And then…the new Gooseberry Patch Cookbook…Rush-Hour Recipes arrived. I have used many Gooseberry Patch recipes over the years, and absolutely adore many of their cookbooks, so when I had the opportunity to review {and YES host a giveaway} for their new book, I was super excited!

I handed the book to Doug, while he was watching a movie and told him to pick out a recipe to try. Well, of course, being just like a man, he chose Saucy Short Ribs and Sausage Bean Gumbo! Oh no – no – no! I need a dessert! My readers want me to share an ooey – gooey – delicious dessert with them. And of course, with Valentine’s Day right around the corner…you needed another gorgeous dessert for your sweetie!

Enter…Better Than Brownies

You are going to flip out when you see how easy they are to make! Just 3 ingredients!! Yup…well unless you add the chocolate chips and nuts to the top, which of course you must do! Oh and the frosting…yes! You MUST slather it on!! You heard that right…I told you to slather the frosting on!!

Before we get to the recipe though, let’s chat a minute about this new Gooseberry Patch Cookbook; Rush-Hour Recipes. Just like these Better Than Brownies, the whole book is full is quick, easy recipes for you to…you guessed it…get on the table fast! There are 5-ingredient favorites, One-Dish Dinners, Slow Cooker Recipes, Soup Recipes, Make-A-Meal Sides and Speedy Potluck & Party Foods!

And guess what? I have a Rush-Hour Recipes Cookbook for one lucky Hoosier Homemade reader! You didn’t think I was going to forget about our week long celebration did you?

So what’s the secret to these delicious Brownies? Chocolate pudding…just one small box. Oh and the frosting helps quite a bit too. Now, of course, they are delicious without the frosting, and actually the recipe in the book doesn’t call for frosting, but with Valentine’s Day coming up, I just had to add the little pink to them.

For more delicious recipes, visit the Gooseberry Patch Blog!

Now I know you want to win a Rush-Hour Recipe Cookbook…don’t you? Head on over and enter the giveaway for Rush-Hour Recipes from Gooseberry Patch!

Disclosure: I received Rush-Hour Recipes to review. As always, the opinions are my own!

Linking to…Show & Tell Friday, Weekend Wrap Up Party, Friday Food, Saturday Night Special, Sundae Scoop, Gooseberry Patch

I came across these Brownies on a Stick from my visit to Betty Crocker last year and knew you would love them. They are fun to create and definitely kid friendly!

Kids love any kind of food on a stick! And especially when it’s a sweet treat like Brownies on a Stick!

While visiting Betty Crocker Kitchens in Minneapolis, we baked in 4 different stations, one of those was brownies. We made an amazing Brownie Pizza, Brownie Goody Bars, Rocky Road Brownies and these Brownies on a Stick!

The ideas are endless for the Brownies on a Stick! They would make a fun birthday treat, or even a treat for a special holiday, just use fun sprinkles to change them up. This recipe calls for melting chocolate chips, but you can also use candy melts or even almond bark for dipping, they work great too.

What is your favorite kid friendly snack? Check out more Kid Friendly Recipes on Betty Crocker.com!

Linking to…Whatcha Baking Wednesday, Transformation Thursday, Ultimate Recipe Swap, Sweet Tooth Friday, Weekend Wrap-up Party, Saturday Sevens, Tip Me Tuesday

Today is all about St. Patrick’s Day Dessert…you all know I much I love sharing yummy treats with you! First up…Irish Cream Mint Brownies

I received a little challenge earlier in the week from Walmart Moms to come up with a St. Patrick’s Day Treat, and of course…I NEVER turn down an opportunity to bake and share treats with you all!

These Irish Cream Mint Brownies start with a rich, fudgy brownie mix to make them super easy. By adding a couple ingredients that I bought at Walmart, makes them even more special. And topping them off with Irish Cream Mint Fluff and some Andes Creme de Menthe Chips.

Next up…Mint Chocolate Cookies…

These cookies taste really good, but I’ll have to admit, they don’t look the greatest. I really debated whether I wanted to add the green food coloring, but I figured…it’s St. Patrick’s Day…you have to Go GREEN!

Here are a few more St. Patrick’s Day Dessert ideas for you…

1. Irish Cream Pie Cupcakes with Free Printables
2. Irish Trifles
3. St. Patrick’s Day Cupcakes
4. Luck of the Irish Cupcakes
5. Thin Mint Cupcakes
6. St. Patrick’s Day Cupcakes
7. Pistachio Fluff
8. Rainbow Cupcakes and Rainbow Ice Cream

Are you baking for St. Patrick’s Day? Share your ideas with us!

I’m linking to…Potluck Sunday, Luck of the Irish Party

Disclosure: This post is part of a campaign I am participating in with the Walmart Moms. Walmart has provided me with compensation and product for this post. My participation is voluntary and opinions, as always are my own.

I’ve shared with you several times about my visit to the Betty Crocker Kitchens. Last Fall, I shared these Brownie Goody Bars over at The Family Dish. They were such a hit over there, I just had to share them with you too!

Brownie Goody Bars Recipe:

• 1 box brownie mix, 9×9 inch pan size plus ingredients to make them
• 1 container vanilla frosting or homemade
• 2 cups crisp rice cereal
• 2/3 cup Peanut Butter
• 1 1/3 chocolate chips (I like Milk Chocolate)

Directions:

Casey helped me make these…and eat them!

Bake brownies and let cool.

