Yesterday, Samatva honoured the life of Jennifer Leeder, an instructor at Life Yoga here in Kingston, who tragically passed away on January 9, 2011. She was a good friend of the studio and as a sign of respect, Samatva shut its doors at both the west end and downtown locations on the day of her funeral.
As a result, yesterday I established my first home practice. I have played around with asanas at home, yes. But delivering your own sequence, deciding when it is time to push and when it is time to let go and breathe are undertakings I had never tried before. Over the last 5 days I've discovered that I have a much stronger drive to success, better discipline that I anticipated and as such, I not only finished my at-home sequence (sivasana, cat-cow, surya namaskar x3, warriors, lunges, extended side angle, twists, surya namaskar x3, shoulder stand, reclined twists, sivasana), but I spent just as much time as I would at the studio, which surprised me. Isn't it true that when pushed by external forces (aka. someone else), we don't have a choice of whether to quit or not? We just do. At home, when only our inner voice is speaking and pushing to go further, it is much easier to silence this voice, listen to our bodies, and quit. I allowed my inner voice to speak and as it did, I acknowledged and observed it, then let it pass without acting on it. Of this I am very proud.
Let this be a lesson for our every day lives. Michelle uses a great tactic to push us to hold poses for longer, force us to push through discomfort and breathe, look inward. She says "if you start feeling uncomfortable, if your body starts speaking to you that you just can't do it anymore and that it's time to let go, hold for one more round of breath....and if your body continues to speak, hold for one more." It reminds me of a Chinese proverb: "Fall down 7, stand up 8." I hope to carry this optimistic drive over the course of the next 25 days.
Every one of us can carry this attitude off the mat and apply it to our daily lives. When you just can't deal anymore, stay another 5 minutes. If after that, you still can't deal, stay another 5. If you just can't read on, read one more paragraph, and then another. Learning tolerance and discipline to move along despite discomfort is a powerful lesson and I'm thankful to my body and myself that I was able to bring myself to the mat despite a complete lack of experience, guidance and incentive (I could easily lie and tell the studio I practiced and snuggle into bed with a book, or logged this day as one of two allowed rest days).
For all of our hard work, discipline and drive, we must always take time to thank our teachers. The obvious ones, like our professors, parents, yoga instructors. The not-so-obvious ones, like people we struggle to get along with or enemies we have made along our paths. And ourselves. Always thank yourself for the things you allowed yourself to do, despite your better judgement, despite fatigue and stress, and despite pain.
Friday, January 14, 2011
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
30-Day Yoga Challenge
I decided to do this challenge about 6 months ago, when I first saw that the studio was offering 30- and 40-day challenges. Come February, I will have been practicing yoga for a year. In this year, I will have also switched to vegetarianism, rid my life of all the drama, made huge steps towards the completion of my master's, and overall become a more balanced, joyful person. It seemed only appropriate to close this first year of change with a challenge like this one.
The 30-Day Yoga Challenge is offered a few times a year at Samatva. The challenge is exactly as it sounds: attend 30 in-studio yoga classes in 30 days. Classes range in length from 45 to 75 mins (usually 75) and can be either hot or room temperature, power or gentle and everything in between. Thankfully, samatva offers over 30 classes a week, so choosing which class to go to is the least of your worries.
Since last February, I have practiced on average 3 times a week. The most yoga I have ever done is 6 days in a row. I am excited and anxious to see how practicing every single day for a month is going to change my body, and more importantly, change my mind. Devout yogis say that you can control which thoughts you experience and which ones you don't, and that yoga is the personification of "mind over matter." Yesterday I heard once of my teachers tell us that pain is in the mind. Of all the cliches to hear during a hot yoga class in which your body is contorted, twisted and pushed to its limit, this last one isn't the most encouraging. However, something I have heard over and over again in the studio is "this too shall pass," one I don't mind hearing as much.
I have been to 2 of my 30 classes, both 7:00am prana vinyasas. It isn't the first time I've gone to two classes in a row. It is the first time, however, that I realized that committing yourself to an hour a day of something really isn't that much time in the grand scheme of things. I had a full day at work today, and by the time I dealt with my data issues, discussed chair covers with Laura, trudged home through the snow, fed the cat, took a call from my landlord, fed myself and unwound a bit, I almost forgot that this morning I was cursing myself for starting this challenge in the first place. Hell, I even forgot that I went to yoga!
