Category Archives: celebration

2012: A Year in Review

2012 was a year of good food, great travel, and the very best company 🙂 Here is a look back at 2012 on The Sweet Life!

Happy New Year, friends!

Momofuku’s Birthday Cake Crumbs

Listen. This post has nothing to do with Christmas. But I’ve been freeeeeaking out over these birthday cake crumbs for the past three weeks and decided it’s high time I SHARE.

I discovered the crumbs while searching for a birthday recipe for a good friend who is a big fan of Momofuku’s Milk Bar. [I briefly posted about Milk Bar last year around this time – hellO red velvet soft serve!]

Words cannot describe, so I’ve compiled a list of reasons+pictures you should whip them up as. soon. as. humanly. possible.:

1. Crumbs, in their eensy-weensy size, do not have calories. No one was ever like, “Oh man, my pants feel extra tight. It must be all those crumbs I’ve been eating.”

2. Therefore, birthday cake crumbs = zero calories. Guilt-free.

3. They are so super duper easy to make!

4. Rainbow sprinkles!

5. So many!

6. Spoon – – mouth. Spoon – – mouth. Repeat.

7. You’re probably sick of Christmas cookies. Make crumbs instead.

8. Observe:

8a. Hypothetically, if you let your ice cream melt a little, mixed in some crumbs, and put it back in the freezer? Hypothetically, you might have BIRTHDAY CAKE CRUMB ICE CREAM. And hypothetically, your boyfriend might eat it all in .5 seconds. Hypothetically.

9. IT’S LIKE BIRTHDAY CAKE STREUSEL. I REPEAT, BIRTHDAY CAKE STREUSEL.

10. Do you really need a tenth reason at this point? WHY ARE YOU STILL HERE??? GO! MAKE THEM! NOW!

Meow. Woof. Ho ho ho.

Momofuku’s Birthday Cake Crumbs

Note: The original recipe from Momofuku is in grams, but since I don’t have a kitchen scale I used this recipe from Hummingbird on High with a couple minor changes.

Ingredients

1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons brown sugar, packed
3/4 cup cake flour*
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 tablespoons rainbow sprinkles**
1/4 cup grapeseed oil
1 tablespoon vanilla extract

*I didn’t have any cake flour on hand so I used this trick and added 1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch to a 3/4 cup measure and filled the rest with flour.

**The original recipe calls for 2 tablespoons of rainbow sprinkles, but I’m willing to bet you could pump up the jam all the way to 3 tablespoons if you’re really feeling the rainbow sprinkle cheer!

Directions

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with Silpat or parchment.
In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the sugars, flour, baking powder, salt, and sprinkles. Mix on low until combined. Add the oil and vanilla and mix on low until the ingredients start to clump together in small clusters – it should take about a minute for everything to combine.
Dump the crumbs onto the prepared baking sheet and spread out gently with your hands to form a single, even layer. Bake for 20 minutes, carefully stirring once, until the crumbs turn a very slight golden brown.
Allow to cool completely on a wire rack – the crumbs will harden as they cool. Store in a sealed container at room temperature.

Birthday Confetti Cookies

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Let’s be honest here: I’ve never been one of those people who are like, “Ohhh, don’t make a big deal for my birthday. It’s just another day.”

Um, no. I’m more like one of those people who’s like, “Did you hear? What today is? MY BIRTHDAY. Uh huh uh huh yes HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME.” The bigger the celebration, the better. I’ve basically been asking for a surprise birthday party for all 25 years of my life. So…someone figure that out in the next 364 days. I’ll try to forget that I asked for it.

In light of this birthday obsession, it’s really only fitting that I make my own birthday cookies stuffed with M&Ms and rainbow sprinkles, right?

Right.

