The Sweetest Kind of Memory

Growing up on the New River in Fort Lauderdale, we had neighbors across the street named Doc and Betty Burrows. Their property was called Little Florida, and for much of my childhood, their house felt like an extension of my own.

I am the last of a large family, and I didn't really get the chance to know my grandparents before they passed away. Doc and Betty filled some of that space for me. They were like grandparents who happened to live next door. They were snowbirds and spent part of the year back in Middleboro, Massachusetts, but whenever they were in Florida, I was at their house almost every day.

Doc was a retired dentist, and Betty was a housewife who loved to bake. I would stop by before school in the morning just to say hello, knowing there was a pretty good chance Betty would have something waiting in the kitchen. Their house smelled like cigarettes and coffee, but the kitchen always smelled like a bakery filled with cookies and snacks.

And every couple of weeks, there were Rice Krispies treats.

Not the Rice Krispies Treats You Know

Betty's version wasn't made with marshmallows. In fact, the first Rice Krispies treats I remember eating were hers, so for a long time, this was what a Rice Krispies treat was to me.

She made them with peanut butter, sugar, and corn syrup, then covered them with a layer of melted chocolate and butterscotch morsels. They were sweet, rich, and completely different from the traditional version most people know today. Maybe I'm biased because I grew up eating them, but I still think they put traditional Rice Krispies treats to shame.

I don't make them very often anymore, maybe once every few years. They are rich enough that you don't need many, but that's also what keeps them special. Every time I make a batch and take that first bite, I think about Doc and Betty.

It still tastes like something from my childhood.

More Than Something Sweet

When I think about those years, though, I realize the dessert is only one small part of what I remember.

Doc and Betty were there for the big events and occasions in my life until I was about ten years old. We looked after each other and spent time together like family. Their property was actually shaped like Florida, with the swimming pool where Lake Okeechobee would be. As a kid, I found it an incredible place to explore. There were tropical trees and plants, plenty of land to run around, and the New River right there beside us.

One summer, we even visited Doc and Betty on our way up north. Their house was filled with clocks, there must have been a hundred or more, and Doc collected old cars and license plates in his garage. Those are the kinds of details that somehow stay with you decades later.

My childhood wasn't perfect, but I have great memories from those years on the river, and I'm happy Doc and Betty were part of them. When they eventually passed away, that chapter of my life was already over, but certain things have a way of bringing it back.

For me, one of those things is this recipe.

Betty's Rice Krispies Treats

I still have the recipe, and I'm happy to finally share it here. Every time I make it properly, it tastes the way I remember it.

A Taste of the Good Old Days

Food has always been part of my life, and this is one of the first desserts I remember loving. But after all these years, I know it's not only the peanut butter, chocolate, or butterscotch that makes it special to me. It's everything that comes with it.

It's stopping at Doc and Betty's before school. It's the smell of coffee and whatever Betty had baking in the kitchen. It's running around Little Florida and growing up on the river. It's remembering two people who weren't actually my grandparents but treated me like family anyway.

It's funny how something as simple as a dessert can hold onto all of that.

That's why food will always have a place in my life. And that's why it has a place here at Only One Life.