i art a day.

A little bitter and a little sweet. Cupcakes with a hint of lemon, topped with buttercream frosting are a sweet antidote to grey days. I also needed an excuse to use the new cupcake display holder my parents gave me for my birthday {wink}. Heres to sweeter days!

When Life Gives You Lemons Cupcakes:

1 cup (2 sticks) of unsalted butter
1.5 cups of all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon of baking powder
1/2 teaspoon of baking soda
1 teaspoon of salt
1.5 cups of sugar
2 large eggs + 3 large egg yolks
2 tablespoons of lemonade (3 or 4 for a more pronounced lemon flavor)
1 cup of buttermilk (reduced fat)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Paper or grease cupcake pans (makes 24 cupcakes). In a medium bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

2. In a large bowl, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs and yolks on low, one at a time. Beat in lemon juice. Alternately beat in flour mixture and buttermilk beginning and ending with flour mixture; mix until just combined.

3. Spoon batter into cupcake pans, filling each mold about 2/3 full. Bake about 28 minutes – or until toothpick or fork inserted in the center of cupcakes pulls out cleanly. Tops should be a light golden brown. Let cool completely before frosting.

Cake recipe adapted from marthastewart.com’s Lemon Cake recipie.

Buttercream Frosting:

1/2 cup of solid vegetable shortening
1/2 cup of butter
1 teaspoon of clear vanilla extract
4.5 cups of confectioner’s sugar (sifted for smoother finish)
2 tablespoons of milk
(1 to 2 tablespoons of lemon juice if you want flavored icing)

In large bowl, mix cream and butter with electric mixer. Add vanilla (and lemon juice). Gradually add sugar, one cup at a time. When all sugar has been mixed in, add milk and beat at medium speed until light and fluffy. Frost!

Icing recipe adapted from Wilton’s Buttercream Frosting recipe.

How many times have you read this same blog? Flipping through your reader you see blogger after blogger apologise for disappearing for a while, and then vowing to be more diligent. Well, today that’s me – sort of. I’d be lying if I said I had no material whatsoever, but I’d be leading you on to let you assume much of it is actually worth writing about. So I’ve sort of taken a creative coffee break.

On the up side, my sewing machine is finally fixed, I’ve got a real competition project with a real deadline coming up, and the hunt for a paying job is on (although the parameters for which that job holds are rather…loose)! I’ve also fired the espresso machine up and figured out how to make a lovely tasting - but not as lovely to look at as the coffee shop creations – cappuccino.

And I got my oil changed.

I’ve got high hopes for the coming days and weeks. =)

Sometimes it’s difficult to remember that I live in the “City of Brotherly Love”, especially over the past few days when the city has left me questioning whether there is in fact more good in this world than bad. With depression mounting I left for ballet class around 6:15, made a quick trip to the bookstore to buy a replacement journal and then headed to class. There’s nothing like a tough workout to focus the mind and put worries aside, but after an hour & 45 minutes in the slippers the frustrating events of the past couple of days washed over me again as I walked, sweating and beat back to the subway. While waiting somewhat patiently for the train to arrive I scanned the ads across the platform and this one caught my eyes:

Sweet, but not exactly par for the graffiti scene in Philadelphia – or the mural arts scene. So after a quick browse over to aloveletterforyou.com I found out that this mural is just one of about 50 murals being painted in West Philly along the subway/el line. “A Love Lettermeant for one but with meaning for all is being painted from 63rd to 45th Street on the rooftops and walls of Market Street by Overbrook native Stephen Powers and the youth of West Philadelphia,” says the project’s blog. A great story about the project was also written over at philly.com.

So maybe there are those people out there who will try to break your spirit or shake your confidence or threaten you. But, it’s nice to see a love letter every now and then to remind you that there are people trying to make this city, and this planet, a more loving, supportive, and soulful (not to mention creative, beautiful, and colorful) place. I look forwarding to taking a ride out through West Philly and back sometime soon. A few more love letters for you:

Tonight I took the first ballet class I’ve taken in, I’d say…14 years. The pink slippers were only $13.50 but the amount of self-will it took to show up and push myself through an hour and a half of this “Intro to Ballet” class is immeasurable. The wardrobe was less leotard/tutu/slippers – more leggings/shorts/Hanes tank/sweat band/slippers, but I felt like I was with the ballerinas in a Degas painting at the barre. In a 2nd floor walk-up dance studio above an art store in Rittenhouse I struggled to remember steps, positions and terminology I hadn’t used or really even thought of in 14 years. But after so long I’m thrilled to say I made it to 10 past 9, and walked to the subway imagining little ballerinas kicking and pulling at my legs and doing pirouettes on my shoulder blades as I craved a large glass of chilly water.

When I was 11(ish) I remember my last dance instructor literally yelling at me every class about the arch of my toes or the bend of my knees or the posture of my plies. Walking out of her class I was more than happy to kiss dance goodbye, but couldn’t help shutting the door to my bedroom or apartment and making up my own dances to my favorite music. I still listen to classical music and imagine the most elegant dancers gliding across an open stage, and enjoy going to see a ballet company as much as a concert or movie. So, I took a chance on an adult class that had my muscles shaking for the entire subway ride home.

Even though the most basic class has me all jittery, it’s still an open forum for asking questions and requesting demonstrations. As I learned tonight, asking a question that may seem silly turns out to be helpful to other people who weren’t going to say anything at all. This time, when the instructor grabbed my toes and pushed them in the right direction I felt like I actually understood how it was supposed to feel, how I was supposed to move – even if just for a few seconds. I’m excited to think about how my yoga practice can be helpful and grow alongside ballet class, and I’m looking forward to my next class on Thursday.