Additionally, in honor of turning 25 today, I’ve decided to share:

25 Things You ~~Probably Don’t Need to~~ Should Know About Me.

I keep snacks with me at all times because if I don’t know when the next time I’ll have access to food is, I’ll have a mental breakdown. You don’t know! It could be days!!
I swear by LipSmacker’s Dr. Pepper chapstick. NOTHING compares.
My and Mike’s parents got married on the same date – year and all! It’s pretty much the only reason we’re still dating. (KIDDING, kidding. We like at least 2 things about each other).
I have kitchen OCD. Dirty pot in the sink? You better believe I’m losing sleep over it. (This does not bode well for our new dishwasher-less apartment).
I can’t sleep unless my room is freeeeeezing. Like, 60 degrees or less. Cold nose, cold cheeks, snuggled under a down comforter, pleaseandthanks.
I took dance classes until 6th grade, at which point I forgot my solo in the middle of the recital, realized I have about as much rhythm as an elephant, and said SEEYA!
If I had to pick one kind of food to eat for the rest of my life, it would be – without a doubt, forever and ever – PIZZA. Or maybe s’mores.
I named my younger brother, Peter. I told my parents (before he was born), “I’m going to have a little brother and you’re going to name him Peter!”
I might be psychic.
But really. Sometimes I just think about a song while my iPod is on shuffle and it comes on next.
25 things is a lot of things so I’ll keep the next few short:
Rainbow sprinkles.
Paris.
Puppies.
My first blog post. (I cannot believe I’m showing you this. OH, the places you’ll go!)
Until the age of 8 10, I legitimately thought “pillow” was pronounced “pellow”. WHY DIDN’T ANYONE EVER CORRECT ME ON THIS????? For TEN YEARS????
I have a scar on my forehead from the time my brother threw a rock at me. Accidentally? On purpose? Unclear.
I’ve had pinkeye every year since I was a freshman in college. Until this year. When I became allergic to my contacts.
I love talking about #2 (not the item on this list, the bodily function. Obv.) and I select my friends based on who’s comfortable with this topic. Overshare don’t care!
I can (and do) convince myself I have pretty much any rare disease. Last month I had a painful bump on the back of my head and the ONLY possible explanation was an Amazonian spider had laid its eggs in there. Am I getting TMI in these last few items???
I started out as an animal science major in college until they made me clean up cow poop and I said, SEEYA!
I am still 100% sure the girl from The Sixth Sense lives under my bed, so when I go to bed at night I leap in from at least 4 feet away so she can’t grab me.
One time in middle school I had a pet hermit crab for a week until it crawled out of its shell and died. DO NOT google “hermit crab without shell”.
I consider solo dance parties in my room to be a legitimate form of exercise.
My totally non-aggressive date to the 8th grade formal broke Mike’s arm in a hockey game, like, 6 years before we ever met. #starcrossedlovers

I hope you feel like you know me better. Fascinating life I’ve got goin’ on over here 😉

But let’s get back to these cookies! Made with browned butter and brown sugar and lots of vanilla, they’re not-too-sweet (just how I like ’em!) and chewy and crispy. Happy birthday to me, inDEED.

Birthday Confetti Cookies

yield: ~40 cookies, depending on size

Ingredients

1 cup unsalted butter, browned and cooled
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1 egg + 1 egg yolk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups mini M&Ms
1/2 cup rainbow jimmies

Directions

In a large pan, melt the butter on medium-high until it starts to brown (it’ll bubble and become darker in color, but be careful not to let it burn!) Allow to cool for 30 minutes.
When the butter has cooled, pour it into a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer and add the sugars. Beat on high until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Scrape down the sides and add the egg and vanilla; beat until combined.
In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, and salt. With the mixer on low, slowly add the flour mixture and stir until almost combined. Add the M&Ms and sprinkles and mix on low until fully combined. Roll the dough into 2-inch balls (or smaller, if you’d like) and bake for 8-10 minutes, until edges are just golden brown. Cool on a wire rack and enjoy!

