cool summer treats

Cool down this summer with these fun treats:

Ice cream cone cupcakes – I love the thought of serving ice cream in the summer, but keeping it from melting is such a challenge. Well not with these adorable cupcake ice cream cones from BrightIdeas.com; there is actually no ice cream involved, but don’t they look cool!

Here’s what you’ll need:

• 1 box (18.25 oz.) yellow cake mix
• 2 cups chopped SNICKERS® Bars
• 2 cans (16 oz. each) vanilla frosting
• 2 cups M&M’S® Brand Chocolate Candies
• 24 ice cream sugar cones
• Red food coloring
• Sprinkles
• 24 paper cupcake liners
• 2 12-cup standard size muffin tins

And here are the easy steps:

1. Prepare a yellow cake mix according to the package directions. Fold in SNICKERS® Bars before transferring the batter to cupcake paper-lined muffin tins. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 20 minutes. Cool completely.
2. Tint the frosting pink with a few drops of food coloring, set aside
3. Fill each sugar cone with 1 tablespoon of M&M’S® Brand Chocolate Candies.
4. Remove the paper liners from the cupcakes. Top the cones with the cupcakes, and cover with pink frosting. Decorate with M&M’S® Brand Chocolate Candies and sprinkles.

Life Preserver Cookies – I thought these were fun, especially if you’re planning a pool party. You can find them at sugarbowlcreations.com.

Snow cones – Okay, so this just made me think of summer when I was a kid {plus it’s from Southern Living Magazine… remember, I’m southern!}. You can read the complete article with recipes here.

Fruit popsicles – And last but not least, let’s keep it healthy when we can. Let’s face it, kids, especially when not given a choice, will love these popsicles made of real fruit just as much as they would a fudge pop. Read all the facts at rd.com.