Happy Birthday!
What’s the best way to celebrate the birthday of someone special? Cookies, of course! Presents wrapped in bright colors are also welcome, but first come cookies, followed by singing off-key and finally come the presents. This order must be maintained because something sweet always shows the way to something spectacular.
“Birthday cookies are the easiest way to send a gift of sweetness to someone you love who is far away.” Kasha
Cookies are by far my favorite dessert for birthdays. Cake often gets all the attention, but cookies are so much more versatile. You don’t need any utensils or plates so clean-up is a snap. They can be given as party favors so guests have something delicious for the ride home. And they can be mailed far and wide. (Birthday cake just doesn’t travel well...trust me on this.)
So let’s give three cheers to the delicious, beautiful, and always-welcome birthday cookie.
Cookie specifics
Shortbread. The combination of European butter and vanilla bean makes this shortbread cookie one of the yummiest cookies I make. It’s buttery, crumbly and light. For the lemon lovers in my family, I make a lemon variation, full of subtle lemon flavor, and topped with a bright and tangy lemon glaze.
Shapes
small cupcake, tiny heart, birthday candle — the perfect birthday trio!
Sizes
Sizes range from mini hearts (2 inches) to medium-sized cupcakes (2½ inches) to larger candles (3½ inches). 2½ to 3 inches is my favorite size for decorating and eating!
My Own Family Recipes
I developed this Shortbread recipe over the course of several months in my quest to duplicate the taste and texture of a shortbread cookie from a now-closed bakery in Carmel-by-the-Sea. Once I perfected the recipe, it became a cookie that I now bake for many occasions throughout the year.
Icing & Frostings
Homemade Fondant: I love to cover my cookies with homemade fondant. It is made from melting marshmallows with a little water and adding confectioners’ sugar to make a stiff dough. I always mix it with a high-quality white chocolate to make a tasty covering for my cookies. For these cupcakes, I embossed the bottoms to make a pretty pattern. Store-bought fondant is quite frankly inedible. But homemade fondant is really delicious.
Glaze for Piping: This glaze/icing dries hard enough that you can stack or package the cookies without damaging the embellishments. I often use it exclusively or in combination with Royal Icing.
Glaze for Piping Recipe
Cookies
Shortbread: flour, butter, sugar, cornstarch, vanilla, salt
Icing & Decorative Embellishments
Homemade Fondant: marshmallows, water, & corn syrup plus delicate white chocolate
Glaze for Piping: sugar, water, corn syrup, food coloring (optional), various extracts for flavoring (vanilla, almond, lemon, raspberry, etc.)
Sprinkles: Dipping the cookies in big sugar crystals brought sparkle to the “frosting” on the cupcakes and the stripes and flames on the candles.
Plate, Box or Bag?
Box. My favorite way to gift my cookies is to package them in a cardboard bakery box with a clear window on top that makes the contents visible to anyone who wants to peek. I was able to get a dozen cupcake cookies, a half dozen tiny hearts, and two birthday candles into this box.
What I’ve learned...
These cookies were made with the best ingredients I could find and baked in a small batch of two dozen. I’ve experimented with less expensive ingredients, but have come to the conclusion that flavor is best when I use the best. Why spend all this time baking and decorating if taste and texture are just so-so? Decorating the cookies takes time, but it’s an enjoyable process for me and I know that those who receive them appreciate that. Life is just better when you can share something you love with someone you love. Don’t you agree?
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