Easy cupcakes

A busy life will not allow you to spend a lot of time in the kitchen when you want to make simple cupcakes to relieve stress. Therefore, I chose this simple recipe to make cupcakes. Adding different flavors into them will bring a special taste. This recipe will take very little time to prepare, but the taste when finished will be impeccable. .

Ingredients:

1 cup self-rising flour

1/2 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 stick butter softened

1/8 cup milk at room temperature

1 tsp vanilla extract

Add:

1/3 cup raisins or any kinds of dry fruit (your choice)

Directions:

In a KitchenAid mixer, add sugar and butter. Turn the mixer on for 4 minutes. Add egg one at a time and continue until the egg mixture turns into a light color. Add milk while beating eggs. Add vanilla extract and flour. Turn the mixer down to stir. Let mixer run until the flour and egg mixture are well combined. Stir in raisins (if using).

Turn the oven to 350°.

Line the muffin tin with 6 medium size muffin tin paper liners.

Fill the batter 2/3 full.

Bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.

Let cupcakes cool completely before icing them.

Tip: if you do not have self rising flour, you can make your own.

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 /1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

Black eye peas dessert

Black eye peas dessert is a popular snack in VietNam . To make this dessert from the scratch will take some technique if using the dry black eye peas . However, we are living in the fastest society , time is every thing, .I like to share this easy , quick recipe to prepare this dessert in a short time by using the rice cooker and the can black eye peas . The result is fantastic!!

Ingredients:

1 can black eye peas 15.5 oz

1/2 cup sweet rice 

1/2 cup sugar

2 cups water

a few pandan leave or Vanilla

Coconut cream sauce:

1 cup coconut milk

1 tsp salt

1/4 cup sugar

1 tbsp cornstarch

2 tbsp water

Directions:

Open the black eye peas can, wash it well and drain

Wash the sweet rice and drain

Place all the ingredients in the rice cooker and turn to cook.

To make coconut cream sauce:

Combine all the ingredients in a sauce pan except the cornstarch and water. Bring to boil ; stir well . Mix the cornstarch with water and stir in to the coconut sauce. Adjust the thickness of the sauce .

To serve

ladle the black eye peas dessert in to a serving bowl ; Add a couple of coconut cream sauce on top and enjoy

Tip: choose the black eye peas with no other spices other than salt

The Monkey Thieves

Relax, close your eyes and picture a band of very naughty monkeys. Every night the monkeys would creep into the King’s orchard and steal his delicious apricots, plums and peaches. Would you like to know what happened? Listen carefully to their story.

The head gardener stood before the King in the great throne room of the palace. “I’m sorry Your Majesty,” he said. “We laid traps and nets but these monkeys are slippery devils. They got away again last night.”

“We must try to solve this problem together,” replied the King. “Remember, I don't want to hurt the monkeys, I just want to stop them eating my fruit.”

There was silence in the throne room as all the King’s staff thought hard. Finally Buttercup, the cook’s daughter, came forward and bowed to the King. “Your Majesty, doesn’t eating fruit make you fit and healthy?”

“Yes, I believe it does, Buttercup,” said the King.

“I like fruit, but I love cake,” Buttercup continued.

“But when I eat too much cake my tummy feels heavy and sometimes I even feel sleepy.

“Yes, I also feel tired if I eat too much cake”, laughed the King, “but I don’t get your meaning.

“If you could tempt the monkeys to eat a lot of cake, they would become sleepy. Then they wouldn’t be able to run so fast and they might be easier to catch,” explained Buttercup.

“And Your Majesty,” added Basil, the son of the King’s shoemaker, “we’ve all noticed how vain these monkeys are. They love anything bright and sparkling, and they steal jewelry and bright clothing. I’ve seen them hang necklaces around their necks and bangles from their arms. I’ve even seen them trying on shoes!”

“That’s all very well,” said the King, “but I don’t see how that helps us to catch those rascals.”

“I can create the most beautiful pairs of sparkling high- heeled shoes that the monkeys won’t be able to resist,”

Basil continued. “If their tummies are full with cake and they are wearing high-heeled shoes they’ll never escape us.”

