Carrot Suprise

Ascendancy isn't always the best approach in life. Sometimes you just have take the suprises that come your way. It is good to be controlled and orderly at times. In fact, you get a lot of things done that way and erase idle time. Then when you live life that way and approach everything like that, you miss some of the mystery and spontaneity of life. I use to bake with the same mind structure. That everything could some how be mathematically done to ensure perfection, but if I held that idea and bar all the other variables, I would never have discovered the beauty of Carrot Cake.

Carrot cake reminds me of the caribbean. The caribbean way is the only way I've ever had it, and I love it. It has that unique look and texture, and the taste is unlike anything you would've expected. I paired carrot cake mix with vanilla pudding, instead of the traditional cream cheese. I'm not a fan of cream cheese. I like the taste on a bagel, but that's as far as it goes. I'm always looking for something different, something that hasn't been done a thousand or so times. Vanilla pudding is a nice touch the the traditional recipe. One of the advantages of using pudding is that you intake less calories, for those that watch that kind of stuff, but you do have to keep it refrigerated. It will spoil if you leave it out for two-three days. I had to find that out through trail and error.

• Use butter to grease pans instead of oil
• icing is not needed with this particular flavor
• Use less water when mixing (be careful not dilute the taste)
• the recipe only needs two eggs (although the recipe calls for three on the box)

I was extremely happy with this recipe. The taste is unbelievable, its rich and creamy. The taste of the spices in the cake are very notable as well. Sometimes spontaneity can lead you to a very nice recipe, and once it's all gone, you will miss it. Even if you are afraid to take a risk in life, you can at least in baking. There is no one there to tell you the right way or the wrong, the best ingredients or the worse. In the kitchen you make all the decisions, so why not risk it a little.

Kitchen Wars

The structure of a kitchen can be compared to the government. There are levels of authority, a head chef, sous-chef, and everyone else. The head chef is meant to guide everyone to complete a task at hand, so that the kitchen flows into an nice orderly and efficient line. The head chef must always balance the power of his authority with the conscience of what is best for others. What happens when the head chef takes on more responsibility on how to govern the people of his kitchen? Suddenly, all those under his authority have to wear certain shoes, look at certain way, are only allowed to do certain things. The small innuendo of self expression and speech become more narrow and constricted. Then without realization the governing of this kitchen becomes more monarchical than democratic.


Now with this particular situation it only seems the people being affected are the ones in the kitchen themselves, but what if the Government were to do this to the public. As of now, there is a proposed "Internet Kill Switch" bill by senators Lieberman, Collins, and Carper. This would allow the President complete control over what sections of the internet he would want to shut down. Now the justification of this action is to keep hackers out of our records, in the situation of a system hack. My question is how would that prevent a hacker from accessing the system if you shut it down internally. The outside countries would still have a working internet service. I would assume a threat such as this would come from outside of The United States. Wouldn't a sophisticated firewall still work. What good would it do, to blind the public of any outside knowledge. "Great Firewall"

All this bill seems to be to, is just a easy way around the red tape. This would allow the govt to restrict access to certain things and have a legitimate excuse, but then this goes from the public's well being to stifling freedom of speech and our right to information. Much like the Head chef of a kitchen, if the rest of the bottom feeders don't step up and say something, then the power of the head chef will only grow and spread to aspects that once only belonged to you. Look at history to predict where this is headed, the age of communism.

Orange Mania

In this diurnal course, time is everything. Everyone is concerned with what is the most expeditious and effortless way to do things. This applies to baking a cake. Its something that can't be rushed. From my experience, when I tried to cut corners and do a rush job to get a finished product, it never quite tasted as good. Then when I poured all my time and effort into it, it was sensational. I believe whatever emotion you feel goes into your baking, that's what adds the character to your cake. I remember on my off days, things came out amiss and I had no desire to eat it.

A nice example of cake with emotion, is Orange cake. I know that the color and flavor seems odd and that alone would make you want to stay clear of it, but if done right you'll open your taste buds to something extraneous. Some add orange rinds for more of that orange flavor. I have not tried it myself, but I would argue against it. That would over power everything. The mix already has enough orange flavor. Always use white icing and serve it cool. You don't want to mix orange with the wrong flavors and have a mess on your hands.

* Use a cake mixer to get the batter thick and rich

* Use an aluminum cake pan instead of ceramic or metal. (takes longer to burn and easy to clean)

* spread the icing at a warm temperature to make the application simpler.

* Make sure you don't over cook ( best taste when soft and moist).

This time emotion is what steers your baking to the right or wrong place. When things are done with a pich of devotion and a splash of ardor, it actually does make all the difference to your tongue. When the Orange cake first comes out of the oven, it fills the kitchen with a wonderful aroma that will have you lusting for a slice. If you don't believe me, you can always try it for yourself. After all, some of the best paintings were done by artist that didn't color within the lines.

Pineapple cake

Everyone has a self indulgence that they wish, they themselves could perfect. What if it was possible to become the indulger? The only thing stopping you is the fear of failing, but somethings takes many tries before finding a way to make it fit. At least that was my problem with baking. I had to learn what was written wasn't always what was needed. Once you figure that out, you're already half way to becoming a better baker.

The one sweet I can't seem to live without is always a good pineapple and strawberry filling cake. Over the years of baking, some successful and others best left unmentioned. I've realized the ingredients on the box isn't enough to make a great cake. I see cakes as a extension of the soul that needs to be nurtured in order to be its most delectable. The best thing about baking is you don't have to be a great or even a good cook. You just need precision and a understanding of how things blend together. For some it will take many tries, while others are just born to do it. I am in no way a professional, but I can make it just as good. I love making pinneapple cake for special occasions and have found a few tricks to make it undeniably delicious.

*Pineapple paired with strawberry or raspberry elates the senses.

*If you choose to use icing use it sparingly, so that is doesn't over power the taste of the cake

* Live by less is more.

* Measure by the feel and texture not the amount that is listed on the box.

I guarantee if you follow these steps and allow your instincts to take over in the kitchen, you will have a paradisaical cake each time. Just because the rules of making a cake are written, doesn't mean that they aren't meant to be broken sometimes. I had to learn that the hard way through mushy over watered cake to nearly burned and dry cake. In learning to trust yourself, you will allow a lot less things to go wrong in the kitchen:)