Beary Cute Brownie Bites

For my son’s first Cub Scout camp out, all the families were asked to bring a dessert to share. (Of course, I was wondering what happened to s’mores, but then I decided that maybe that was a Girl Scout thing.)

Anyhow, I remembered some cute bear brownie treats I had made for the kids in the past and thought they might work. I showed my son a picture and he decided he liked them. But he wanted some ‘dirt’ on top.

(I put his version of dirt on top of his Indiana Jones birthday cake. Guess it made quite an impression!)

I thought about the brownies, took inventory of what was in the kitchen, and came up with a new twist.

I didn’t have much candy corn, so I also made another version. This time with peanut butter:

No, this does not follow my new clean eating plan or my weight watching plan. But it does fit into my Cool Mom plan.

Here’s what you’ll need to make these simple treats at home, too:

Mini muffin tins

1 package of brownie mix and its requirements (oil, water, egg or eggs)

1 package of bear cookies

Peanut butter (optional)

Candy corn or other garnish. (Personally, I think these would have been cuter with the bears and a candy pumpkin. But I had to go with what I had. You could also go traditionally s’more and use miniature marshmallows, bears and a few chocolate chips.)

For the dirt: ground Oreos or their equivalent mixed with ground graham crackers until you get the right color.

Here’s how to make them:

Preheat the oven to 325.

Mix the brownie batter according to package directions.

Scoop apx. 1 Tablespoon batter into each mini muffin cup.

Bake for 13-14 minutes.

While baking, prepare ‘dirt.’

If NOT using peanut butter:

Remove from oven and press bear cookies and candy garnish into brownie bites immediately.

Sprinkle with ‘dirt.’

Allow to cool 5 minutes and remove from pan.

If using peanut butter:

Allow brownie bites to cool in pan 5 – 7 minutes.

Remove brownie bites from pan and ‘frost’ with peanut butter.

Dip tops into ‘dirt.’

Press bear cookies and any other garnish into peanut butter.

 Final step: Serve with a glass of milk. Or package into shoe boxes and send with your Cub Scout to the camping trip. (Be sure to keep at least one for other siblings and maybe yourself.)

** Check out more yummy recipes at the Scrumptious Sunday Recipe Swap at Happy to be at Home.

Post-Posting note:  These cute treats earned a “Best Scout Theme” award at the campout. My Tiger Cub was quite proud.