My favorite tip when baking brownies

My family loves when I bake brownies and can't ever seem to wait for them to cool down before hacking into the pan! This usually leads to uneven pieces, lots of crumbs and a big mess. For many years I have baked my brownies (both homemade and from a box mix) in muffin pans. I just spray the pans lightly with non-stick spray and bake them for about 10 minutes less than I would in a traditional pan. The pop out of the pan easily and you have those perfect chewy edges all the way around!

I like to make these to stash in lunchboxes and they are great for taking to banquets, potluck gatherings or bakes sales. I have even topped them with a mini swirl of homemade cream cheese frosting and stuck a few M&M's in my daughter's school colors right in the center. They are always a big hit!

Trio of Signature Pancakes from IHOP® (for a limited time)

IHOP®, known for its world famous buttermilk pancakes for more than 50 years, is showcasing a trio of special pancake creations this summer designed to further inspire the American breakfast experience. Red velvet pancakes, sweet strawberry pancakes and whole wheat pancakes with banana offer guests a classic, seasonal and wholesome choice and demonstrate the family-friendly breakfast giant’s commitment to continually offering innovative breakfast options all day long.


 “Our guests love pancakes, especially super unique ones that they can’t make at home,” said Natalia Franco, IHOP’s senior vice president, marketing. “We are dedicated to continually introducing twists on classic favorites and innovative new breakfast creations to make sure that IHOP is everything you love about breakfast. We are all about choice.”

IHOP’s Signature Summer Pancakes are available from July 9 through September 2 at participating IHOP locations and start at only $4.99. Don't they look amazing?! Check IHOP out on the web and "like" their page on Facebook to stay updated on specials.

Red Velvet Pancakes: Rich chocolaty red velvet pancakes, drizzled with cream cheese icing, a dusting of powdered sugar and crowned with whipped topping. 

Sweet Strawberry Pancakes: Our fluffy famous buttermilk pancakes crowned with cool strawberries in a glaze, drizzled with cream cheese icing and crowned with whipped topping. 

Whole Wheat Pancakes with Banana: Wholesome and lightly sweet, fluffy whole wheat pancakes topped with fresh sliced bananas.

Old school JELL-O treat

I wanted to share one of my most favorite desserts that is so easy to make and only requires 3 ingredients. Some of you might remember this classic JELL-O treat from back in the day...

What you need:
3 cups of boiling water
1 6 ounce box of JELL-O (any flavor)
1 small container of COOL WHIP

How to make it:
Add boiling water to JELL-O and stir until dissolved. Stir in COOL WHIP until completely mixed in. Pour into glasses or cups (I like using little "crystal cut" plastic cups) I recommend using a measuring cup with a spout to pour even amounts in your glasses/cups. Chill until firm at least 4 hours.

Enjoy!

Have you ever tried this recipe before? My favorites are the raspberry and pineapple flavors. These are so good during the warm weather months! Let me know if you try it.

How to jazz up store-bought desserts with COOL WHIP

I love to bake as often as possible since my family really enjoys home-baked goodies. There are some weeks that get a bit too hectic with carpool, activities, doctor appointments and errands. I sometimes have to rely on store-bought desserts for my family. I wanted to share some very easy ways that you can add a little something to ordinary store-bought items to make them extra special with COOL WHIP.

I started off with some chocolate brownie cookies and a sour cream angel food cake that I purchased on sale.

I took the angel food cake and sliced it up. I added some sliced strawberries that were tossed with a little bit of powdered sugar to enhance the sweetness and topped it off with a dollop of COOL WHIP. Pretty easy huh? It took me no time at all and I am reconsidering the amount of time I spend baking! This is a great idea for entertaining. Less time in the kitchen means more time with your guests.

Next up I took the chocolate brownie cookies and made a cool and minty treat. I put a small scoop of mint chocolate chip ice cream on top of the cookie. I then added a dollop of COOL WHIP and sprinkled some brownie cookie crumbs on top. How cute it that?! My kids loved it and felt like they were eating a fancy dessert. The have already asked to have this dessert again but instead with vanilla ice cream, COOL WHIP and colored sprinkles.

You don't have to stress out about a dessert when you can take something so simple like a store-bought cake or pie and add a dollop of COOL WHIP along with your own special touches. I would love for you to share any ideas you have on how you can make store-bought desserts extra special. 

Be sure to stay connected on Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter for great recipe ideas using COOL WHIP. If you haven't already seen the behind-the-scenes footage from the COOL WHIP ad photo shoot, you can check them out here. 

I am working in partnership with the COOL WHIP brand and I am receiving compensation for my participation in this campaign. All thoughts/opinions are 100% my own.