Birthday bonbons and other treats for my 8-year old!

My little guy turns "8" today!  Needless to say, I want to give my son a great big shout-out on his special day:

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, J!! 

Homemade brownie ice cream cake

It's funny but I'm always referring to my son as the "little" guy here but I don't call him that in "real life".  It may occasionally be my big guy or "big man" when I'm talking to him.  But I am the queen of nicknames so I call him by many things.  

In all seriousness, he is growing up so fast!  Having a child speeds up time (and ages you) like nobody's business!  We were at the library the other day  checking out a few books when the lady asked him what grade he'll be going into next Fall.  When he answered "third", she was really surprised and said: "weren't you just in kindergarten!"  That just about sums it up because it really was yesterday that he was in kindergarten and now he's finishing second grade and looking forward to third.

Some homemade birthday treats: Ice cream cake, birthday bonbons, and Ninjago cupcakes

So here we are again, another milestone!  A child's birthday is a major thing.  We did some celebrating on Saturday since his birthday, today, is a school day.  I wanted to make a few treats for the special occasion.  I'll be posting the recipe for the ice cream cake next - it's very similar to the one I made last year.  

As per the birthday boy's request, I also made Ninjago cupcakes again, this time in blue and green.  He was really into Ninjago for a while and is still a fan (he'd love some new episodes to watch but it seems the TV series was a short one).  He actually asked if I could make gold ninjas but since I don't have gold food coloring, he settled for these.  The recipes and directions for the cupcakes are available in an old post.

I think he got a kick out of these little treats; I feel like I'm the real beneficiary to get to see the quirky smile on his face!  And he was a good sport, taking some pictures with us earlier in the day so I can blog about it here.  When it came time to blow out the candle and actually dig into our birthday goodies, we switched over to Star Wars disposable tablecloth and plates!  With a few old-school streamers floating overhead, it was a festive little celebration.  Happy birthday, sweetie pie!

Now for today's post, I'd like to talk birthday bonbons!  I just love the sound of that!

Brigadeiros: Fudgy, chocolate, caramel-like birthday bonbons

These are Brazilian Brigadeiros - chocolate bonbons or candies typically served at children's birthday parties in Brazil.  I saw these on a show once and just loved this tradition the Brazilian people have of serving these festive truffle-like candies at kids' birthday parties and other celebrations like weddings.  I'm told that every serious Brazilian children's birthday party has to have brigadeiros.  

My first boss out of college is something of an expert on Brazil.  He used to vacation there at least 2-3 times a year but while he educated me plenty about Caipirinhas (the drink), Carnival, and women's beach attire, he never did mention brigadeiros.  So while I can't personally confirm whether they really are such a staple at children's parties, it sure sounds like a good idea to me!

The cool thing about brigadeiros is they are made with just 3 main ingredients: sweetened condensed milk, a little cocoa powder, and a bit of butter, plus toppings such as sprinkles of your choice to roll them in.  As you can tell from the ingredient list, they are a cross between fudge and caramel.  As my son would tell you: "they are fudgy, 'caramelly', and chewy."  He really liked them and you can see they are appealing to children on looks alone.  Upon trying one, I think his exact words were "mmmm....mmmm" with a nod.  The birthday boy approved.  To me, they're a sweet sentiment and just fun to look at because sprinkles tend to make people smile, don't you think?