Blueberry Muffins

That's ginger having cake crumbs :P

So I noticed I haven't been posting recipes at all lately. But today is day finally haha. So I tried blueberry muffins yesterday and I swear this muffin is the best one ever. Even my cat loved it :P
The best muffins are eaten slightly warmed with softened butter. Ahhh perfect bliss I tell you. The sweetness of the blueberries just blend in perfectly along with the moist sponge and topped with warm butter, which just sort of ties up all the flavours bursting your mouth with sweetness.
And what I like about baking muffins is that they are totally hassle free to make, all you have to do is mix it all up and ta-daaa you're good to go.

Ingredients:

1 cup fresh ripe blueberries
(Apparently in my country we don't get fresh blueberries, so I used the American Garden Blueberry Topping which are available in tins)
2 cups flour 
1 cup sugar 
2 1/2 tsp baking powder 
1/2 tsp salt
2 large eggs, room temperature 
1/2 cup buttermilk 
(For those who don't have buttermilk, mix milk with 1 tbsp vinegar and use it after five minutes)
1/3 cup vegetable oil 
1 1/2 tsp vanilla  
Coarse sugar for dusting

You will also need
Muffin/cupcake liners, regular muffin tin (12 muffin capacity), 2 mixing bowls, whisk

Prep Time: 15 Minutes Cook Time: 20 Minutes Total Time: 35 Minutes Servings: 12 standard size muffins
 
Method:
Line a standard size muffin tin (12 muffins) with muffin/cupcake liners, or lightly with non stick cooking spray. 

In a mixing bowl, sift together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.

In another mixing bowl, whisk together eggs, buttermilk, vegetable oil and vanilla.

Mix wet ingredients into dry using as few stirs as possible; you want slightly lumpy batter, a few streaks of flour are fine. Do not over-mix.

Fill each cup all the way to the top with batter. I find the easiest way to do this is by using an ice cream scoop. One generous scoop of batter will fill each muffin cup.
 
Now what I did was I didn't mix the blueberry topping in the whole batter I used it in the centre while filling up my muffin tray. But for those who are using fresh blueberries they can mix everything in the batter. But be careful don't overmix.

When the pan is filled with batter, sprinkle the top of each muffin lightly with coarse sugar. This will add some sweet sparkle and texture to the top of each muffin.

Bake muffins for 10 minutes. Turn the muffin tin around (180 degrees) and continue to bake for 5-10 minutes more, or until the muffin tops are golden and springy to the touch. Start testing after 5 minutes, and take them out as soon as they turn springy... don't overcook them, or they'll become dry.

Enjoy the lil things....

The other day I was making a scrapbook for my friend's birthday, a friend who practically has everything and is very dear to me. Somebody saw me making it and said you could give her something else rather than this stupid scrapbook. 

This got me wondering we human beings have become so materialistic isn't it?, our lives revolve around laptops, smartphones, technology, bags, shoes and god know what.

Well to be honest I could have given her something else as well but nothing could fill in those memories that a simple book can. A few photographs from your schooldays can take you back to the past you don't even need Hermione Granger's timeturner for that, a few embarrassing pictures can make you laugh your ass off, a few lines can bring tears in your eyes.  

I don't know maybe you guys won't agree with what m saying but we often forget there's so much that life has to offer to us but we are too busy to notice those things because we are so busy planning out our lives for future that we forget about the present. 

The thing is we are blinded by technology nowadays, I mean how often do you guys actually sit and have a proper family dinner. I'm sure not that often. Our parents are talking to us but we are busy texting someone on the phone. We don't realize that we are missing way too much.

I've always been attracted to mere ordinary things, a mother's hug, sitting on my house's rooftop and looking up at the night sky, enjoying the sunset, looking at the birds chirping early morning or just watching my pet play soccer with a simple paperball. Getting bunch of books or just handmade card as a birthday present. It's the sentiments that count not the objects.

You see we have made our lives so very complicated all we see is material objects, oh what brand is he/she wearing, where are they going for a vacation etcetera etcetera. Just take a stroll in the park in the evening or at night and sit and just look up at the sky. Admire it's beauty or for instance just go to the beach and observe the sunset you'll know what you were missing. 

