putting the FUN in funfetti

It's been a while since I turned on my oven to bake.

(Unless you count last weekend when I 'baked' then demolished a packet of frozen curly fries....?! 

Which were pretty awesome, but don't technically fall into the official 'baking' category...)

Yeah... so it's been a while.

But as I prepare to dust off the cake tins and create a dinosaur birthday cake for my favourite mini human and (self-appointed) God-Son, I realised I never posted the recipe for the cake I baked his Mama months ago for her special day.

So (through the magic of the blogesphere)
Here's a little somethin' I prepared earlier....

T H E   F U N F E T T I   C A K E

(For one of my favourite adult humans - xx)

T H E   C A K E 

1 and 2/3 cup plain flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup packed light brown sugar

1 large egg

1/4 cup greek yogurt 

3/4 cup milk

1 Tablespoon vanilla extract

2/3 cup sprinkles

Preheat oven to 180C degrees. Spray cake tin generously with nonstick spray. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.

In a large microwave-safe bowl, melt butter in the microwave.

Whisk in the sugars vigorously getting out any brown sugar lumps - mixture will be gritty.

Whisk in egg, yogurt, milk, and vanilla extract until combined.

Slowly mix in dry ingredients until no lumps remain.

Batter will be thick. Slowly stir in sprinkles, but do not overmix because the sprinkles will bleed their colour.

Pour batter into prepared cake tin.

Bake for approx. 35 minutes.

Allow to cool.

T H E   I C I N G : 

W H I T E   C H O C O L A T E   B U T T E R C R E A M

300g unsalted butter, softened at room temperature

1 tsp vanilla extract

750g icing sugar

150g  white chocolate, melted

Cream the butter, vanilla and icing sugar together in a bowl until light and fluffy. 

Stir in the melted chocolate.

Cake stays fresh covered at room temperature or in the refrigerator for 5 days.

H O T   T I P
This cake was dense.
Best served warm.
With icecream.
For breakfast.

(because why not?!)

xx

burnt

I went to the movies yesterday.

A lazy Sunday afternoon reclined in a Gold Class lounge chair with a glass of bubbles was a rare indulgence.

The movie?

B U R N T

 Here's a list of reasons you should go see this movie :

1. Bradley Cooper

2. Bradley Cooper

Oh.. You need other reasons?! 

Well, that's unexpected.

Perhaps it would help if you knew what it was about?
(Although I didn't before I saw it, so perhaps the element of surprise contributed to my enjoyment)

Adam Jones (Bradley Cooper) is a Chef who destroyed his career with drugs and diva behavior. He cleans up and returns to London, determined to redeem himself by spearheading a top restaurant that can gain three Michelin stars.

It is a sneak peak behind the scenes at the kind of restaurant people like me aspire to eat in.
And the dishes created are works of art. 
The very definition of the word #foodporn

I don't know what the critics are saying about this movie;
And I'm not raving about it - But I did enjoy it.

Did I mention Bradley Cooper?!

Although, at one point, mid-film, it did occur to me that his character embodied may traits  I (unintentionally) seem to find attractive in a guy -

Driven, talented, narcissistic.
Intelligent yet clueless.
Arrogant but irresistible.


(Yes - I realise this is kind of a problem........)

Lucky he's so damn good looking!

xx

pinky promise

To be honest, I don't often know where they come from, but I am repeatedly guilty of adopting random phrases, pop-culture buzz words or figures of speech.

I'm not gonna lie - I hear myself saying them over and over and it's like a snowball down the mountain, gathering momentum and impossible to stop.

"To be honest..."

"I'm not gonna lie..."

I would confidently estimate that I mean 99% of the things I say, at the time I a say them.

I am - for better, or worse - ridiculously honest. 

This essentially makes these latest additions to my vocabulary redundant.

These phrases are designed to give a person more conviction.

Which is why I am amused that they have crept into my regular every day conversations.

There is rarely a time when I would say something I did not believe.

And that is why I consider the Pinky Promise to be a 

B I N D I N G   V E R B A L   A G R E E M E N T

To pinky swear, or make a pinky promise, is the entwining of the little fingers ("pinkies") of two people to signify that a promise has been made.

And in my world - 

A   P I N K   P R O M I S E   IS  U N B R E A K A B L E.

xx

the retrograde cake

I've said it before; And I'll say it again - 

I   E A T   M Y   F E E L I N G S

and they taste

D E L I C I O U S !

Hands up if you agree it's been a strange few weeks...

Let's blame Mercury.

Apparently it's been in retrograde.

Although, even though it's not something I follow closely, 

I swear, it seems to be in retrograde an awful lot lately...

Never fear though! It's over now.

*phew*

But if you are still feeling a little down,

I've got just the thing for you - 

F E R R E R O   C A K E

2 cups sugar
1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup boiling water

Grease cake tin. Heat oven to 180 C.

In a large mixing bowl - stir together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

Add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla. 
Beat on medium speed for one minute.

Stir in boiling water (the batter will be really runny).

Fill cake tin with batter.

Bake for approximately 50 minutes.

Allow to cool. 

Dress up with Ferrero Rochers.

xx

#IAmStigmaFree

Here's a little note to you and to me today;

in honour of 

M E N T A L   H E A L T H   A W A R E N E S S   W E E K

.:  5-11 October 2015  :.

D I D   Y O U   K N O W ? ?

 The average person tells 4 lies a day or 1460 a year; 

a total of 87,600 by the age of 60. 

And the most common is: 

I'm Fine.

