Conserve your energy

Koeksisters

A koeksister or koesister comes from the Dutch word koekje, the diminutive of koekmeaning "cake". It is a South African syrup-coated doughnut in a twisted or braidedshape (like a plait). It is prepared by deep-frying dough in oil, then dipping the fried dough into cold sugar syrup. They are best eaten cold, koeksisters are very sticky and sweet and taste like honey.

This recipe yields approximately 2½ dozen koeksisters.

Ingredients for syrup

• 4 cups (1000 ml) sugar
• 2 cups (500 ml) water
• ¼ teaspoon (1 ml) cream of tartar
• 1 tablespoon golden syrup
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 2 cm piece of gingerstem (optional to enhance flavour)
• 1 cinnamon stick (optional to enhance flavour)

Ingredients for dough

• 2 cups cake flour
• 1 tablespoon (15 ml) baking powder
• ½ teaspoon (2 ml) salt
• 1 tablespoon (15 ml) butter
• 1 teaspoon (5 ml) sugar
• ½ cup of water and milk mix (100 ml water, 25 ml milk)
• 1 egg
• Cooking oil for frying

Method

Please note: it is important to prepare both the syrup and dough in advance, before using it.

Making the koeksisters

1. Take syrup from refrigerator and keep it ice cold by placing the syrup's container inside a larger container that is filled with ice and water. Another trick to keep the syrup cold is to use two bowls of syrup. Keep one in the refrigerator while using the other .
2. Roll out dough to a thickness of 7 mm. Do not use dry flour as it will cause the oil to foam, rather roll it out on waxpaper or use sunflower oil to prevent sticking.
3. Cut strips 15cm long, twist in opposite directions and join ends
   Heat the oil over medium heat until warm but not too hot. If the oil is too hot, the koeksisters will be brown on the outside, but raw on the inside. When the oil's at the correct temperature, it takes 10 seconds for a piece of dough to pop to the surface after it has been dropped into the oil.
4. Deep-fry four koeksisters at a time, in until brown on both sides.
5. Remove two koeksisters using a slotted spoon and immediately submerse it in the ice cold syrup. Don't allow them to breathe air. A plastic potato masher is an ideal tool to keep it submersed. Remove the other two koeksisters and drown them in the syrup too.
6. Keep the koeksisters submersed until it has they are soaked through. Remove from syrup with a slotted spoon and place on a wire rack. To keep them crisp, store the koeksisters in the refrigerator, or even better, in the deep-freeze.
7. 
   

Journey of Love

Enigma - WHY

Knowingness

"Part of our spiritual skill set is having the intuitive dexterity to read people. We must be aware of how people shield their true selves to harm us in order to elevate themselves and how they project distorted impressions of us. 

When we know our true purpose, we work alongside God. We can't be afraid of what others think of us; it's not about us. It's about mediating the conflict that arises when we feel that our purpose is compromised. God can't be forced down the throat, godliness has to live in the heart. We are all searching for personal truth that may not be found in tradition or religion, but the stark nakedness of knowingness.

You have to belong to yourself, no matter what you do? If you don't have a sense of belonging; a sense of being in the right place at the right time, then you are spinning your wheels.

Rituals are hard to break especially if one is entrenched in them, but they can certainly be a starting pistol to get you to your own finish line."


~Alexys Fairfield

It Takes Courage

It Takes Courage

Author Unknown

It takes courage
To refrain from gossip
When others delight in it,

To stand up for the absent person
Who is being abused.

It takes courage
To live honestly
Within your means,
And not dishonestly
On the means of others.

It takes courage
To be a REAL man or a TRUE woman,
To hold fast to your ideals
When it causes you
To be looked upon
As strange and peculiar.

It takes courage
To be talked about,
And remain silent,
When a word would justify you
In the eyes of others,
But which you dare not speak
Because it would injure another.

It takes courage
To refuse to do something
That is wrong
Although everyone else
May be doing it
With attitudes as carefree
As a summer song.

It takes courage
To live according
To your own convictions,
To deny yourself
What you cannot afford.
To love your neighbor
As yourself!

Frog Story

    A group of frogs were traveling through the woods and two of them fell into a deep pit.  All the other frogs gathered around the pit.  When they saw how deep the pit was, they told the two frogs that they were as good as dead. The two frogs ignored the comments and tried to jump up out of the pit with all of their might.  The other frogs kept telling them to stop, that they were as good as dead.  Finally, one of the frogs took heed to what the other frogs were saying and gave up.  He fell down and died.
    The other frog continued to jump as hard as he could.  Once again, the crowd of frogs yelled at him to stop the pain and just die.  He jumped even harder and finally made it out.
    When he got out, the other frogs said, "Did you not hear us?" The frog explained to them that he was deaf.  He thought they were encouraging him the entire time.
    This story teaches two lessons:

1. There is power of life and death in the tongue. An encouraging word to someone who is down can lift them up and help them make it through the day.
2. A destructive word to someone who is down can be what it takes to kill them. Be careful of what you say.

    Speak life to those who cross your path. The power of words....it is sometimes hard to understand that an encouraging word can go such a long way. Anyone can speak words that tend to rob another of the spirit to continue in difficult times.
    Special is the individual who will take the time to encourage another.
    Be special to others.

Author Unknown

Seasonal Windows crosstitch graph

Warning - Lipstick Information.

If your lipstick stays longer, it is Because of the higher content of lead. 

Here is the test you can do yourself: 

 Put some lipstick on your hand. 

 Use a Gold ring to scratch on the lipstick.

If the lipstick  color changes to black,  then you know the lipstick contains lead. 


