CARROT CAKE!!!! :P

CARROT  CAKE

Carrot Cake never goes out of style and one bite will tell you why. This rich and moist spice cake, full of grated carrot and toasted nuts, has great flavor, especially when covered with a tangy and sweet cream cheese frosting. The interesting part is that while those pretty orange flecks of grated carrot give the Carrot Cake color and texture, along with sweetness and moisture, its' flavor is almost indistinguishable. I think the biggest debate surrounding the Carrot Cake is whether crushed pineapple or applesauce should be added to the batter. Adding either of these ingredients will give the cake added flavor and moisture so, if you like, add 1/2 cup (120 ml) of either crushed pineapple or applesauce to the batter, right along with the oil and vanilla extract. Take note, though, that you may need to bake the carrot cake a few minutes longer than the recipe states. 

Carrot Cake Recipe:

1 cup (100 grams) pecans or walnuts

3/4 pound (340 grams) raw carrots (about 2 1/2 cups finely grated)

2 cups (260 grams) all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

4 large eggs

1 1/2 cups (300 grams) granulated white sugar

1 cup (240 ml) safflower, vegetable or canola oil(or other flavorless oil)

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Cream Cheese Frosting:

1/4 cup (57 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature

8 ounces (227 grams)cream cheese, room temperature

2cups (230 grams) confectioners (powdered or icing)sugar,sifted

1 teaspoon (4 grams) pure vanilla extract

1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest(outer yellow skin) (optional)

Carrot Cake:Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C) and place rack in center of oven. Butter or spray two - 9 x 2 inch (23 x 5 cm) cake pans and line the bottoms of the pans with a circle of parchment paper. 
Toastthe pecans or walnuts for about 8 minutes or until lightly browned and fragrant. Let cool and then chop coarsely.
Peel and finely grate the carrots. 
In a separate bowl whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and ground cinnamon.
In bowl of electric mixer (or with a hand mixer), beat the eggs until frothy (about 1 minute). Gradually add the sugar and beat until the batter is thick and light colored (about 3 - 4 minutes). Add the oil in a steady stream and then beat in the vanilla extract. Add the flour mixture and beat just until incorporated. With a large rubber spatula fold in the grated carrots and chopped nuts. Evenly divide the batter between the two prepared pans and bake 25 to30 minutesor until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  
Remove from oven and let cool on a wire rack. After about 5 -10 minutes invert the cakes onto the wire rack, remove the pans and parchment paper, and then cool completely before frosting. 
To assemble: place one cake layer onto your serving plate. Spread with about half the frosting. Gently place the other cake onto the frosting and spread the rest of the frosting over the top of the cake. If desired, garnish with toasted nuts on the top of the cake. Cover and refrigerate any leftovers.
Serves 10 - 12.

Cream Cheese Frosting:In bowl of electric mixer (or with a hand mixer), beat the cream cheese and butter, on low speed, just until blended with no lumps. Gradually add the sifted powdered sugar and beat, on low speed, until fully incorporated and smooth.  Beat in the vanilla extract, and lemon zest.  

Here is the URL for the video of making a carrot cake: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DD5y0Ydjk68&feature=player_embedded

Read more:http://www.joyofbaking.com/CarrotCake.html#ixzz1cLFTwG4l

Hope you try to make one!

Halloween TALES in the Philippines >:D

Tales on supernatural are passed from one generation to another and refuse to vanish despite advancement of knowledge and science. The reason is that people love to hear stories that are unusual or extraordinary. Some fairy tales and fantasies are even considered as stories that are appropriate for children. Like other people of the world the Filipinos too have folklores that border on superstition.

