Big Big World

July 16, 2013 ~ Sophie ~ 5 Comments

Recently, we went to witness my little sister get baptized and it was a priceless experience. I am so proud of her. Her school is far so we had to pass through twists, turns, ups and downs to get there. What really struck me was the fact that every little village we passed through, there was a community of people. Even in places that I least expected and what ran through my mind the whole time was: ‘People live here too!’.It made me suddenly realize that the world is larger than what I think it to be and that it does not revolve around me at all. Sometimes we think we should be the center of gravity and everything else should simply comply to our selfish wishes. Talk about taking people around us for granted. But no, that is not how life is. Life is also about realizing that we are part of a bigger picture. A tiny spec in this magnificent universe.

This is pressing me to notice more what is and who are around me and stop focusing on myself only.

What have you discovered lately?

🙂

Sophie

Image Source : here

Garlic Breadsticks

July 12, 2013November 25, 2014 ~ Sophie ~ 5 Comments

Bread is so delicious. Especially homemade bread, preferably in a brick oven, in cold weather far away in the country side, served with tea perhaps… or a warm soup…Oh wait ,what am I getting at? Sorry I get carried away (a lot!) when it come to these things. You know the countryside, the warm soup in cold weather…I need to stop. The point is bread is good. And really who wouldn’t love bread in form of sticks? Ok so maybe I am the only one ha! This recipe was inspired by French and garlic bread and thus bread sticks.

4 C All Purpose Baking flour
1/2 C Butter or margarine
1/2 Tbsp Baking Powder
1/2 C Sugar
4 Cloves Garlic (peeled and chopped)
11/2 C Cold water or Milk
A Pinch of Salt

Directions

In a Large bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar.
Rub the butter/margarine in the flour mixture until it becomes coarse.
Add the garlic and continue mixing
Pour in the cold water/milk little by little while mixing until the mixture is a very firm dough.
Continue kneading the dough until it is smooth and isn’t sticking on your hands.
Wrap the dough in cling film and freeze for twenty minutes
Remove from freezer and using a rolling-pin, roll out the dough(you might want to divide the dough into two parts and roll it in batches)until it is 1 inch thick.
Using a sharp knife, cut the dough into thin strips of about an inch in width.

Now in the next step, I used an oven toaster to bake the bread sticks. I haven’t tried an oven yet. So if you do let me know how it turns out.

Arrange the strips nicely in an oven toaster metal rack and bake for 12 minutes.
When the timer goes off, wait for five more minutes before removing them.Best served warm.

Sophie

PS: The ribbed effect is because of the oven toaster metal rack.

PSS: I think I am getting better at giving directions. Yes? No?

Blogging| Lessons Learned

July 9, 2013 ~ Sophie ~ 8 Comments

Since I am we are still in the mood for celebrating, I wanted to share a few things I have learned through blogging. As the saying goes ‘Experience is the best teacher’, I am going to share some of my experiences and what worked to make the blog what it is now.

When I started Rare Beauty, I had an unclear idea of what I wanted to get across but I knew very well that I wanted a place I could put out my thoughts. Once I sat down and outlined what I really wanted to talk about, it became easier.

Having a working schedule will make publishing easier, reduce burn out and , maintain originality. When I started out on blogging, I came up with an over ambitious schedule of posting twice a week(which makes 8-9 posts a month), but after a month I got burned out. I was too much for me as a beginner. Considering the fact that I still had to work on my grades, work to do and the occasional blackouts and internet failures we face here, I realized it wasn’t gonna work for me. I had to shuffle things up and make my publishing schedule flexible.

Selecting a platform is essential to your blogging experience. You may have to try out more than two to find out what works for you. I started out on WordPress but due to my lack of knowledge with the html area(we used to study it in high school…little did I know that I would need it later), I moved to Blogger and realized it was much more complicated. I proceeded on to Blog because it looked chic and pretty(never judge a book by its cover) but I wasn’t satisfied still. So I went back to WP this time with a positive mind and haven’t looked back ever since.

Consistency is key in developing and growing a blog and I can testify. If you are going to post twice a day, then post twice a day…continuously. If it’s going to be once a week then let it be once a week.

I wrote briefly about sincerity here but there is much more to it. Writing content that is dear to your heart and reflects who you are, content that you will be able to read yourself and enjoy is way better than having to copy.

Discover other blogs and bloggers. Comment, like, share views, guest blog, email and encourage each other. It’s a big world out there and it can be fun.

Most importantly, blogging is something that you have to experience all by yourself to know how fun and amazing it is. So what are you waiting for, start blogging!

🙂

Sophie