"That's the stigma, because, unfortunately, we live in a world where if you break your arm, everyone runs over to sign your cast, but if you tell people you're depressed, everyone runs the other way. That's the stigma. We are so, so, so accepting of any body part breaking down, other than our brains. And that's ignorance. That's pure ignorance. And that ignorance has created a world that doesn't understand depression, that doesn't understand mental health."

xx

this one's a bit sombre

Death; Loss; Sadness.

These are the kind of taboo topics that no one likes to talk about.

But here I am today, writing in a somewhat sombre tone.

And I won't apologise, because life is not always sunshine and happiness.

And that's OK.

It is in moments of loss that I become reflective.

I think most people do...

On the life of the one who has left us;

And perhaps also on the life we have led ourselves.

I become quiet.

I retreat.

I go inwards with my thoughts.

And then I judge my own emotions.

"There are others, all over the world, in a much worse situation than you, right now"

But that dust-yourself-off-and-move-on attitude is not reasonable.

It is not fair.

If you did not allow yourself to feel sadness because someone else may have it worse,

Then you should never permit yourself to feel happiness, 

because by the same logic - someone else may have it better.

Lesson of the Week :

You cannot logic yourself through emotion.

Y O U R   F E E L I N G S   A R E   V A L I D

B E C A U S E   Y O U   F E E L   T H E M

-- Iain Thomas

xx

colour me pretty

 Picture this...

T H E  T I M E

Sunday afternoon.

T H E   L O C A T I O N

My lounge room;

Sun streaming through my window.

T H E  S E T T I N G

Me, on my couch, under a blanket;

Music on;

A pot of textas by my side;

And a colouring book in my lap.

T H E   A C T I V I T Y

Colouring In.

T H E   J U S T I F I C A T I O N

Experts say it generates wellness, quietness

and also stimulates brain areas related to motor skills, the senses and creativity.

T H E   P S Y C H O L O G Y

(aka the 'super official justification'

that brings back all kinds of memories of first year uni and Psychology 101)

"The action involves both logic, by which we colour forms, and creativity, when mixing and matching colours. This incorporates the areas of the cerebral cortex involved in vision and fine motor skills [coordination necessary to make small, precise movements]. The relaxation that it provides lowers the activity of the amygdala, a basic part of our brain involved in controlling emotion that is affected by stress" says psychologist Gloria Martínez Ayala

T H E  O U T C O M E

Total Bliss.

* * *

I feel in every girl there lives a spirit,

a wild pixie,

that if let go, would run and dance in grassy fields

until the end of the world.

And when that girl grows up, that pixie hides,

but it's always there,

peeking out behind old eyes and reading glasses,

laughing..

waiting..

to one day dance again.

                                          -- source unknown

V E R D I C T

Connect with your inner-child again.

Colouring just got cool.

xx

a little apple pie

For those days when you just need a little warmth. 

A little comfort. 

A little love.

A   L I T T L E   A P P L E   P I E

"We must have a pie.

Stress cannot exist in the presence of a pie."

                                                        -- David Mamet

T H E   P A S T R Y

1 3/4 plain flour

1/2 cup self raising flour

1 pinch of salt

185g unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

1/3 cup caster sugar

2 eggs

1 tablespoon chilled water

1 tablespoon milk

Sift flours and pinch of salt into a large mixing bowl.

Add butter and rub lightly into flour with your fingertips, 

until mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.

Stir through sugar.

Add lightly beaten egg, and chilled water.

Knead together as dough forms.

Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Once chilled - Roll pastry out on a floured workbench ready to assemble.

T H E   F I L L I N G

1kg peeled & cored granny smith apples; cut into cubes

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1/4 cup caster sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/8 teaspoon salt

In a large bowl, toss the apples with the lemon juice, caster sugar, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.

T H E   A S S E M B L Y

1 tablespoon unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

1 egg + 1 tablespoon milk whisked together

raw sugar for sprinkling

Roll out pastry to line individual pie trays.

Fill with apple mixture.

Add small piece of butter.

Cover with rolled out pastry to create a lid.

Brush with egg/milk wash

Sprinkle with raw sugar.

B A K E

On 200C for 30mins;

Then reduce heat to 160C and bake until golden.

Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

xx

let's talk about r.b.f.

Today I had the honour of being featured on The Nereeda Network's 'Nereeda Nine'.

oh em gee

Honestly, I feel a little out of place amongst many other oh-so-talented, and frankly, intimidating men and women who have participated before me.

Why?

Because I know what I am bringing to the table... 

And it's not an impressive CV or infinite business advice.

Which brings me to The Topic of Today - 

R E S T I N G   B I T C H   F A C E

(Formerly known as Bitchy Resting Face as shown in this Official Google Trends Graph)

... a phenomenon in which the resting face lacks animation and appears to look bitchy at all times, thus leading people to believe a person must be upset, a snob or a bitch.

Trust me... It's a thing.

People, such as myself, who suffer Chronic Resting Bitch Face are often inundated with enquiry from surrounding people, including -

"What's wrong?"

"Are you okay?"

"Are you mad/sad/depressed?"

"You know...Before I got to know you, I thought you were a snobby bitch*."

How people who suffer Chronic Resting Bitch Face respond -

"I'm fine...honestly." 

"No, nothing is wrong." 

"Yes, I'm sure."

How people who suffer Chronic Resting Bitch Face want to respond - 

"IT'S JUST HOW MY FACE LOOKS!"

I could have posted a photo of my own RBF..
But how could I go past Sassy Barbie?!
#nailedit

If you too suffer from this condition, please know you are not alone.

Infact, let us stand united.

Embrace it.

Love it.

Work it.

xx

*True...