Let's talk about celebration.
Sprinkles come at a time when it feels necessary to throw one's hands up in the air and shout "party!" How is that the slight addition of multi-colored bits of sugar can us feel so special? Sprinkles cause the clapping of hands and jumping up-and-down of a 23-year-old Libra alone in her kitchen. They are cute, they are very fun.
Besides, there are several things to celebrate. Six months in LA, the up-and-coming launch with Salted, and a red-eye leaving tomorrow (!!!) back east (!!!) to see my long distance love. Oh, and for the potential airline travel wait, I've downloaded A Little Princess onto my Kindle.
The protagonist, Sarah Crewe, was a storyteller and self-declared princess, wowing her faithful audiences with tales of leathery skinned elephants and the pleasant strum of an evening mandolin. I have a hardcover version of the book hiding somewhere, still maintaining it's magic since I first digested Sarah's story several years ago.
When it comes to cookies and classic storybooks (the ones with crackly spins and pages that smell like glue), I always think of shortbread. I used to call shortbread, "Grandma cookies" because I envisioned them as the type of a cookie an afghan-owning woman would snack on as she poured herself a second glass of Irish Breakfast Tea. They would crumble with each bite, and were eaten on the front porch.
Now, however, I see shortbread differently. It cannot fit into one category. Like a story, it's universal, and melts into several of life's occasions. Shortbread is simple, and sometimes sneaky. Shortbread can be a snack. It can be breakfast. It can be eaten in a nearly-black kitchen late at night, paired with a glass of cold milk and the glow from the light in the fridge.
In every sense, it is very much romantic. If I hadn't already slid funfetti into the title, I might call it "storybook shortbread."
The few ingredients make it simple; the sprinkles make it special. It tastes like butter and coconut and looks like a celebration. Eating it, especially eating it while packing my travel dress, is just enough of a reason to say "party."
funfetti shortbread
1/2 cup softenend butter
1/2 cup coconut oil
1/2 cup sugar
2 1/2 cups flour
1 tablespoon vanilla
1/2 cup funfetti sprinkles
Preheat the oven to 300.
Using a hand-mixer, combine the oil, butter, sugar, and vanilla until thoroughly mixed. Add the flour and blend until the mixture resembles sand. Stir in the sprinkles using a wooden spoon, or something like that.
Press dough into a greased 9x13 pan or two 8x8s. Use your hands to create a smooth surface, and then a fork to create tiny pricks along the top of the shortbread.
Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until the shortbread are golden brown. Allow to cool completely before cutting.
Drink with tea, milk, red wine, or whatever your celebrating self desires.
You can taste the comfiness.