For a swap on Craftster - surprisingly fun to knit! And great little stashbusters.

Sooooooo delicious! Seriously, this may be the best cake I’ve ever tasted.

Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups flour
2 teaspoon baking soda
3 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
3 egg equivalents (3x 1tbsp oil, 2tbsp water, 2tsp baking powder)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 cups finely grated carrots
1 cup applesauce
a handful of defrosted raspberries

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350°.

Mix flour, baking soda, cinnamon,baking powder, and salt in a bowl. In another bowl, mix/blend sugar and egg equivalents until creamy  - add vanilla and vegetable oil. Mix the contents of both bowls together and add carrots, applesauce, and raspberries.

Makes a fair amount, enough for two thinner cakes or a thick cake and a couple of muffins. Also rises surprisingly well for an egg-free cake. Grease and flour pan, then pour in batter. Bake 45 minutes to 1 hour, checking occasionally with a toothpick or knife. Takes maybe 20/30 minutes for muffins or cupcakes. Let cool, then add icing and decorations. I added a raspberry paste to the top - just a bunch of frozen raspberries defrosted, drained, and squished a bit.

Icing
Blended cream cheese, margarine, and a lot of icing sugar until it tasted decent. Vanilla extract for flavouring.

Originally discovered on VegWeb.com.

Tags: dessert

Title: Wasted: A Memoir of Anorexia and Bulimia - Marya Hornbacher
Rating: 8.5/10

This is an incredibly honest, gruesome tale of one woman’s lifelong battle with her body and mind. Hornbacher spares no graphic details in describing her experiences with anorexia and bulimia, her extensive hospital stays and near death, and her struggles with relapses and recovery. It’s a very accurate, open depiction supported by clear information on the clinical side of eating disorders and their treatment that, I think, makes it a good resource for sufferers (though many might find it rather triggering) and anyone at all interested.  I see some of myself in Hornbacher’s account, some of the same fears and struggles, and I think most women, whether or not they’ve suffered from eating disorders, will recognize aspects of their own lives in this book, too. We’re a sad bunch, us body-hating females, and Hornbacher very effectively explores this aspect of our gender and her own personality. This was my second read-through and I’m sure I’ll read Wasted again in the future.

“I shut down. My father needed me to need him, and I could not. I had grown up (normal), and decided I would never need anything again (not). And the last thing I needed, I thought, was some bastard trying to hold me back. I hated my younger self with an intensity that frightens me even now. Of course I resented and deeply feared anything that threatened my chances of escaping who I’d once been.” - Hornbacher, 228

Tags: autobiography, eating disorders, non-fiction, psychology

Title: Even Cowgirls Get the Blues by Tom Robbins
Rating: 7.5/10

Strange but intriguing little book. Sissy Hankshaw is cursed (or blessed) with abnormally large thumbs which lead her to hitchhike her way through the country and her teens and early adult years. She makes her way through a series of romances and encounters a great bunch of eccentric characters while trying to come to terms with her own identity. I went back and forth from bored and confused to entertained and curious several times through the course of the novel, but I’m so glad I pushed through it - lots of thought-provoking statements about gender, sexuality, relationships, growing up, and simply living.

“…Sissy had joined the ranks of the Unhappy Waiters and Killers of Time. Oh God, there are so many of them in our land! Students who can’t be happy until they’ve graduated, servicemen who can’t be happy until they’re discharged, single folks who can’t be happy until they’re married, workers who can’t be happy until they’re retired, adolescents who can’t be happy until they’re grwon, ill people who can’t be happy until they’re well, failures who can’t be happy until they succeed, restlesswho can’t be happy until they get out of town; and, in most cases, vice versa, people waiting, waiting for the world to begin.” - Robbins, 329

Tags: general fiction

Title: Ultimate X-Men Volume 19: Absolute Power by Aron Coleite
Rating: 8/10

Yay, Jubilee! Haven’t had a chance to read Alpha Flight yet but now I’d really, really like to. I thought that I had, perhaps, missed something significant when I was first getting into the story, but everything fell into place as I read on. And it was nice! Very nice. A good number of Rogue scenes/developments and a fun, if simple, plot. I enjoyed it very much and can’t wait for the next trade to come out. I love this series.

Tags: graphic novel, x-men