Lead is a chemical which causes cancer. 

This information is being circulated at Walter Reed Army Medical Centre    Dioxin Carcinogens cause cancer,  Especially breast cancer

DREAM

In life, many thoughts are born in the course of a moment, an hour, a day. Some are dreams, some visions. Often, we are unable to distinguish between them. To some, they are the same; however, not all dreams are visions. Much energy is lost in fanciful dreams that never bear fruit. But visions are messages from the Great Spirit, each for a different purpose in life. Consequently, one person's vision may not be that of another. To have a vision, one must be prepared to receive it, and when it comes, to accept it. Thus when these inner urges become reality, only then can visions be fulfilled. The spiritual side of life knows everyone's heart and who to trust. How could a vision ever be given to someone to harbor if that person could not be trusted to carry it out. The message is simple: commitment precedes vision.

- High Eagle

Life is Beautiful - Dream

Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world.

- Harriet Tubman

I have had dreams and I have had nightmares, but I have conquered my nightmares because of my dreams.

- Jonas Salk

Honesty on the internet/Blonde Jokes

There were three women, a brunette, a red head, and a blonde. They all worked together at an office. Every day they noticed that their boss left work a little early. So one day they met together and decided that today when the boss left, they would all leave early too. The boss left and so did they. The brunette went home and straight to bed so could get an early start the next morning. The red head went home to get in a quick workout before her dinner date. The blonde went home and walked into the bedroom. She opened the door slowly and saw her husband in bed with her boss, so she shut the door and left. The next day, the brunette and the red head are talking about going home early again. They ask the blonde if she wants to leave early again. "No," she says, "yesterday I nearly got caught." 

A blonde and a redhead went to the bar after work for a drink, and sat on stools watching the 6 O'clock news. A man was shown threatening to jump from the Brooklyn Bridge, and the blonde bet the redhead $50 that he wouldn't jump. Sure enough, he jumped, so the blonde gave the redhead $50. The redhead said: "I can't take this, you're my friend." But the blonde insisted saying, "No. A bet's a bet." Then the redhead said: "Listen, I have to tell you that I saw this on the 5 O'clock news, so I can't take your money." The blonde replied, "Well, so did I, but I didn't think he would jump again." 

Some Kitchen Tips

To make buttermilk, add 1 tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice to regular milk.

 To make self-rising flour, mix together 1 cup of all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon of baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, an 1/4 teaspoon of baking soda.

 To minimize the tears, put onions in the freezer for about 15 minutes before chopping. 

If you accidentally put too much salt in a recipe, sometimes putting a slice of raw, peeled potato will soak up excess salt.

Store onions and potatoes separately. They both make each other go bad faster.

Separate your bananas as soon as you return from the store. They’ll stay fresh longer.

When reheating bread goods (such as muffins, pancakes, and the like), put a cup of water in the microwave with it. It adds moisture to the air and keeps the bread soft.

 To get the most juice out of a lemon or lime, zap it in the microwave for 20 seconds or so, let it sit for a minute, and then roll it around on the counter a few times.

To peel a whole garlic clove, place the flat side of a knife on top of the clove and give it a good whack. The skin should fall right off.

Get the icky smell of garlic or onions off your hands by “washing” them with water and baking soda. Or water with vanilla essence.

To double the amount of your butter used for spreading, simply whip it with a small amount of warm water until it’s light and fluffy. This isn’t ideal for baking recipes that need a specific fat amount, but it’s great for spreading on your bread or corn-on-the-cob. Just keep it in the refrigerator, and it should stay light.

Scorpions - Humanity

Italian Biscuits

INGREDIENTES 
300g de açúcar
300g de farinha de trigo
1 pitada de sal
1 colher (chá) de erva-doce em grão torrada
1 colher (chá) de mel
1 colher (chá) de fermento em pó
1 colher (chá) de extracto de baunilha
2 ovos
150g de amêndoas peladas

100g uva passa

1 gema batida para pincelar
açúcar para polvilhar

PREPARAÇÃO 
Numa tigela misturar os ingredientes secos, excepto a amêndoa.
Juntar a baunilha e os ovos e amassar. Juntar as amêndoas e amassar.
Tender 3 rolos cilíndricos com 12cm de largura e achatar as margens dos rolos de forma a obter-se uma secção em meia-lua, com 2-3cm de altura no centro.
Levar ao forno sobre papel vegetal ou tapete de silicone, afastados, pincelados com gema e polvilhados com açúcar, a 200ºC durante 15-20min..
Retirar deixar arrefecer 5min. e cortar, com uma faca grande de chefe, em palitos da grossura de um dedo.

Levar os palitos ao forno, no mesmo papel, durante 5min. a 200ºC para secarem e ficarem crocantes.

Deixam-se arrefecer completamente antes de guardar.

Words of Wisdom

Cat Joke

A couple were going out for the evening. They'd got ready, all dolled up, put the cat outside, etc.

The taxi arrives and as the couple go out the cat shoots back in. They don't want the cat shut in the house, so the wife goes out to the taxi while the husband goes upstairs to chase the cat out.

The wife, not wanting it known that the house will be empty, explains to the taxi driver, "He's just going upstairs to say goodbye to my mother."

A few minutes later, the husband gets into the cab: "Sorry I took so long," he says, "stupid old thing was hiding under the bed and I had to poke her with a coat hanger to get her to come out!"

Tomorrow I Diet

Where are the days where ladies dressed elegantly?

Oh how I enjoyed playing paper dolls when I was young.

Get ready for Christmas- bear crosstitch graph

Talula ans Kitsykat, both have out grown their favourite basket.