Monday, 30 May 2011 - 4:46 pm
Go placidly amid the noise and the haste,
and remember what peace there may be in silence.
As far as possible, without surrender,
be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly;
and listen to others,
even to the dull and the ignorant;
they too have their story.
Avoid loud and aggressive persons;
they are vexatious to the spirit.
If you compare yourself with others,
you may become vain or bitter,
for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.
Keep interested in your own career, however humble;
it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.
Exercise caution in your business affairs,
for the world is full of trickery.
But let this not blind you to what virtue there is;
many persons strive for high ideals,
and everywhere life is full of heroism.
Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection.
Neither be cynical about love,
for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment,
it is as perennial as the grass.
Take kindly the counsel of the years,
gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.
But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.
Beyond a wholesome discipline,
be gentle with yourself.
You are a child of the universe
no less than the trees and the stars;
you have a right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you,
no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.
Therefore be at peace with God,
whatever you conceive Him to be.
And whatever your labors and aspirations,
in the noisy confusion of life,
keep peace in your soul.
With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams,
it is still a beautiful world.
Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.
Thursday, 26 May 2011 - 1:30 am
“Laugh as much as you breathe and love as long as you live” – Anonymous
Laugh. Breathe. Love. Live. Four of my favourite words. It’s amazing how a simple laugh can just brighten my day, how a deep breath can calm me down, how my love for Dan can put a smile on his dial at the end of a long day…it’s living.
Monday, 23 May 2011 - 6:30 am
I thought it was about time to bake something other than cupcakes….plus Boyfriend has been badgering me for brownies since a colleague bought some in to work.
1 1/2 cups unsalted butter
1 1/4 cups coca powder (unsweetened)
2 3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 tsp salt
5 large eggs
2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 2/3 cups plain flour
1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 325°F.
2. Line the bottom and sides of a 9×13-inch straight-sided metal baking pan with heavy-duty aluminum foil, leaving about a 2-inch overhang on the short sides. Lightly butter the foil.
3. Put the butter in a large (4-quart) saucepan over medium-low heat and stir occasionally until melted, about 2 minutes.
4. Off the heat, whisk in the cocoa powder until smooth, 1 minute.
5. Add the sugar and salt, and whisk until well blended. Use your fingertip to check the temperature of the batter—it should be warm, not hot. If it’s hot, set the pan aside for a minute or two before continuing.
6. Whisk in the eggs, two and then three at a time, until just blended.
7. Whisk in the vanilla until the batter is well blended. Sprinkle the flour over the batter and stir with a rubber spatula until just blended.
8. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and spread evenly.
9. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with small bits of brownie sticking to it, 35 to 45 minutes.
10. For fudgy brownies, do not overbake. Cool the brownies completely in the pan on a rack, about 3 hours.
11. When the brownies are cool, use the foil overhang to lift them from the pan. Invert onto a cutting board and carefully peel away the foil. Flip again and cut into 24 squares. Serve immediately or wrap in plastic and store at room temperature for up to 3 days. They can also be frozen in an airtight container or freezer bag for up to 1 month.
They were soooo delicious!!!
Notes
- This recipe makes A LOT of mixture, I was really hesitant to use it all at once, because I knew it would pretty much fill up my whole baking tin right to the top (which it did) and I’ve had a lot of trouble with brownies before. But I took a leap of faith and just followed the recipe. I had to cook mine for nearly an hour in the oven at about 160 degrees, but I could tell if I left it in any longer the edges would start burning. My toothpick was still coming out quite wet, so when I pulled it out I put some foil (shiny side down) to keep the heat in and I came back about 20 minutes later and presto! cooked through =D
- I sprinkled them with some icing sugar. I personally think they needed some icing to add some sweetness (I used 100% cocoa so the chocolate was a bit over-powering and bitter) but I was over-ruled by Boyfriend.
Saturday, 14 May 2011 - 3:11 pm
“Life can only be understood backwards, but must be lived forwards.” ~Soren Kiekegaard
It will forever be the curse of our kind that the only way to live life is to learn from our mistakes, from our history. I simply love history, and it saddens me to think of how much knowledge has been lost and destroyed throughout the ages…I love to dream sometimes about where would we be if human kind had all of the knowledge our ancient ancestors did? How different would our lives be if we had gone on living with all of that knowledge behind us.
Life cannot be lived without an understanding of where we have come from, what our forefathers and foremothers have discovered..and imagine how our future descendants will use all of the information being gathered and collected on the Internet in this information age. They are being born as we speak with a world of information at their fingertips, more information than one person could possibly read and absorb in just one lifetime. The possibilities are endless!
What do you see in our distant future?
Thursday, 12 May 2011 - 1:17 pm
Woohoo! Got my new camera today!!! I squealed and jumped and danced when it arrived … and then when I got home I thought I would whip up some cupcakes and test it out!
I can’t actually remember the last time I made vanilla cupcakes. I don’t know if I have ever made vanilla cupcakes, especially when I remember how much my taste buds love chocolate. But they were so yum and I will definitely be making them again!
Recipe(makes 24 – I halved all ingredients)
- 200g butter, softened
- 1 3/4 cups (370g) caster sugar
- 2 tsp vanilla bean powder
- 4 eggs
- 2 3/4 cups (405g) self-raising flour
- 1 cup (250ml) milk
Method
- Preheat oven to 180oC
- Cream the butter, sugar and vanilla with an electric mixer
- Add egg one at a time and beat until combined
- Add flour and milk alternately and stir until combined
- Fill patty cases about 3/4 with this mixture as they will rise in a perfect dome and won’t spill over the edge
Frosting
