Emergency Brownie Kit

In an effort to cut down on holiday materialism (and generally save money), this year my husband's family collectively agreed to only buy gifts for the children and give baked goods to the adults. This was the brain child of my brother-in-law and his wife, as they pointed out that the adults were essentially just swapping gift cards around in previous years. Good point. So we'll probably be doing the children-gifts-only thing from here on out.

While I like the idea of giving baked goods for Christmas, the problem is that so does everyone else. Next thing you know, you've got a kitchen full of cookies that need to be eaten up before they go stale. Now I'm not complaining about getting cookies--I love cookies! I was just thinking that it might be nice if whatever baked good I decided to give to the family could be eaten a bit later, once the Christmas baking frenzy had died down.

In years past, I've given those cookie-in-a-jar kits, but I was looking to be a bit more original than that. Then on Pinterest one day I found a recipe for how to make a single serving brownie in a mug in the microwave. Bingo! Wouldn't it be fun if I created a mix that could be used to make a single serving brownie any time the recipient wanted one?

I adapted my Box Mix Brownies from Scratch recipe into a dry mix so that the recipient could do just that. I figured out how much mix they would need to make one large brownie, as well as the amount of wet ingredients they would need to add. The result? My Emergency Brownie Kit.

If you're having a bad day and just need a brownie to get through it, all you have to do is put a scoop of mix in a mug, add the wet ingredients as directed, and stick it in the microwave for 1 minute. Instant brownie! I used white whole wheat flour in my mix, but you could substitute all-purpose flour if desired.

Emergency Brownie Kit
1/3 cup cocoa powder 1 cup raw or white sugar	2/3 cup white whole wheat flour 1/4 tsp salt
Directions Mix all ingredients together and pour into a pint-sized jar. Attach the directions below for the recipient. Recipient Directions 1. In a microwavable mug, mix together 1 tablespoon each of water, melted butter, and canola oil. Add 1/2 cup dry brownie mix and stir with a fork to blend. 2. Microwave for 60 seconds, taking care not to overcook. Brownie will be hot! Allow to cool a few minutes before eating. There may be some bubbling liquid on top when it first comes out of the microwave, but this will absorb as the brownie cools. 3. Enjoy!
Yield: 1 pint (4 servings)	Calories per serving: 490

Merry Christmas, everyone!