Fourth of July, In Pictures

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Happy 5th of July! I hope your 4th was full of relaxation, fun, FOOD, and fireworks! This was my and Mike’s first 4th of July in Boston, and we were lucky to be invited to a sa-weeeet roof deck in Back Bay with a fabulous view (Thanks J+P!). Even though it downpoured as soon as the fireworks began, I loved every second of it and even managed to snap some pictures before my camera got completely soaked (#reasonnumber17Ihaveinsurance). Here are some shots from our day…

Baked Confetti Donuts

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WHY hasn’t anyone called me out on the fact that it’s been MONTHS since I’ve posted anything involving sprinkles????

For a self-proclaimed sprinkle queen, this is nothing short of TRAGIC. So I’ve created a baked good that will allow me to shove maximum rainbow-sprinkle-goodness into your face. You. are. welcome.

As an aside, can someone help me figure out a better way to express my excitement than to type in ALL CAPS, ALL THE TIME? I really don’t know how else to show my enthusiasm. For example: “rainbow sprinkles” in no way highlights their awesomeness in the same way “RAINBOW SPRINKLES”, or better yet, “RAINBOW.SPRINKLES.” does. Amiright??

Exhibit B: french bulldog vs. FRENCH BULLDOG!

Exhibit C: ohmygod vs. OH.EM.GEE.

I am the most annoying person ever.

Let’s get back to baking donuts.

These donuts would be really great for a celebration, like, say for instance if your boyfriend happened to graduate from law school and become employed (praise Jesus) all in the same week. Or if it’s nearly the end of the school year and you get to have a small break from small children (or a large break from large children, or no break at all but at least it’s summertime!). Or if your roommate went on vaca to Costa Rica and found a Costa Rican boyfriend and then saw him on the Real Housewives of OC this week.

All celebration-worthy, all appropriate confetti donut occasions. Bake donuts and put rainbow sprinkles in {on, around} them and let’s call it a party!

PS: This donut batter tastes 97% like Funfetti cake batter and NO I did not eat 4 spoonfuls of it! With extra sprinkles! Stop asking!

Baked Confetti Donuts (slightly adapted from Iowa Girl Eats)

yield: 6 donuts

Ingredients

1 cup all purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
pinch of cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons buttermilk*
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon butter, melted and cooled
1/4 cup rainbow jimmies plus more for decorating

*I only had soy milk on hand so that’s what I used and the donuts came out fine, but I think they would have been fluffier if I had used buttermilk.

Directions

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Coat a donut pan with cooking spray.
In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Pour in the buttermilk, egg, vanilla, melted butter, and sprinkles. Stir until combined but do not overmix!
Divide the batter evenly among the donut wells. It’s easier to pipe the batter using a ziploc bag, but I got lazy and just dolloped it in with a spoon. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until the donuts spring back to the touch. Allow to cool in the pan for a few minutes before turning them onto a wire rack to cool completely. Top with vanilla glaze (below) and rainbow sprinkles.

Vanilla Glaze

In a small bowl, combine 1/2 cup powdered sugar with 1/2 teaspoon vanilla and 1-2 tablespoons milk. Stir until smooth and then dip the cooled donuts in!

Snapshots from Home

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Mike and I went home this past weekend to celebrate my ~~not so~~ little brother’s college graduation and we couldn’t have asked for nicer weather or a more beautiful weekend with family! I swear I didn’t realize (or appreciate!) how pretty upstate NY is until I wasn’t living there anymore, and I SWEAR it gets prettier every time I’m home. Rolling hills, so much greenery, family time, and a sweet sunset on the ride back to Boston; here are some snapshots from home!

Liz and Dave’s Wedding

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My Boston pal and former roomie Liz got married this past weekend in upstate New York. I realize I refer to a lot of things as the “most [insert adjective] [insert noun]”, but it’s possible that Liz was the most beautiful bride. Though I forgot my camera in Boston (don’t GET me started), here are a random assortment of stolen-from-Facebook and iPhone pics.