We always dream about what we don't have and what we have to achieve but how about we actually start thanking God for what we already have. We fail to notice the charm of the things we already have but realize it only when they're taken away from us. Isn't it?

We are busy chasing material objects. But what we fail to notice is that some of the best things in life are for free. We only need to start looking around and acknowledge them.

Life is too short, Live a little

It's beyond me that some people can be so manipulative, they manipulate their words in such a way that you're forced to listen to them, and that you start doubting yourself.
Sometimes we human beings are so busy doing our own long-term plannings that we often forget the fact that our lives are limited and that we won't be living forever. 

That's when a quote comes in my mind "Life is too short, enjoy it to your fullest".
But ye sub kehnay ki baatein hain nobody ever follows it. They'll nod their heads for a minute maybe and then after that they get back to what they were doing.

I mean guys just come to think of it, we plan years ahead of us, if not years then months, we'll do this we'll do that, we'll go for a vacation, I'll be planning the best birthday party ever, we even plan break-ups. 
Study in a certain field because agay jakey khuwari nai karni paregi', you'll have a secure job and future, marry this guy because his family is nice, or just simply picking up a certain dress in the shop cuz the material is good and it'll last longer. 
Isn't that how we usually think?
We are all busy looking at the long term effect of thing or our action BUT what if we don't even live that long. 

I am not being a pessimist here but that's the truth we all often forget. I am not saying that it's wrong to be prepared beforehand, what m saying is why do something forcefully just for the sake of making somebody happy, or just because it can bring long-term happiness. What if it doesn't, what if it doesn't go as you planned. Things never go as you plan, you don't even know what difference will the next minute bring in your life.

People go on making schedules of what they'll be doing a whole week or a whole month while here I am never sticking to what I plan. 

So rather than listening to people isn't it better to do what you think is right or do what you heart says? Atleast you'll be free from all the feeling of regret 
that you'll have later.

I've been there, done that and trust me it's not a very great feeling. I hate people trying to tell me all the time what to do, what is good for me, what is right or what is best or worst of all what WILL be best in future. It can be annoying isn't it?
Now when m trying to get things back in the right track, the last thing I want is someone lecturing me that I should not do it. I am done listening to people and pleasing everyone
It seems like one big mess, you try to untangle one knot and yet another knot is made waiting to be untangled and then another and so on.

So rather than planning out each minute of your lives, why not live a little because as they say life is too short.

Grenade waiting to explode....

Sitting here in the office, while m sulking over the bunch of evaluation forms I have to tabulate, honestly speaking I feel like burning all of these because they're really giving me a headache. 
Out of all the people they had to give me this mindless job, I mean seriously I can do way better than this. The only problem with me is I don't know how to say no to work.
If I was getting something in return I'd be happy enough to do it. The fact the after doing all this mindless job I ain't getting anything or any pleasure, there's no sense of motivation. It's just really pissing me off today. 

On top of that my stupid laptop keeps on hanging, there's nothing that can evaporate my anger right now. I feel like smacking it on somebody's head right now or maybe smashing it with a baseball bat. 

I hate staying at home during summer vacations and now m hating this place too. 
Rage is welled up inside me right now, m stuck here doing some brainless work while I could have stayed at home and done something else. This is just INSANE. 

It just gets me wondering how do people actually sit in one place and work, I mean come to think of it, they come to the same place everyday, do the same work, wear almost same kinda clothes. Isn't it just boring?

I mean I wouldn't mind doing it if I were doing something I like but still, life is about exploring why confine yourself to one spot when you can do something else. There's is so much social pressure at times, you have to do things in a certain way because "loag kya socheingay". 

I sometimes really wish I was a boy, atleast I could get away with things without having to answer to anyone. 

Summers

With the summer vacations going on, for some odd reason I've become super lazy I don't know why. But it's weird I was all excited about my internship and stuff but now I just don't feel like going back there. That's the problem with me I get bored very easily, I need something new, something interesting now, something different. 