Everyday life presents us with all kinds of hurdles to overcome. A headache this morning...a huge roadblock with my data...worrying about whether or not I'd have to go replace my phone today... .. all these things end up being WAY more stressful and of consequence than the hour I spent in the morning sweating a bit and trying to will my hamstrings into submission. My body and my breathing, I can control. The rest is completely unknown, and if we can just gain control of an hour of our lives at a time and clear our heads, I feel we're already ahead.
Aside from all this introspection into intention and purpose, I have also decided to change up my diet a bit this month as well. A friend told me when I started this challenge that she knew a girl who did this too, but also did a 30-day cleanse on top of it and almost died. I won't go that crazy, but have decided to cut alcohol and decrease my portion sizes. While weight loss and slimming might be nice side effects, my main intention with this is to keep my energy up and my body light. I've also realized that cutting down bedtime snacks has a huge effect on how you feel in the morning and the entire next day.
The effort continues tomorrow... :)
The 30-Day Yoga Challenge is offered a few times a year at Samatva. The challenge is exactly as it sounds: attend 30 in-studio yoga classes in 30 days. Classes range in length from 45 to 75 mins (usually 75) and can be either hot or room temperature, power or gentle and everything in between. Thankfully, samatva offers over 30 classes a week, so choosing which class to go to is the least of your worries.
Since last February, I have practiced on average 3 times a week. The most yoga I have ever done is 6 days in a row. I am excited and anxious to see how practicing every single day for a month is going to change my body, and more importantly, change my mind. Devout yogis say that you can control which thoughts you experience and which ones you don't, and that yoga is the personification of "mind over matter." Yesterday I heard once of my teachers tell us that pain is in the mind. Of all the cliches to hear during a hot yoga class in which your body is contorted, twisted and pushed to its limit, this last one isn't the most encouraging. However, something I have heard over and over again in the studio is "this too shall pass," one I don't mind hearing as much.
I have been to 2 of my 30 classes, both 7:00am prana vinyasas. It isn't the first time I've gone to two classes in a row. It is the first time, however, that I realized that committing yourself to an hour a day of something really isn't that much time in the grand scheme of things. I had a full day at work today, and by the time I dealt with my data issues, discussed chair covers with Laura, trudged home through the snow, fed the cat, took a call from my landlord, fed myself and unwound a bit, I almost forgot that this morning I was cursing myself for starting this challenge in the first place. Hell, I even forgot that I went to yoga!
Everyday life presents us with all kinds of hurdles to overcome. A headache this morning...a huge roadblock with my data...worrying about whether or not I'd have to go replace my phone today... .. all these things end up being WAY more stressful and of consequence than the hour I spent in the morning sweating a bit and trying to will my hamstrings into submission. My body and my breathing, I can control. The rest is completely unknown, and if we can just gain control of an hour of our lives at a time and clear our heads, I feel we're already ahead.
Aside from all this introspection into intention and purpose, I have also decided to change up my diet a bit this month as well. A friend told me when I started this challenge that she knew a girl who did this too, but also did a 30-day cleanse on top of it and almost died. I won't go that crazy, but have decided to cut alcohol and decrease my portion sizes. While weight loss and slimming might be nice side effects, my main intention with this is to keep my energy up and my body light. I've also realized that cutting down bedtime snacks has a huge effect on how you feel in the morning and the entire next day.
The effort continues tomorrow... :)
Thursday, January 6, 2011
The Challah
After getting home late tonight and realizing that I wasn't quite ready to sit down with the novel Lisa is having me read (Nora Roberts' The Search), I decided to try my hand at challah, a traditional Jewish braided loaf that I'd seen beautiful photographs of in my Williams-Sonoma cookbook but hadn't had time time or guts to try yet.
The idea of a braided loaf begins with manna, a sweet honey-like food thought to have dropped from the heavens as a gift from God to the Iraelites after returning to Egypt after 40 years of exodus. As such, Sabbath and holiday meals in the Jewish tradition begin with the consumption of two complete loaves of bread. The braiding of the bread is characteristic of challah and makes this sweet egg bread instantly recognizable. On Rosh Hashanah, it is sometimes made as a braided circle, symbolizing the completion of another cycle, or year.
Challah is an egg bread, meaning that it is made with a large number of eggs (this recipe called for 2 eggs + 2 yolks), and is sweetened with sugar, honey or molasses (sugar, in this case). It is also brushed with egg wash and sprinkled with sesame seeds, adding to its beautiful brown colouring.
