do. We're grown ups. Because again, I was picturing it as I was spraying the strain, the pan, the PAM or putting the parchment. Now, again, I was thinking about baking. I wasn't thinking about the fact that we're just pouring it out.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

So you're pouring it. So you're dipping it. You're pouring. Using the Spoon. Ah, come on. Get out there. You get on the plate. You'll be a happy go.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

And it's. It's going to be a big mass of. Of Chex caramels. Right. And you're just going to gently spread it so it just becomes about. What's this? What'd you say? An inch? An. It's an inch.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

It's about an inch.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

So you just want an inch layer of Czech streets. And then you're just gonna leave them. Just for a minute. We're gonna walk away from the situation.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

And the reason we're gonna walk away is because it's gonna settle.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Gravity is gonna take hold, and it's gonna pull them out to the edges. You've made kind of a blob. Yeah, it's a blob. But you're gonna see the checks. Individual checks, pieces. You're gonna see them sticking out there. Yeah, individual. You can still see them in there. That it's.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

And one thing I want to say.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Is they coat really well.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Do not take anything and press them down.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

This is going to break the checks.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

It breaks it. But also it. It makes them so tight when you compress them that it actually, like, it's hard to chew because there. It makes it to our chew. These are really light and breakable. Don't you keep eating them. He's sneaky eating them. Stop.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I need the sugar.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

You don't need the sugar. You need a nap.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Oh, I'm delirious.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

So, okay, those are going to sit and cool down. I would say wait like, an hour. Let them cool down. We just want to let them sit because they're gonna. They're gonna really start to solidify. The caramel and the sugar, the marshmallow and the butter is all gonna start. And the coconut. Yeah, it's all gonna start to come together to become a tighter thing. Now, after about an hour, we're gonna get back in the kitchen because we just want to do the finishing touches.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I love that we get back in the kitchen.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Back in the. You get back in the kitchen.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Oh, no.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Because we just want to make it pretty, and we need a little chocolate. And so this is where chocolate's gonna come in.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Okay.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

We're going to. Now, this part is easy because it's microwave stuff. First we're gonna get a little bowl. And remember we bought that bar of bittersweet chocolate?

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yeah, I forgot.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah. So we have our.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I'm glad you reminded me.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

We have our bar of bittersweet chocolate. We're gonna take I would say a half the bar. Half the bar, break it in half, put the, the one half of the bar into a bowl, and then microwave it in 30 second bursts. So you hit 30 seconds, you watch it go around, it goes off. You check it. Is it melted? No. Hit it again. Do it again. It took me three 30 second intervals.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

That'd be 90 seconds.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

90 seconds. And. But, but you know what if don't just do 90 seconds, like you have to do 30, because everybody's microwaves are different and we don't want to burn the chocolate.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

And it depends on what altitude you're at.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah, that's true.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I know that because I one time went to Colorado.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Everything takes forever to cook there.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

And so we're gonna melt the chocolate and then what we're gonna do is use a fork, stir. Stir the bowl, stir the chocolate as it melts. Right. Because then we're gonna walk back over, we have a big sheet tray with all the caramel treats on it. Right. The caramel delightfuls. And we're gonna take our fork and we're gonna scoop it of the chocolate we've melted.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Okay.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

And then we're just gonna. How would you describe this?

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I would say do a zippy.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

We're gonna do a zippy with the fork of the chocolate.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

You're just gonna go. So you're gonna take it and you're gonna drizzle back and forth because. And the prong. It's actually really smart with the prongs because on the version you have here in front of me, they're very, very thin lines. I thought you had like a bag or something that you did that.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

No, I used a fork.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

You did a fork. And the bittersweet chocolate. And it was so runny.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

You could just kind of dip it. So it was just falling off the four prongs of the fork.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Exactly. So you get a real light zippy across the top. Now, once you run out of your chocolate, you know, put that in the sink. And then we're gonna grab our little square caramels that we have from the craft classic Candy kitchen or wherever you get.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

It doesn't have to be craft brand.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

I don't know, there's just these little.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

No, but sometimes, sometimes you go to the grocery store, they have just like the non descript bag of like, candy.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

I couldn't find that at all. I could only find these ones.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yeah, they're always next. They're always next to the place where they have the orange slices.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Those weird grandma orange Slices or the circus peanuts.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

I love a circus peanut too.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yeah. But no one ever claims, no company ever claims to be the person who makes the circus peanuts.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

If I was the circus peanut guy, I would be living a life of luxury.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

You would have. You would have a giant bus. You would drive. You would be the venga bus guy.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah, but I would be like the. Is it the. The Oscar Mayer wiener hot dog. But I'd have one of a circus peanut.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yeah, no, but I was just saying is. You would just. You would.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

I just feel like is coming.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Oh, okay. Now we can say copyrighted songs. Wow. Wow, wow.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

So we're going to take last night when I was making this, it took about six, seven of these caramels. I unwrapped seven caramels.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yep.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

