I woke up on Thursday morning having the annual fuzzy, out of body-ish experience of coming to and realizing that, if asked, I would have to say that I was a year older than I would have said the morning before. As in, on Wednesday, I would have said “29″, but on Thursday, the only honest answer would have to be “30″.

Luckily, I haven’t really had to spend a whole lot of time taking stock of the year gone by. My decision to go to cooking school threw the need for that out the window, and with all the love and support from everyone around me, I’m exactly where I want to be.

Then, Thursday night, under the guise of surprise birthday plans, Brian led me to a champagne and cheese cocktail hour for two at our spot in Central Park, where he asked me to marry him.

Just when I thought things couldn’t be more exactly right on the first day of my 30th year, they got exponentially more amazing from that one blurry, whirling moment on.

What do other people talk about during the first hours of getting engaged? We chattered on incessantly, like excited children. Our dinner reservations were late, so we occupied ourselves with getting drinks, taking in the view of the park from up above, sitting next to fountains, and contorting ourselves into awkward poses for our camera phones.

With the people all around us going about their usual, Thursday night, after-work routines, we felt like the only people in the whole world. We had this huge secret and were all aglow, subconsciously daring people to ask us. Can you tell we are different? Should we tell you why? Are we making you nauseous? Common, ask us. ASK US!

We rounded out the night doing the unbelievably delicious tasting menu at Babbo, with each plate more amazing than the first… squid ink fettuccine with a fresh pea pesto, braised short rib pasta pyramids, goat cheese and beet ravioli, and so on. And entirely too much wine, perfectly paired with each course.

After spending Friday out of the rain and on the phone, the word was out and Saturday our friends turned out for a casual afternoon celebration at the Bohemian Beer Garden in Queens. If you’re not a city-dweller, this place probably doesn’t seem like a big deal, but for those of us confined to apartment living, traveling to other boroughs to enjoy food, drink, and live music at picnic tables in the sunshine is actually a luxury. I brought along Dorie Greenspan’s iconic cookies (click here to read the back story in her own words) not just because they are some of the most amazing cookies on Earth, but also because with all the dreams that have come true for me this month, perhaps World peace is not outside the realm of possibility.

It’s something I wish for now, more than ever, as I contemplate spending the rest of my life with this amazing man.

Sables Korova (World Peace Cookies)
Taken from Paris Sweets: Great Desserts From the City’s Best Pastry Shops with one variation from Baking: From My Home to Yours both by Dorie Greenspan

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 stick plus 3 tablespoons (11 tablespoons) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2/3 cup (packed) light brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon fleur de sel or 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
5 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped into chips, or a generous 3/4 cup store-bought mini chocolate chips

Sift the flour, cocoa and baking soda together.

Working with a stand mixer, preferably fitted with a paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the butter on medium speed until soft and creamy. Add both sugars, the salt and vanilla extract and beat for 2 minutes more.

Turn off the mixer. Pour in the dry ingredients, drape a kitchen towel over the stand mixer to protect yourself and your kitchen from flying flour and pulse the mixer at low speed about 5 times, a second or two each time. Take a peek — if there is still a lot of flour on the surface of the dough, pulse a couple of times more; if not, remove the towel. Continuing at low speed, mix for about 30 seconds more, just until the flour disappears into the dough — for the best texture, work the dough as little as possible once the flour is added, and don’t be concerned if the dough looks a little crumbly. Toss in the chocolate pieces and mix only to incorporate

Turn the dough out onto a work surface, gather it together and divide it in half. Working with one half at a time, shape the dough into logs that are 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Wrap the logs in plastic wrap and refrigerate them for at least 3 hours. (The dough can be refrigerated for up to 3 days or frozen for up to 2 months. If you’ve frozen the dough, you needn’t defrost it before baking — just slice the logs into cookies and bake the cookies 1 minute longer.)

Getting Ready to Bake:
Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment or silicone mats.

Using a sharp thin knife, slice the logs into rounds that are 1/2 inch thick. (The rounds are likely to crack as you’re cutting them — don’t be concerned, just squeeze the bits back onto each cookie.) Arrange the rounds on the baking sheets, leaving about 1 inch between them.

Bake the cookies one sheet at a time for 12 minutes — they won’t look done, nor will they be firm, but that’s just the way they should be. Transfer the baking sheet to a cooling rack and let the cookies rest until they are only just warm, at which point you can serve them or let them reach room temperature.