I have been having some major issues with yeast over the last few months. I am sans bread machine and until I can afford it/bribe Santa, sans KitchenAid stand mixer with dough hook. As such, I knead and make bread entirely by hand. To make the task easier and get better results, I went to Tara and got some bread flour (or strong flour, which has a high gluten content, giving bread its characteristic stretch). For some reason unknown to me, I cannot get my bread to leaven properly. I've ruined 3 or 4 different bread recipes using just as many variations on the kneading length (too much kneading can cause the gluten to break down), using fresh yeast packets (I had originally used bulk dry active yeast from Tara and switched to brand new envelopes), using cooler water to proof the yeast, opting out of using sugar to help the yeast along, you name it. I CANNOT get it to go! The bread bakes and tastes ok, but since December I keep baking big ol' bricks of dough that have barely risen, and simply get baked in the interest of time. Some recipes will call for a 12 hour rise, but who has time for that?
Anyhow, so the same problems unfortunately followed me into this recipe. The Joy of Cooking calls for three separate resting periods in which the dough is to rise. I can't imagine that challah, let alone any bread, is meant to be super dense and practically sawed into slices. Nevertheless, the bread tastes amazing and I totally recommend this recipe to anyone who wants to expand his/her bread-making repertoire.
Also, any tips would be GREATLY appreciated.
ps. The recipe used can be found on page 601 of The Joy of Cooking, 75th Edition. Other than the leavening fails, I shortened the second rise to about an hour, and kept it at room temperature.
The idea of a braided loaf begins with manna, a sweet honey-like food thought to have dropped from the heavens as a gift from God to the Iraelites after returning to Egypt after 40 years of exodus. As such, Sabbath and holiday meals in the Jewish tradition begin with the consumption of two complete loaves of bread. The braiding of the bread is characteristic of challah and makes this sweet egg bread instantly recognizable. On Rosh Hashanah, it is sometimes made as a braided circle, symbolizing the completion of another cycle, or year.
Challah is an egg bread, meaning that it is made with a large number of eggs (this recipe called for 2 eggs + 2 yolks), and is sweetened with sugar, honey or molasses (sugar, in this case). It is also brushed with egg wash and sprinkled with sesame seeds, adding to its beautiful brown colouring.
I have been having some major issues with yeast over the last few months. I am sans bread machine and until I can afford it/bribe Santa, sans KitchenAid stand mixer with dough hook. As such, I knead and make bread entirely by hand. To make the task easier and get better results, I went to Tara and got some bread flour (or strong flour, which has a high gluten content, giving bread its characteristic stretch). For some reason unknown to me, I cannot get my bread to leaven properly. I've ruined 3 or 4 different bread recipes using just as many variations on the kneading length (too much kneading can cause the gluten to break down), using fresh yeast packets (I had originally used bulk dry active yeast from Tara and switched to brand new envelopes), using cooler water to proof the yeast, opting out of using sugar to help the yeast along, you name it. I CANNOT get it to go! The bread bakes and tastes ok, but since December I keep baking big ol' bricks of dough that have barely risen, and simply get baked in the interest of time. Some recipes will call for a 12 hour rise, but who has time for that?
Anyhow, so the same problems unfortunately followed me into this recipe. The Joy of Cooking calls for three separate resting periods in which the dough is to rise. I can't imagine that challah, let alone any bread, is meant to be super dense and practically sawed into slices. Nevertheless, the bread tastes amazing and I totally recommend this recipe to anyone who wants to expand his/her bread-making repertoire.
Also, any tips would be GREATLY appreciated.
ps. The recipe used can be found on page 601 of The Joy of Cooking, 75th Edition. Other than the leavening fails, I shortened the second rise to about an hour, and kept it at room temperature.
Sunday, January 2, 2011
108 Salutations
I have changed.
I am strong.
I am gentle.
I am wise.
I am fragile.
I am radiant.
I belong.
I understand.
I collect.
I succeed.
I love.
This morning, I participated in and completed 108 sun salutations at my yoga studio. The number 108 is auspicious in the yoga world for a number of reasons...for example, it is said that there are 108 paths to enlightenment, 108 channels leading into the heart chakra, etc.
For me, this challenge symbolized my physical ability to complete this challenge, but more closely resembles what I can only describe as my annual reset button. After a year of change, challenge and growth, it seemed appropriate to honour and celebrate who I am now and test my strength for the coming year's trials. Every 10 salutations, I set a new intention, as above, and kept an internal mantra, along with steady breathing.