And then I put them in a different bowl. Not the chocolate bowl. Here you go. Unwrap them. Don't leave them wrapped. Unwrap them.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yep.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Put them in another microwave safe bowl and we're gonna microwave them. This only needed I. It was 45 seconds, so I did 30 seconds. Some of them started to bubble. And then I did hit 30 again. And within 15 seconds of that, the whole thing was just bubble, bubble, bubble, melted.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Gotcha.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Very fast. So just be careful. 30 second intervals. The caramels melted way faster than the chocolate. So I melted the caramel and I had. Same thing, different fork. Stirred up, stirred up to make sure I get this good liquidy situation. And then I just zipped across the top. You know what I did is I went the other direction. If you look, you can see chocolate goes one direction, caramel goes the other. Because again, in my mind, I'm bringing. I'm bringing this to Christmas. I'm bringing this to a holiday get together with friends and family, maybe a potluck. Whatever it is, it looks really beautiful. Wow. You made such an intense face.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I wanted the people to see.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

And so, yeah, that's how you make caramel delightfuls.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

So let me tell you something.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Okay.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I had one of these. You gave me one last night. Yeah, I got in a big bite. I will say, but these, the caramels, be careful because if it really globs up, you don't realize you're biting into this and you hit a corner of it. That's like biting into a full caramel. And there was a moment where I took a bite of one earlier and I was like, oh, no filling. I got actually nervous about it.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Okay.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

So I would say be very sparing on the caramel. When you're doing Your zippy on that. The chocolate go crazy. You can't go wrong with the chocolate.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

You could not use these at all. I didn't use these in the first recipe. Remember the first time I made them?

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yeah.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah. I added these because I wanted to be more aesthetically pleasing.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yeah. And. But it is good. I like it. I would just say be it. Be sparing with it.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Got it.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Because when I hit that one spot, I was like. I threw my mouth with choo choo, choo. It hit on this back right side of my mouth, and I was just like, oh, I'm not confident in that tooth. That's literally what happened.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

I went.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I went. I don't know what's back. It's. It's been a while. I know one of these is a crown. I couldn't remember which one. It was a moment where I was like, I don't know which one.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Questioned your whole life.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I paused.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Dental history.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I paused and actually had to, like, get in there and fly. Flick a piece out.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Wow.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

But what I will say is, I love these. They are so light. They are so fluffy. They are chewy. They're so good.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

And you said something crazy to me, which is that you like these more than my peanut butter iteration.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I like them different.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

You like the. Oh, you like them different. Okay.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I wouldn't say I like them more. They're two totally different things. So the peanut butter Karma. The peanut butter are check streets, which you can find out more [e-mail] and if you want to join Project 2026 is a 30 off annual code. But.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

See, this is why you weren't supposed to eat them.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I took a bite. Now, we've been talking about the whole.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Time for so long.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I've been staring at them. All right. Need the sugar. But what say is the peanut butter Chex treats.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Are so filling that they are almost like a sweet breakfast bar. Yeah. Like, there's been times where you've made those and I have eaten them, and then we've had them for a couple days where I'm like, oh, that has been the meal. That was breakfast. Yeah, that was.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

And then I'm like, well, they're made of Chex, so that's cereal. So it is. Yeah.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

No, but. But. And then there's been later times where it's like I had two or three about this size. About this size. You know, this. This nice nugget size. And then I go, okay, well, then I'll just have a smaller dinner.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Because I know the calorie intake with this. I was eating this. They're so light, they're so fluffy. They got the right chewiness to them. All those different things that I'm like, oh, this is truly a sweet treat.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

This is different in that way. It's like eating. There's like. There's like, granola bars, and then there's like those candy granola bars. You know what I mean? There's like a Cliff bar, there's a Clif bar, and then there's that chocolate chip one that I get.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah, you get the one that has, like, the chocolate chippies for little kids on it.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Yeah, the s' more flavor one. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. That's how this. This is. This kind of has a s' moreish at it. And the coconut oil also just kick it to another level. That also, I think, does make it a little more seasonal. The coconut does make it better for the Christmas time, and it feels like a. A sweet treat and a present to yourself. Almost as good as giving yourself 30% off by joining us at Pearlmania500.net to get more stuff like vibing with the food. Idiot. Things like the afterparty, where we react to your comments on too many tabs, episodes, exclusive, other exclusive content that's coming in the future and other projects that we have coming in 2026. And also access to our wonderful chat community that exists over there. We didn't really talk about it that much.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Funny.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

It is. They're just delightful people.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

In there. And a really, really good comment section. And when you support us, we can keep bringing you amazing and different content and slowly but surely upgrading our equipment and our clothes. This is. This. I don't remember how much this was that.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

I think that was from Old Navy.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I know.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

And it was not expensive. I probably had Old Navy cash.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

It looks expensive.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

It does look expensive.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I know.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

And it has cute little Christmas birds on it.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

I know. I like your shirt a lot. It says joy. It says joy. And it's the holidays and we want to feel nice even at the darkest time of year.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Yeah.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Mrs. P. Yes. This is a delightful.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Thank you.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Delightful.

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

There are caramel delightfuls.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Caramel delightfuls. Vibing with the food. Idiot. Mrs. P, any final words for the people before we close out this show?

[Mrs. Pearlmania]

Come out and hang out with us at [e-mail] so you can listen to all of our fun stuff that we've already done. Because I've made so many recipes and I've explained them all to him. And I swear, sometimes he remembers them.

[Food Idiot (Alex)]

Sometimes I remember aspects of them, the right aspects of them, the ones that I have questions about. And now opinions. Thank you again to all of our Patreons for supporting us. If you like watching this on our YouTube channel, you can always like and subscribe. If you've been following us on any of our RSS feeds, wherever you listen to podcasts, please make sure you give us five stars. And also check us [e-mail] for all that exclusive Patreon content. Project 2026 get 30 off now.