Mode girls go cupcake mad!
Cupcakes!
We realise you may have given ‘sweet things’ up for Lent, but think about it, how often do you have time to make cupcakes? The recipe is simple and they only take 30 minutes to cook!
Category: Life
Step-by-step guide to a yummy banana cake!
Banana cake!
The good thing about this cake, is that you can feel better about eating it…I mean bananas count as one of your five a day after all. It’s really easy to make, and coming from someone who has burnt pasta before, I really mean it!
Ingredients:
2-3 bananas
140g self-raising flour
65g butter
85g demerara sugar
1 egg
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp vanilla essence
65g milk
Method:
First, pre-heat the oven at 180 degrees/Gas Mark 4 so it’s nice and warm when you’re ready to start cooking and then weigh up all the ingredients.
All ingredients
Pour the milk into a jug and crack the egg into it. As you begin mixing, add the rest of the ingredients, whisking until smooth.
Mixing the egg and milk
Now comes the messy bit, mash up the bananas with your hands and stir to make a caramel coloured mixture.
Mixing the banana and other ingredients
Grease two baking tins and spread the mixture evenly into both. And that’s all it takes! Put them in the oven for 30 minutes and if you want, you can prepare the topping while you wait – whether it be melted chocolate, warm raspberries or honey that takes your fancy.
It only takes half an hour!
When it’s done, remove the tins carefully from the oven – using oven gloves or a thick tea-towel. Remember, safety first!
The cakes are ready!
You can check it’s cooked by sticking a knife into the middle of the cake. If it comes out clean then it’s ready to eat, if not then stick it back in the oven for a couple of minutes. Now you’ve got yourself a yummy golden banana cake, you can now enjoy the subtle sweet taste! It can be eaten with ice cream, custard, chocolate, butter, jam…the list is endless. Oh and don’t forget to lick the spoon afterwards :).
Don't forget to lick the spoon!
International Women’s Day: 100 years of fighting for equality
Today marks the 100th year of International Women’s Day. Since the early 1900s, women have been fighting for equal rights and respect. Without the hard work of feminists, women still wouldn’t be able to vote or work and would still be treated like second-class citizens compared to men.
Unfortunately, in some parts of the world, this is still a reality for many women. In parts of India, the pressure to have a boy is so intense, that 7,000 female foetuses are aborted every day. Others are abandoned, starved or thrown away after birth.
In Pakistan, women are subjected to acid attacks if they refuse a marriage proposal. Throughout the world, women are still forced into arranged marriages and sometimes tricked by their own family. If they escape, they are disowned or sometimes killed.
Every year, over 70 million girls are deprived of even a basic education, and 60 million are sexually assaulted on their way to school.
Women are responsible for two-thirds of work done worldwide but only earn 10% of the annual income and 1% of the property.
You may think equality isn’t something to worry about in the UK. But in 2011, men are still likely to earn more money, even in the same job. Men have a better chance of entering political office or becoming a company director. A man is less likely to be judged for promiscuous behavior and little chance of falling victim to sexual assault.
Over 30,000 women in the UK loose their jobs annually, for falling pregnant. A man has no such worries if he becomes a parent.
One in four women are subject to domestic violence, and in the UK, two women die every week as a result.
While many think the fight is over for women, there is no room for complacency or taking our rights for granted. Throughout the world, women are still fighting for basic human rights and women around the world need to group together and support them. Many women don’t consider themselves feminist, or feel it is relevant to them, but would you want to live in a world with no human rights? To live in constant fear of abuse? And no chance of freedom and independence?
Think again girls, we’ve come a long way, but there’s still battles to fight yet.
Cooking up a storm, a recipe for disaster
Cooking up a storm, a recipe for disaster
Have you ever seen the film ‘How to lose a guy in 10 days’? Or rather, have you ever wished it for yourself? If so, I may have just the recipe you’re looking for…
Picture this: You’ve been dating a guy for a few months now and things were going well. But now you’re at a dull point in the relationship, where things seem to be winding down. So what do you do?
You could just break up with him, but the thought of receiving whiney 3am texts or having him stalk you on Facebook makes you think twice. The only option is to be a “man” about it.
What you need:
- A dash of mischief
- A pinch of drama
Method:
With a few suggestions to help you along the way, you’ll soon have enough ingredients to make him feel like small fry.
- Turn up on a ‘guy’s night out’ and don’t leave his side.
- Forget your purse the next time you go out – “Oops, it’s in my other bag…”
- When queuing for the cinema, ask him to buy the popcorn. When he’s gone, sneakily ask for two tickets to see the latest cheesy rom-com.
- Get a temporary tattoo and write his name in the middle. “Tattoos are for life, just like you”
- Reorganise his cupboards; make up, hair products, at-home waxing kit, razors…you get the drift!
He’ll soon realise that being with you, is not all it’s cracked up to be.
Love is all around, or at least on Valentine’s Day…
Valentine's Day flowers - Photo by Amy-Elizabeth Jones
Snow globes, bubble wands, vibrating love bugs, flowers, sexy lingerie, heart-shaped dog bowls.
These are only a handful of Valentine’s Day gifts I’ve come across when browsing the shops recently. Did I mention the heart-shaped dog bowls?!
Gone are the days when a single note was enough to show the ones you love how you feel. And now, it’s estimated that individually people spend up to £150 every year on Valentine’s Day. As soon as Christmas is over, shop windows are laden with pink and red, gifts that you’ll buy and present to the person who may or may not be ‘the one’.
I may sound cynical but I too got sucked into the love bubble that surrounds this so-called happy and celebratory day. In 2009, I bought my boyfriend of 4 months (oh, the shame) a watch costing, yes you guessed it, £150. I am not proud of this decision, but at the time I stupidly believed he was the one for me. It’s fair to say that two years later, he’s gone and so is my immaturity.
Anyway, I spent £150 on something he had asked for and what did I get in return? A “romantic” meal for two, a teddy bear and some jewellery, I am far from the ungrateful type but I’m not the lovey-dovey teddy bear type either! Ultimately, it ruined whatever feeling I had towards the day anyway.
Having grown up a lot since then, I have come to realise that the time of love letters and minute but significant gestures is over, replaced with a day that feels like an excuse to get us to part with even more money.
There are thousands of people that will probably disagree with me, believing it’s a day dedicated to celebrating love, almost like an anniversary, but the way you feel for another shouldn’t be kept for just one day and presents aren’t going to emphasise it either so how about skipping it this year?
No, I didn’t think so. Well okay, just don’t let romanticism get swept away with the time. Oh and one last thing, if you’re planning on spending £150, let him know what you’d like before you buy that watch he’s been lusting over…