After 40-50 salutations, I came to realize I was only half finished, and I realized this was a tougher undertaking than I originally thought. Around 70, my arms started to give out, and coming down from plank into updog became quite the bicep and shoulder burner. Finally, the last 18 salutations left me feeling energized and powerful, with only the final 3 feeling like a struggle, like my arms might actually snap in two.
I am super proud of myself for having achieved this, and rewarded myself with a big breakfast quinoa scramble (black beans, quinoa, corn, tomatoes, salsa, cilantro, cheese, lime yogurt and a poached egg. yummm!!), more coffee and now, a hot relaxing shower.
I want to wish everyone a fruitful, transformative new year, filled with every joy and lots of smiles :)
Shanti shanti shanti,
Namaste
I am strong.
I am gentle.
I am wise.
I am fragile.
I am radiant.
I belong.
I understand.
I collect.
I succeed.
I love.
This morning, I participated in and completed 108 sun salutations at my yoga studio. The number 108 is auspicious in the yoga world for a number of reasons...for example, it is said that there are 108 paths to enlightenment, 108 channels leading into the heart chakra, etc.
For me, this challenge symbolized my physical ability to complete this challenge, but more closely resembles what I can only describe as my annual reset button. After a year of change, challenge and growth, it seemed appropriate to honour and celebrate who I am now and test my strength for the coming year's trials. Every 10 salutations, I set a new intention, as above, and kept an internal mantra, along with steady breathing.
After 40-50 salutations, I came to realize I was only half finished, and I realized this was a tougher undertaking than I originally thought. Around 70, my arms started to give out, and coming down from plank into updog became quite the bicep and shoulder burner. Finally, the last 18 salutations left me feeling energized and powerful, with only the final 3 feeling like a struggle, like my arms might actually snap in two.
I am super proud of myself for having achieved this, and rewarded myself with a big breakfast quinoa scramble (black beans, quinoa, corn, tomatoes, salsa, cilantro, cheese, lime yogurt and a poached egg. yummm!!), more coffee and now, a hot relaxing shower.
I want to wish everyone a fruitful, transformative new year, filled with every joy and lots of smiles :)
Shanti shanti shanti,
Namaste
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
Julie Returns...
I realize it's been over two months since I left this blog hanging, and found myself way too busy (or lazy, whichever you prefer) to copy down the recipes I'd tried and relay them here. A few technical difficulties have manifested themselves as well, namely the sudden death of my camera. I don't feel completely right continuing on writing without sharing photos of the food (aren't 90% of your tastebuds in your eyeballs?), but I will for the time being. We'll see how long I last...
When I last left you, I was a few months into my vegetarianism. I'm glad to report that I am still a vegetarian, and have only indulged in meat a few times: two bites of my mom's creutons, a slice of her Christmas meat lasagna, and a grain-fed free-range chicken breast, all over the break. Not bad. I've been pretty good on my own, still eating fish however. A long discussion with a vegetarian friend of mine a few weeks ago reminded me that I still know nothing about the fishing industry when it comes to food sustainability and manufacturing. It seems I still have some homework to do before I can make an informed decision about consuming fish.
In the meantime, I have expanded my cooking skills, my pantry and my equipment. My grandfather built a spice rack for me, with room for 18 full-sized bottles of my best spices and herbs. I made little labels for each bottle, complete with pencil drawings of the plant or spice as best I could render them. My aunt also got me a second kitchen timer, in the shape of a fat pink piglet. I'm quite pleased with the result; my kitchen finally looks like someone cooks real food in it! My parents got me my very first set of Corningwear for Christmas, as well as a small 3.3L dutch oven. I still plan on cooking bigger dishes in my grandmother's Le Creuset, whose enamel is worn down to the cast iron and which my mother now refuses to cook in. Somehow, even as a biochemist with the knowledge that cooking directly on untreated iron isn't the best idea, I love firing up onions and butter in the very pot that my grandmother and my mother cooked every stew, every pate, every roast and every turkey in for the last 50 years. I can't throw a pot like that away. I am determined to rearrange my bookshelf to find a cozy spot for it, since I will be using it less and less (mom's orders). I still need to fix up my tiny cupboard space to make space for my new pots too!