At first the King just laughed at these plans. But when the monkeys continued to steal his fruit for the next three nights in a row, he was ready to give anything a try. He ordered his finest pastry chefs to create the most delicious array of cakes. The cooks spent an entire day whipping cream, mixing chocolate sauce and spinning sugar.

By late afternoon they were ready to lay out an enormous, mouth-watering spread on a huge cake stand in the middle of the orchard. The stand groaned under the weight of cream-filled cupcakes, iced buns, chocolate sponges, cherry pies and apricot tarts. The wonderful aroma floated over the orchard.

Meanwhile Basil was creating the most beautiful monkey shoes that had ever been seen. When they were finished he hung them from the branches of the trees in the orchard. The trap was set. The King’s guards hid among the trees and waited.

As afternoon wore on toward evening, the monkey thieves crept through the trees “Mmm, what is that delicious smell?” asked Snout.

“It’s cake! I love cake!” cheered Lugs and Peeper.

“Stay still,” hissed Wit. “This could be a trap. We should leave and come back another time.”

“We don’t like it either! It all feels a bit suspicious,” said Gob and Peck.

But no-one made a move to leave. Everyone was too busy staring at the cream cakes and tarts.

The more they stared at the yummy delicacies, the harder it was to believe in any trap. The smell of fresh baking was intoxicating.

The monkeys’ mouths began to water and their bellies rumbled. “I’ll take a closer look,” volunteered Snout, and ran off to the cake-laden stand. He broke off a small piece of cake and slipped it tentatively into his mouth. It melted on his tongue.

“Heaven,” he murmured. Looking up into the trees he saw dozens of pairs of dazzling shoes sparkling like stars. “Ah, how beautiful,” he gasped. He reached up with his long arms and unhooked a pair of gold twinkly platform shoes from a branch. Snout had completely forgotten about the possible danger and the others waiting for him.

At the edge of the orchard, Wit, Peeper, Peck, Lugs, Gob, Nit and Bruno were bickering. “So what if it's a trap? It doesn't matter - no trap can hold us for long!” said Gob, arrogantly.

“I’m worried, Snout hasn’t come back!” said Nit.

“Snout’s probably stuffing his face with cake and leaving none for us,” said Bruno.

At these words the monkeys threw caution to the wind. They found Snout parading around the orchard in golden shoes eating a big piece of pie. A mad scramble ensued as they fought for the most beautiful shoes and stuffed handfuls of cake into their mouths.

The monkeys ate all the delicacies, every single crumb. What a sight they were, faces covered with icing and tummies bloated with cake as they staggered around trying on glittery shoes. They were soon feeling so tired and full that, one by one, they lay down and fell fast asleep.

The guards now crept up very quietly and pounced. The monkeys awoke in a panic. They'd no chance of escape. They were too full and heavy with rich food and couldn’t run in their high-heeled shoes. It took no time at all for the guards to catch all of them in their nets.

The King had the monkeys placed in his private zoo, but as soon as they came back to their senses they worked out how to escape.

From that day on they stayed in their forest home. Wit spoke for them all when he said: “We’ve plenty of food in the forest and no need of silly high-heels. Let’s stay happy and safe just where we are.”

We can all be tempted by greed to do things that are silly and even dangerous. As long as we’re safe and well, there's no reason to take more than we actually need.

from the internet

Laugh a little

In this world, there are two most difficult thing to do:

1 is inserting one's thoughts into other people's minds
2 is putting other people's money in your pocket
If:
Whoever does the first thing successfully is call Zen master
Whoever can do the second thing successfully is call owner
But if someone who can do both things successfully then call it 's...WIFE

Simplify, and Savor Life

This article is very helpful ; I want to share with people who follow my blog

‘The miracle is not to walk on water. The miracle is to walk on the green earth, dwelling deeply in the present moment and feeling truly alive.’ ~Thich Nhat Hanh