Being at home seems peaceful, God knows how will I ever be able to run my own business with this kinda attitude. Gosh I'm weird I know and confusing too, can't help it. 

So on the other hand I've been baking alot lately but I've stopped experimenting new things, I should do that more often. I've been painting alot, oil painting and watercolours, I even thought about selling my paintings but then I just ignored that thought. 

So I have FINALLY talked to my family about switching from BBA :P 
Gosh it took alot of courage to talk to my mum but oh well tears always work :P
I should've used that tactic before I'm so stupid.

One thing I really wanted to do this summers was travel to northern areas of Pakistan. Get to see the nature's beauty, take some time away from the city but it's not possible for the time being. 

The other thing I want to do which I can still do is learn to play a guitar.

On the other hand it seems as people forget you as soon as the semester ends, all the text messages I get the whole day are from Djuice and Telenor internet, depressing right? 
*sigh*

I feel dead seriously, I have been working on a scrapbook lately for my best friend's birthday, and now I know why do people charge so much for selling these customized scrapbooks, that's cuz there's shit loads of work in it, very time comsuming and alot of sticking to do, the only part of DIY which I hate :P

So that's it for now.
Laters ;)

Ginger - My Lil Furball :')

Just when everything seemed sad and depressing, my sister brought me a lil kitten with the summer vacations on the go. As nervous as I was to hold it, when it was handed to me for the first time it just felt like one of those moments when a newly-born baby is given to the mother haha. 

It looked up at me with it's big beady eyes wondering who I was. Like how Sherlock tries to figure people out with just one look. 

This fuzzy little creature in a shoebox brought a smile on my face just instantly. A tiny little ball of fur, light amber in colour with streaks of white fur blending in just perfectly. It's big beady watery eyes giving away a look of cuteness, it's tiny little baby pink nose and the big ears sticking out. It's paws were soft, but as soon as you touch it, the sharp nails stick out as of wolverine's hahaha :P

It slept after a while, sleeping like it hadn't slept for a while. Gosh I could watch it sleep all day, it looked so adorable. 

So when Ginger (yes that's what I named him) finally decides to wake up, he starts getting friendly with me realizing that he'll have to live with me now. Following me as I go about the room, playful, fluffy little ginger starts wagging it's tail. Playing with the ball running around the room kicking the ball and making mini jumps, playing football with it's own self. Busy in exploring my room from every angle. 

Guess now I don't even need an alarm clock to wake up early in the morning as Ginger wakes me up. I was fast asleep when I felt something fluffy beside me. My eyes fluttered open at the touch, and I see ginger looking at me as if it was studying me all this time, sitting on the cushion just like a king, it stood up and came and sat on my pillow. I was surprised as it was cuddling, I  resisted the urge to move it away from my pillow, ginger rested his chin atop my head, sniffing compulsively, jumping up nuzzling against my hair.

That's the thing about these lil furballs they've enslaved the mankind with their cuteness :')

Nobody Understands...

There comes a time in life when you desperately want to share your feelings, express yourself to someone cuz all this time you've been bottling up your thoughts. It's just so difficult to talk to somebody because nobody would understand you better than yourself. 

Even if you do share your thoughts, they'd think you are a piece of boring shit whose always confused and whining. Everybody seems too busy or they are least bothered.

You can't seem to find a reason for your existence, sometimes you really need a shoulder to cry on, a reassuring smile which tells you that don't worry everything's going to be just fine. 

Looking around for a friend, who once used to see your worried face and could tell that something is wrong. It's weird how people make promises and forget them so easily, or pretend that they care, but they don't, say they'll always stick around but they don't.

Being alone feels best most of the times, infact even when you're among people your mind is wandering somewhere else. 

Sometimes scribbling on a piece of paper feels better then actually talking to someone.

Here I am lying down, looking up, watching the sky with the winds blowing, the space above me, closet to heavens, and most beautiful and majectic at night. 

It's just like meditation like a stress releasing therapy. Sometimes that's all you want to do, listen to soft music, look up to  the sky, and contemplate or just cry. 

The sky is sometimes seen as vast and empty but all I see is a gigantic doorway to adventures and dreams.