Along with the Corningwear and my own dutch oven that perhaps my grandchildren will hold onto and covet one day, I also came into possession of the great The Joy of Cooking for the first time this Christmas. It's about time I got myself a copy of this book! Next on my "essentials" cookbooks are works by Julia Child, Martha Stewart and Ina Garten. Perhaps Emeril's cookbook is out there somewhere too. Either way, I've decided that there's no use having this brick of a book on my shelf if I'm not going to use it to its full advantage and actually read it. For those of you who aren't familiar, The Joy of Cooking isn't just a cookbook. It's an instruction manual, an encyclopedia of food. Why give you the recipe for pan-friend chicken and chicken a la king when the book can spend 10 pages explaining what a chicken is, how to break it down, how to best cook each part, and what to serve it with? I have spent many hours already pouring over it, happy to discover that while it contains aspic and souffle and all kinds of challenging recipes, that it also contains recipes for grilled cheese and homemade soda crackers! I can't wait to dive in.
Tomorrow is my prep day for the countdown to New Year's Eve. Like last year, I'm celebrating at a house party here in Kingston along with some of my closest friends, including Lisa and a few buddies from Bands who are making the trip in from out of province and country. I haven't seen many of them in a while, and I've decided to greet them with hot artichoke dip (my first recipe in the new Corningwear!) and bean and cheese quinoa quesadillas, from a quinoa cookbook my mom offered me for Christmas. I went entirely too dressed up last year, with my sparkly flowy top and my false lashes. This year, I've decided on a bottle of wine, jeans and a pretty top, along with a cute ponytail or something. None of the girls from work are back yet, and I have a feeling I'll miss them come midnight on Friday :(
My parents generously gifted Ernie with a nylon cat tunnel as his present, of course made of the same crinkly material as some baby toys. He's also been crying for the last half hour because his momma forgot to pack the cat food from home this morning, and all we have are cans of wet food and cat cookies. Tomorrow morning I head out first thing after a stiff cup of coffee, to get groceries for this week and food for my hungry kitten.
When I last left you, I was a few months into my vegetarianism. I'm glad to report that I am still a vegetarian, and have only indulged in meat a few times: two bites of my mom's creutons, a slice of her Christmas meat lasagna, and a grain-fed free-range chicken breast, all over the break. Not bad. I've been pretty good on my own, still eating fish however. A long discussion with a vegetarian friend of mine a few weeks ago reminded me that I still know nothing about the fishing industry when it comes to food sustainability and manufacturing. It seems I still have some homework to do before I can make an informed decision about consuming fish.
In the meantime, I have expanded my cooking skills, my pantry and my equipment. My grandfather built a spice rack for me, with room for 18 full-sized bottles of my best spices and herbs. I made little labels for each bottle, complete with pencil drawings of the plant or spice as best I could render them. My aunt also got me a second kitchen timer, in the shape of a fat pink piglet. I'm quite pleased with the result; my kitchen finally looks like someone cooks real food in it! My parents got me my very first set of Corningwear for Christmas, as well as a small 3.3L dutch oven. I still plan on cooking bigger dishes in my grandmother's Le Creuset, whose enamel is worn down to the cast iron and which my mother now refuses to cook in. Somehow, even as a biochemist with the knowledge that cooking directly on untreated iron isn't the best idea, I love firing up onions and butter in the very pot that my grandmother and my mother cooked every stew, every pate, every roast and every turkey in for the last 50 years. I can't throw a pot like that away. I am determined to rearrange my bookshelf to find a cozy spot for it, since I will be using it less and less (mom's orders). I still need to fix up my tiny cupboard space to make space for my new pots too!
Along with the Corningwear and my own dutch oven that perhaps my grandchildren will hold onto and covet one day, I also came into possession of the great The Joy of Cooking for the first time this Christmas. It's about time I got myself a copy of this book! Next on my "essentials" cookbooks are works by Julia Child, Martha Stewart and Ina Garten. Perhaps Emeril's cookbook is out there somewhere too. Either way, I've decided that there's no use having this brick of a book on my shelf if I'm not going to use it to its full advantage and actually read it. For those of you who aren't familiar, The Joy of Cooking isn't just a cookbook. It's an instruction manual, an encyclopedia of food. Why give you the recipe for pan-friend chicken and chicken a la king when the book can spend 10 pages explaining what a chicken is, how to break it down, how to best cook each part, and what to serve it with? I have spent many hours already pouring over it, happy to discover that while it contains aspic and souffle and all kinds of challenging recipes, that it also contains recipes for grilled cheese and homemade soda crackers! I can't wait to dive in.