Below are two of the numerous supernatural creatures that are ingrained in the Philippine myths:

Manananggal- (flying vampire) is a malevolent witch. Although she might look attractive and tender in person, she would prefer to live in a desolate place to hide her being a witch. She is said to be endowed with the power of evil. During a night with a full moon, her witchery acts up. Applying self prepared oil or casting spells, she turns herself into a monster. She splits her torso into two. Her appearance then totally changes. Two sharp fangs come up along with two bat-like wings. She has bloodshot eyes and long disheveled hair. She would have to leave her lower body behind when her upper body is away. She is usually attracted with the scent of a pregnant woman. That smell is very pleasant to her. Her delicate sense of smell guides her to the house of her victim. In a rural setting she lands on a thatched roof undetected and she is capable to let his proboscis like tongue through a small opening and stretch it down toward the abdomen of a pregnant woman. Her tongue could penetrate the abdomen and suck the blood of the unborn fetus. Meanwhile the left behind standing lower body is very vulnerable while the upper body is away doing its activity. An ordinary person could neutralize a manananggal by sprinkling salt or ash on top of the standing lower body. He could also put garlic on it. A manananggal subjected to that situation could no longer attach her split torso and the break of dawn would eventually catch up with her. The ray of the rising sun would be fatal to the manananggal so that it would kill her in the end.

Tiyanak- (demon child) some accounts say that it is the spirit of unborn child whose mother died before birth. Others have it that it is the spirit of a child who died before its baptism. Still others say it is the spirit of unborn fetus who would like to seek revenge for being deprived of its right to live in this world. Generally, the tiyanaks are regarded as demon spirits who enter the body of a dead fetus or an unborn child. The tiyanak may dwell in the forest and may act mischievously by disorienting its victim so that the latter may not find his way out of the forest. A person could avoid the supernatural creature’s prank by wearing his clothes inside out. The tiyanak who see a person in that attire would be amused so that he would let that person be. The tiyanak could be very malevolent when it mimics a baby. In a desolate place it could cry like a baby. An unsuspecting person would follow the source of the sound to look for the child. He may even find the baby and hold it. Then all of a sudden, the child completely change its appearance into a small ugly monster to the horror of that unfortunate person. Other mischievous act of the tiyanak includes kidnapping a baby. One could contain the power of the tiyanak by bringin a garlic or a rosary.Read more: http://socyberty.com/folklore/halloween-tales-from-the-philippines-part-two/#ixzz1cL98Uv8U

Aswang: Probably adopted from the Western Werewolf. It is a human that assumes the form of a big dog or pig and then goes under any house where there is a pregnant woman to steal the baby from her womb.

The aswang is deathly afraid of the buntot-pagi (the dried tail of a sting ray) or the barbed snout of a swordfish. When it is hit by any of these, it turns back into its human form.

Tikbalang: Half-man, half-horse, probably adopted from the Centaur. It is very fast, it does some mischief but does not do much harm except scare the wits out of children.

Kapre: An ogre that sits atop a big tree smoking a big cigar to scare people. You can see the glow of the cigar from a distance. Some trees are said to be its favorites. Know their kind and avoid them during dark nights.

Dwende: A dwarf, that little fellow living under toadstools and is said to keep hoards of gold. (Think of the Seven Dwarfs.) There are good dwendes and bad dwendes. The good ones are fair-skinned; the bad ones, dark. (There is racial prejudice even in the underworld.) They are all invisible unless they want to show themselves to you.

The good dwendes can give you good luck and wealth, but the bad dwendes can make you sick, perhaps make a part of your body swell. So keep away from those toadstools when walking through a forest.

Nuno sa Punso: The old man of the mound. It is a malevolent, invisible little monster that lives in those termite mounds. Don’t brush against any one of them when walking through a forest. The Nuno sa Punso will be angry and make you sick. Instead, ask for permission to walk through as you cannot see him.

http://opinion.inquirer.net/16299/philippine-mythological-monsters-for-halloween

These are only some of Filipino version of other countries myths and tales to scare people.

:D

ALRWS

BLISSFUL

UNFATHOMABLE

SACROSANCT 

GRANDIOSE 

MONOTONOUS