By Leo Babauta

These days we have an abundance of luxuries, but I’ve found that excess actually decreases my enjoyment of life.
Sure, we can get massive amounts of rich foods, feasting to our heart’s content, stuffing ourselves in alarming displays of gluttony … but is that really enjoyable on a regular basis?
And yes, television can be fun, and so can ridiculously large parts of the Internet, but if it’s always on, if we’re always connected, doesn’t that lower the fun factor?
Excesses lead to all kinds of problems, but the biggest problem is that life is less enjoyable.
I’ve been finding that simplifying things means I can savor life more fully.
Savoring life starts with a mindset. It’s a mindset that believes that excess, that rushing, that busy-ness, that distractedness, isn’t ideal. It’s a mindset that tries instead to:

• simplify
• do & consume less
• slow down
• be mindful & present
• savor things fully

It’s the little things that make life enjoyable: a walk with a loved one, a delicious book, a chilled plum, a newly blooming tree.
And by simplifying, we can savor life to the fullest.
Some ideas I’ve been considering lately:
1. Coffee: Instead of ordering a latte, mocha, cappuccino with whipped cream and cinnamon and shavings … simplify. Just get pure, good coffee (or espresso), brewed fresh with care and precision, with quality beans, freshly roasted. Make it yourself if you can. Drink it slowly, with little or nothing added, and enjoy it thoroughly.
2. Tea: I recently had tea with Jesse Jacobs, the owner of Samovar Tea Lounge, and he poured two different teas from tiny tea pots: Nishi Sencha 1st Flush and Bai Hao Oolong tea. It was fresh, hand-made tea from real leaves, not a tea bag, and it was simply delicious. Drink it slowly, with your eyes closed, fully appreciating the aroma … wonderful.
3. Workouts: I’ve been a fan of simpler workouts recently. While others might spend an hour to 90 minutes in the gym, going through a series of 10 different exercises, I just do 1-3 functional exercises, but with intensity. So I might do some sprint intervals, or a few rounds of pushups, pullups, and bodyweight squats. Or 400 meters of walking lunges. Let me tell you, that’s a simple but incredible workout. Another I like: five rounds 85-lb. squat thrusters (10 reps) alternated with pushups (10 reps). Today’s workout was three rounds of 15 burpees and 800-meter runs. No rest unless you need it. These are great workouts, but very simple, and very tough. I love them.
4. Sweets: I used to be a sugar addict. Now I still enjoy an occasional dessert, but in tiny portions, eaten very slowly. What I enjoy even more, though, is cold fruit. A chilled peach, some blueberries, a few strawberries, a plum: eat it one bite at a time, close your eyes with each bite, and enjoy to the fullest. So good.
5. Meals: While the trend these days is super-sized meals of greasy, fried things (more than two people need to eat actually), I have been enjoying smaller meals of simplicity. Just a few ingredients, fresh, whole, unprocessed, without chemicals or sauces. My meals usually include: a breakfast of steel-cut oats (cooked) with cinnamon, almonds, and berries; a lunch of yogurt, nuts, and fruit; a dinner of beans or tofu with quinoa and steamed veggies (or sauteed with garlic and olive oil). These simple meals are better because not only are they healthy, each ingredient can be tasted, its flavor fully enjoyed.
6. Reading: While the Internet is chock full of things to read, I’ve been enjoying the simplicity of a paper book, borrowed from the library or a friend (borrowing/sharing reduces natural resources consumed). When I read online, I read a single article at a time, using either the Readability or Clippable bookmarklet to remove distrations, and in full-screen mode in the Chrome browser (hit Cmd-Shift-F on the Mac version or F11 in Windows). It’s pure reading, no distractions, and lovely.

8 Effective Ways For Dealing With Difficult People

Life will always present us with awkward, difficult people; and unless you want to live in a Himalayan cave you will have to learn how to deal with these people. We should not let difficult people spoil our inner equanimity; with the right attitude we can maintain our peace of mind even when dealing with unpleasant people. These are some suggestions for dealing with awkward people.

