Presently

Good Afternoon!

I am totally loving this yoga challenge!  Today is only day, but I can already feel my flexibility and focus improving in my practice.

As part of my attempt at yogic advancement, I have also been trying to meditate daily.  My goal is 10 minutes of meditation.  Just 10.  And let me tell you…it is HARD.  Most days I have trouble stopping for 30 seconds, let alone 10 whole minutes.  This feeling of constantly being in overdrive makes me feel anxious, and completely disrupts my ability to concentrate.  I’m in need of a deep brain cleanse.

I have always had a hard time getting my mind to slow down (it feels like trying to stop a high speed fan with a toothpick).  So needless to say, forcing myself to sit still, breathe and clear my mind for 10 minutes straight has been no easy task.

I confess.  I haven’t even made it to 10 minutes yet.  My personal best is 5.  But I’m not giving up yet! 

As I lay in savasana yesterday (after a short 20 min vinyassa), I was thinking about how hard it is to focus on the present.  My thoughts were wildly bouncing around (as per usual), but every though I had was either about the past or future.  No respect given to the present moment.

I want to make it a point in my life to truly appreciate the present.  So often I find myself trying to live in the past or future, but this isn’t really living!  Life is in the present moment.  Each moment is what makes up your life.

Mindfulness (or “Sati” in the Pali language spoken by Buddha) is non-judgmental awareness and appreciation of the present moment.  I’m hoping that I will be able to develop this quality as I continue practice.

Mindfulness meditation (or Vipassana Meditation) increases your patience, mental clarity and level of personal insight.  Just what I need!  Also, a study I read several months ago revealed a happy conclusion that consistent mindful meditation actually produces measurable changes in your brain’s grey matter.  The areas of the brain associated with memory, sense of self, empathy and stress were all positively affected.

Today I'm breaking my meditation up into two sessions (hoping this will be more successful).  I did 5 minutes this morning, and I'll do 5 more tonight.  I promise.

Namaste.  

Rainbow Bit Cupcakes with Cake Batter Buttercream

The best part of baking a cake is and always will be licking the spoon.  And bowl.  And any other kitchen appliance that is coated in cake batter!

Now....

Imagine tasting that creamy cake batter at the same time as the sweet, crumbly finished product.  You can have your cake batter and eat it too!  Or something like that...

Anyways, my adorable sister Julie has been in Ethiopia for the past three weeks volunteering with an organization called Canadian Humanitarian!  We picked her up from the airport Sunday night and she definitely deserved a little something special for all of her hard work.  Enter cupcakes.

Julie and I are both huge fans of "unbaked goods."  Cookie dough, cake batter, pie filling, pancake batter (gross, I know), so for her "welcome home" treat I thought I would take our weird obsession into consideration.  The result?  Frosting that tastes like cake. WIN.

Oh, and there are lots of sprinkles.
Because, we love sprinkles.

Rainbow Bit Cupcakes with Cake Batter Buttercream
Makes 12 cupcakes
Cupcakes:
1/2 c. butter
3/4 c. sugar
2 eggs
1 T. vanilla
1 1/2 c. flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/3 c. milk
1/4 c. rainbow sprinkles

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a small bowl combine the flour and baking powder and set aside.  In another bowl beat together the butter and sugar until fluffy and well combined.  Add the eggs one at a time, and whisk until they are well mixed in.  Mix in the vanilla.  Add half of the flour mixture and mix until combined.  Then add milk and other half of the flour mixture and stir until the batter is smooth.  Gently stir in the rainbow sprinkles. (Don't stir too vigorously or you will end up with some really ugly purpleish cupcakes).

Line a muffin tray with paper liners, or spray tray with nonstick spray.  Using a 1/4 c. measure, spoon the mixture into each muffin cup.  Bake for 13-15 minutes.  Remove from tray and let cupcakes cool.

Buttercream:
1 stick butter
2 c. powdered sugar
1/2 c. white cake mix
2 T. whipping cream
1 tsp. vanilla extract

In a small bowl beat the butter until fluffy.  Add the powdered sugar and cake mix and beat with mixer on low gradually adding the whipping cream and vanilla until the frosting is smooth and fluffy.  Add a little more cream if the icing is too thick, or a little more sugar if it is too thin.

Once cooled, pipe the frosting as highhh as you want atop the cupcakes as you desire.
Top frosted cupcakes with more sprinkles!

Devour.