Looking Forward

Looking back on 2013, I've done a lot to help others through mentoring, community service, fundraising, friendship, etc., however failed to help myself in some ways.  I'm not the only one out there who needs to stop pressing the rewind button on the things that need to be deleted from my life. We all fall prey to this at one time or another.  It creeps up without warning and invades the space in your mind that rehashes the past and prevents you from moving forward. Yet despite having read the book What to Say When You Talk to Yourself, I still find myself falling into the same senselessness.

As I look forward to 2014, I remain mindful that we are not helpless victims of our own thoughts, but rather masters of our minds.  The past is done and gone and the fact of the matter is that nothing can change it, no matter how much we want to or attempt to try.  But we can change the future and how we approach the way we choose to live our lives.  What do you need to let go? Take a deep breath, relax and say to yourself:

I am willing to let go
I release
I let go
I release all anger
I release guilt
I release all sadness
I let go of old limitations
I let go and am at peace
I am at peace with myself
I am at peace with the process of life
I am safe

WOW.... a little heavy for New Year's Eve, don't you think?? Maybe.  Maybe not.  Truth is that now that I've written it down, it will become more tangible for me, and hopefully for you as well. 

On to more fun things.... New Year's Eve is all about celebration, right?  So how will you be ringing in 2014?  I plan on spending it with my husband at home with some of our favorite food (thank you Ming!) and wine as we watch the Twilight Zone marathon :))) 

New Year's Day is typically a day wrought with hangovers.  We can all admit to enjoying the celebrations a little too much, so for those of you who will be celebrating with more enthusiasm than me, I offer you the perfect hangover cure.  It's delicious, fast to make, and full of things that are supposedly good for a hangover: bananas for potassium, ginger to help soothe the stomach, and a shot of rum for the hair of the dog.... 

Excerpted from Ed Kimber's Say It With Cake, this recipe gives us hope for the morning after a night of overindulgence.  At the very least, this cake offers a hearty homemade dose of comfort.

Hangover Cake

Cake:
4 T butter, room temp.
3/4 c flour
1 t. baking powder
2 t. ground ginger
1/4 t. salt
1/2 c superfine sugar
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 t. vanilla
1/4 c plain yogurt

Topping:
3 T butter
1/4 c light brown sugar
2 T dark rum
3 large bananas

Preheat oven to 350.  Lightly grease 8" cake pan.  To make the topping, put the butter in a small pan over med. heat.  When butter is melted, add sugar and cook until you have a smooth sauce.  Remove from heat and add rum.  Taste the caramel and if you want a stronger flavor, add a little more rum.  Pour the caramel into the base of the prepared pan and set aside.

In med. bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, ginger and salt together then set aside.  Put the butter in a med. bowl and beat until light and fluffy, about 3 min.  Add the sugar and beat together. Then add egg and vanilla, a little at a time, beating until fully combined.

Add half the flour mixture, mixing until just combined.  Mix in yogurt, then add the remainder of the flour, stirring until just combined.

Peel and slice bananas into 1/2 inch slices and spread across the bottom of the prepared pan. Top with cake batter in an even layer.  Bake for 25 - 30 min. Let the cake cook in the pan for 10 min. before inverting onto a wire rack.  Best served warm.