1. Don’t Think about Them All the Time.

Sometimes when people cause us difficulties they start to dominate our thoughts; this makes their presence seem very close. However, it is best to think about them as little as possible. Instead, concentrate on things and people who inspire you. Thinking about difficult people is not going to change how they behave, but it will cause us unhappiness.

2. Don’t Expect to Change Them.

Awkward and unpleasant people are the least likely to be willing to change themselves. Don’t take it upon yourself to try and change their behaviour; you will all most certainly fail. Furthermore, they will probably resent your interference and this will create further difficulties. Instead we can maintain a cheerful detachment. If we don’t have any expectations, it becomes much easier to deal with.

3. Don’t feel guilt.

If people create problems in our life we can start to feel guilty, even though we have done nothing wrong. In cases like this we have to be detached; it is not our fault problems are created. As long as we seek to maintain a good attitude, that is all that matters.

If you want to transform your life

Radically,

Then immediately give up

Your false sense of teeming guilt.

~ Sri Chinmoy [1]

4. Silence is a powerful weapon.

When people say unreasonable things, the natural instinct is to try and argue with them. However, this draws us into their weird perspective. In many circumstances, it may be appropriate to maintain silence and not respond to what they say and do. By being silent, we are effectively ignoring them without having to criticise their actions. In silence their is great power; when we ignore them, they lose influence. Silence also gives us time to think a more measured and detached response, for later.

5. Retain your Humour.

Don’t feel obliged to take every situation seriously. Try to see the funny side. If people behave in a ridiculous way, don’t despair – just see the absurd behaviour as a humorous situation. The comical aspect of the TV programme, The Office came simply from ordinary people behaving in unreasonable ways.

6. Don’t seek to Avoid them.

If you have to work with a difficult people, the solution is rarely to move job. The likelihood is that you will find difficult people wherever you work. If you try to avoid difficult people, you will be permanently on the move. The thing to do is to change your attitude; rather than feeling depressed and guilty, we can see it is an opportunity for our self improvement. Through learning to deal with difficulty people, we will learn many valuable life skills.

7. Offer Goodwill.

If we can offer goodwill even to difficult people, we will make tremendous progress. Unpleasant people may deserve criticism, but, this will not help the situation. Even the most difficult person may have one or two good qualities. Try to mentions these; subconsciously they will appreciate our goodwill. This remains the most effective way to bring out the best in others – even if it may seem to take a very long time.

8. Don’t Try to Impress or Gain favour.

Sometimes, whatever we do, people will look at the negative side and criticise us. This can cause us to seek even harder to seek their approval. But, this can cause us to ignore our basic values, and sometimes even if we change, we still don’t gain their approval anyway. There is much more dignity in being true to ourselves, and being happy with our choices. If some difficult people don’t appreciate our actions, no harm. We can never expect to receive everyone’s approval.

[1] Sri Chinmoy, Ten Thousand Flower-Flames, Part 40, Agni Press, 1982.

From the internet

Just say hi

If you are viewing my cooking and baking blog, enjoyasimplelife.blogspot.com, for the first time or are a frequent viewer, I have not made additional entries to the blog for quite some time.  The reason for this is that I have made a move to a new home in a different state, and the cooking arrangements are not quite ideal at this time. There are additional reasons that should be resolved soon. When this happens, I will gladly post additional easy-to-follow, photo-illustrated entries that I am certain you will enjoy preparing for yourself and others. In the meantime, I have already published more than 1400 recipes on this website that you can have access to now at no cost to you except your time and your own desire to try something new. To search for something of your liking, simply enter a word or group of words, such as shrimp, chicken, egg rolls, or dipping sauce, etc., in the search box in the upper left-hand corner of this page. Then click the magnifying glass search symbol to the right of the word(s). Immediately, all the recipes I have in my blog that contain the word or words just entered will appear in the order they were posted.

Occasionally, depending on the search engine, such as Google, other websites will appear before my blog address. You may need to look for the words, Enjoy Life, when looking for my blog as you scroll down the entries that appear first. Good luck! And thanks for visiting my blog.

Lan