Tomorrow is my prep day for the countdown to New Year's Eve. Like last year, I'm celebrating at a house party here in Kingston along with some of my closest friends, including Lisa and a few buddies from Bands who are making the trip in from out of province and country. I haven't seen many of them in a while, and I've decided to greet them with hot artichoke dip (my first recipe in the new Corningwear!) and bean and cheese quinoa quesadillas, from a quinoa cookbook my mom offered me for Christmas. I went entirely too dressed up last year, with my sparkly flowy top and my false lashes. This year, I've decided on a bottle of wine, jeans and a pretty top, along with a cute ponytail or something. None of the girls from work are back yet, and I have a feeling I'll miss them come midnight on Friday :(
My parents generously gifted Ernie with a nylon cat tunnel as his present, of course made of the same crinkly material as some baby toys. He's also been crying for the last half hour because his momma forgot to pack the cat food from home this morning, and all we have are cans of wet food and cat cookies. Tomorrow morning I head out first thing after a stiff cup of coffee, to get groceries for this week and food for my hungry kitten.
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Easy Spinach Soup
Quickly, I just made this after work in under 10 minutes. Healthy, delicious and affordable!
Easy Spinach Soup
I can Campbell's mushroom soup, prepared
1 package baby spinach
While the soup is heating and cooking, steam the spinach. Add about a quarter cup of water to a package of spinach, place in a saucepan with a lid and heat until all the spinach has wilted down.
Using a food processor or Magic Bullet, puree the spinach. Don't throw out the boiling liquid! Throw that into the food processor too to ease the blending process.
Whisk your spinach into the mushroom soup, stir thoroughly and enjoy!
Has great bright green colour and is also great with croutons!
Easy Spinach Soup
I can Campbell's mushroom soup, prepared
1 package baby spinach
While the soup is heating and cooking, steam the spinach. Add about a quarter cup of water to a package of spinach, place in a saucepan with a lid and heat until all the spinach has wilted down.
Using a food processor or Magic Bullet, puree the spinach. Don't throw out the boiling liquid! Throw that into the food processor too to ease the blending process.
Whisk your spinach into the mushroom soup, stir thoroughly and enjoy!
Has great bright green colour and is also great with croutons!
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Pumpkins and diamond rings
Before I share this awesome Martha Stewart recipe, can I please say something? Two of my favourite couples in the universe got engaged in the last two weeks! First Smitty and Sarah get engaged while on vacation in Italy, and we all knew they'd end up together, and then Rob pops the question to Michelle on their 1-year anniversary, a wonderful surprise! Sigh. It seems that everyone is either starting exciting new relationships, that older relationships are starting to grow roots, or that weddings are already in the works! I'm a bridesmaid for my friend Laura in August, and two Bands weddings are in the works now! My lovely beautiful friends, you're growing up so fast!
To do my part for the universe, I'm spending my super single Sunday night nursing a 4-day migraine and baking pumpkin cupcakes for my coworkers, staying true to Martha's recipe, circa 2004:
Pumpkin Cupcakes
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon coarse salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 cup packed light-brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
4 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 can (15 ounces) pumpkin puree
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line cupcake pans with paper liners; set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and allspice; set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together, brown sugar, granulated sugar, butter, and eggs. Add dry ingredients, and whisk until smooth. Whisk in pumpkin puree.
Divide batter evenly among liners, filling each about halfway. Bake until tops spring back when touched, and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes, rotating pans once if needed. Transfer to a wire rack; let cool completely.
Decorate with candy and special Halloween frosting!
Enjoy and congratulations again to all my wonderful engaged friends!
To do my part for the universe, I'm spending my super single Sunday night nursing a 4-day migraine and baking pumpkin cupcakes for my coworkers, staying true to Martha's recipe, circa 2004:
Pumpkin Cupcakes
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon coarse salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 cup packed light-brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
4 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 can (15 ounces) pumpkin puree
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line cupcake pans with paper liners; set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and allspice; set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together, brown sugar, granulated sugar, butter, and eggs. Add dry ingredients, and whisk until smooth. Whisk in pumpkin puree.
Divide batter evenly among liners, filling each about halfway. Bake until tops spring back when touched, and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes, rotating pans once if needed. Transfer to a wire rack; let cool completely.
Decorate with candy and special Halloween frosting!
Enjoy and congratulations again to all my wonderful engaged friends!
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