In a microwave safe bowl, add the chocolate chips and Peanut Butter

Heat for about 2 minutes until slightly melted, stir until all the chocolate chips are melted

Add chocolate mixture to cereal, stir until all combined. Frost the brownies. Spread cereal mixture over frosted brownies. Refrigerate for 1 hour until set. Cut into bars.

Recipe adapted from Betty Crocker

Happy Baking! What’s your favorite brownie recipe?

I’m linking to…Foodie Friday, Sweet Tooth Friday, Saturday Night Special, Potluck Sunday

After all the Holiday Baking, it’s nice to have a quick and easy dessert to whip up during the week. My boys love Brownies, and these Peanut Butter Brownies were definitely a hit!

During a recent stop at Aldi’s, they had most of the baking chips on sale. Even though I don’t really consider Peanut Butter chips a Holiday baking necessity, they had them on sale for $.99 a bag, perfect to add to Brownies.

Peanut Butter Brownies Recipe:

• 1 box of Brownie mix {I used Betty Crocker with Hershey Fudge sauce}
• Ingredients according to the box {water, oil and egg}
• Peanut Butter chips {a couple handfuls}

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray 11×7 baking pan with cooking spray. Mix brownies and spread into prepared pan. Sprinkle a couple handfuls of Peanut Butter baking chips over brownies.

Bake for 5 minutes. Remove from oven and using a butter knife, swirl the chips into the brownie batter until all combined.

Return to oven and continue baking for about 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Now for some fun news…

Baking 101 series starts next week!

I will be doing some videos along with regular posting and hopefully answer some of your Baking questions.

So…if you have a burning question that you would like me to try and answer, please leave a comment and I will add it to my list!

I’m linking to…Saturday Night Special, Potluck Sunday

 

As you probably know, I just returned from an amazing trip to the Betty Crocker Kitchens, at General Mills Headquarters, in Minneapolis.

We had such a great time, I’ll be sharing a lot more of my trip later this week, but for now, I wanted to share this yummy Brownie ‘n Berries Dessert Pizza with you! Update! Read all about my trip and see the wonderful Betty Crocker Kitchens!

There are lots of variations of dessert pizza now, in fact hundreds on the Betty Crocker website alone. Dessert Pizzas are not only quick and easy, but they also look like you spent a lot of time on them. They are always a hit whenever I take one to share at a picnic or get-together of any kind.

One of the stations that we had was brownies, this Dessert Pizza, was a huge hit. I loved the chocolate and fruit together, they are always a good combination.

Brownie ‘n Berries Dessert Pizza Recipe:

• 1 box Betty Crocker Original Supreme Brownie Mix
• Water, Vegetable Oil and egg, according to directions on the box
• 1 package (8 oz) cream cheese, softened
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 cups strawberries, fresh and sliced
• 1 cup fresh blueberries
• 1 cup fresh raspberries
• 1/2 cup apple jelly

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease bottom of 12 inch pizza pan with cooking spray. Mix the brownies, according to directions on the box. Spread in pan and Bake for 20 – 30 minutes or until toothpick inserted 2 inches from side of pan comes out almost clean. Cool completely, about 1 hour.

In a small bowl, cream together the cream cheese, sugar and vanilla until smooth. Spread over brownie base. Arrange berries over cream cheese mixture.

In a microwave safe measuring cup, place apple jelly and heat about 30 seconds or so, just until jelly starts to thin a little, stir until smooth and pour over fruit. Refrigerate about 1 hour or until chilled. Cut into wedges. Store covered in fridge.

There I am, whipping up the cream cheese mixture to spread on the Brownie Pizza. One of the VERY cool things, among many…there was a photographer with us all day, taking lots of great photos (which I will share soon, I promise) Matt took this picture of me with my cute Betty Crocker apron on, absolutely LOVING every single minute of it!!

Stay tuned for more amazing recipes to come and a sneak peak into the photography studio too!

Disclaimer: General Mills paid for my trip, they did not ask me to blog about my trip or give any recipes. It was my choice to do so, simply because I love Betty Crocker and the recipes.

I’m linking to the Blog Parties in my footer, please visit them! You might just find one or two that are new to you! 

Even though I didn’t have an overflowing pantry with food for dinner, I did have several items in my baking cupboard that needed to be used. And, as you well know,  I bake… all the time

So, last weekend, I searched around, and found this recipe for Butterscotch Brownies.

I enjoy baking brownies or any pan dessert, they are definately a time saver. These brownies were not only quick but also really good. Doug, my husband, who is not a butterscotch fan, even loved them. And, although they are called a brownie, I would consider them to be more cake or bar cookie texture. This recipe is definately a keeper.

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 cups Flour
• 1 teaspoon Baking Powder
• 1/2 teaspoon Salt
• 1 cup Butter or Margarine, softened
• 1 3/4 cups Brown Sugar
• 1 Tablespoon Vanilla
• 2 Eggs
• 1 2/3 cups Butterscotch Chips
• 1 cup Nuts, chopped (optional, I didn’t have any so I left them out)

Directions:

Combine dry ingredients, set aside. In large bowl, cream the butter, sugar and vanilla. Beat in eggs. Gradually add dry ingredients. Stir in chips and nuts.

Spread into greased 13×9 pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes, golden brown or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

I adapted this recipe from Nestle.

You are cooking or baking from your pantry this month?

This post linked to:

~Ultimate Recipe Swap hosted by Life As Mom

~Foodie Friday hosted by Designs by Gollum

~Food on Fridays hosted by Ann Kroeker