Sweet 'n' Sour :Lemon Cupcakes Recipe

Hello,darlings! On this cold Monday afternoon I thought about sharing another cupcake recipe.I really like the taste of lemon in a cupcake .This is perfect for enjoying on a hot summer afternoon on the beach with a glass of whatever you fancy :) But honestly,it's tasty no matter the season.

Now that I'm finally over with all the exams and have just started my 3 month long vacation,I will be cooking/baking more but most of all ,travel :) That's what summer is for.

Moving on now..this is what you need for your lovely lemon cupcakes:

• 250 grams of all- purpose flour(250 grame faina)
• 1 tablespoon baking powder(1 lingura praf de copt)
• a pinch of salt( un varf de cutit de sare)
• 240 ml milk( 240 ml lapte)
• the zest of 2 lemons( coaja a 2 lamai)
• 60 ml lemon juice(60 ml suc de lamaie)
• 4 egg- whites( 4 albusuri)
• 300 grams of granulated sugar(300 grame zahar granulat)
• 115 grams of butter( 115 grame unt)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract( 1 lingurita extract de vanilie)

If you have everything ready , what are you waiting for? Let's start mixing everything :P
First of all,preheat your oven.I preheat mine a couple of minutes before putting the  cupcake batter in because my oven doesn't show the temperature.(I have an ancient oven).

Steps:

1. Mix the flour,baking powder and salt.(Amestecati  faina,praful de copt si sarea)
2. In another bowl,mix the milk,lemon juice and egg whites .(In alt vas,amestecati laptele,sucul de lamaie si albusurile)
3. In bowl number 3,mix the lemon zest with the sugar.Add the butter,take a hand mixer and mix for about 3 minutes.Add the vanilla extract.(In vasul numarul 3,amestecati coaja de lamaie cu zaharul.Adaugati untul si amestecati cu mixerul in jur de 3 minute.Adaugati extractul de vanilie)
4. In bowl number 3,pour one third of the flour and mix.Then pour one half of the milk-lemon juice-egg-whites mixture and mix yet again.Then pour another third of the flour,the other half of the milk mixture and  finally the last part of the flour-baking powder-salt mixture.Make sure to mix well anytime you add .(In vasul #3,turnati o treime din faina si amestecati.Apoi turnati jumatate din amestecul de lapte ,suc de lamaie si albusuri si amestecati din nou.Turnati a doua treime din faina,cealalta jumate din lapte si la sfarsit ultima treime faina.Nu uitati sa amestecati bine dupa fiecare adaugare.)
5. Mix everything one more time at the end.(Amestecati totul onca o data la sfarsit)
6. Pour the batter in cupcake liners and put them in your preheated oven for about 18 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.( Turnati compozitia in hartii pentru briose si puneti-le  in cuptorul preincalzit in jur de 18 minute sau pana cand scobitoarea iese curata)

Result ☺

Enjoy your cupcake!

Portrait: Shakira

Hi guys!
I finally went through my portrait "collection" a couple of days ago and added a new one of Shakira.
Looking back on the first portraits I've ever made I see a big difference between my most recent ones and the old ones. I'm really happy to see this development :)
There are portraits I can't even look at without saying "How could I have even posted this on my blog?It's so bad !" :)

But ,hey, people learn from their mistakes (or they should) and I'm aware that I still have a lot of mistakes to correct.

Anyways,without further ado, this is my portrait of Colombian singer Shakira:

I'm also running out of inspiration for which celebrity I should draw next. I know,I know,  there are plenty of celebrities out there but it would mean more to me if I draw someone you would really like to see.

So please leave requests in the special section in the menu or by leaving a comment down below.

Thanks for checking out my blog and have a peaceful and relaxing  Sunday !

The artist in us!(Gift idea)

I think I'm not mistaken when I say that most of us were "artists" when we were children.I remember it was so fascinating to take a colored pencil and draw something that didn't resemble what I wanted to draw at all :)

It is such a nice feeling when a child comes up to you with his or her drawing and proudly explains what each and everything is and looks at it as if it's a masterpiece.My definition of art is the will to create beauty out of anything.
I will start a series of posts about some nice gift ideas for that special someone in your life.
I started my blog as an "arts" blog,focusing on my portraits and other drawings. I remember drawing the first portrait I posted on my blog on Christmas Eve 2011. :)

Today,I can suggest you a gift that would bring a smile on the face of both children and adults.

Brookstone has this really awesome art set that is definitely suitable for children and grown-ups.You could give it as a present to your 6 year old nephew or niece,your teenage daughter or your artist friend.It is recommended for ages 3 and up and the great thing is that the colors are all non-toxic.
The set contains  18 colored pencils,8 watercolors cakes ,12 oil pastels, a sharpener and an eraser.

I remember loving oil pastels when I was a kid.It didn't matter how messy I would get after using them. I always used  them on my coloring books or just to scribble on a piece of paper.Then, when I got older I switched to colored pencils,which I still use now for my portraits.

I think this is a really fun,creative gift.I really love gifts that mean something to the person you're giving them to.I would get more excited for this than for chocolates or wine or home decorations :)

Maybe you will take this into consideration next time you have a birthday or a big event coming up.Bring a smile to an artist's face ! :)

My favorite crepes recipe!

Hello and happy Monday to you! :)
The week has just started and I have my first exam tomorrow.What plans do you have for this week?

Sometimes,when I'm in the mood for something sweet and quick to make,I opt for crepes( a thinner kind of pancake).There are many recipes for crepes out there but this is the one that I like.You will need:

• 240 ml milk(240 ml lapte)
• 2 tablespoons of  granulated sugar(2 linguri zahar)
• 1 teaspoon of salt( 1 lingurita sare)
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract(1 lingurita extract de vanilie)
• 3-4 teaspoons of yogurt(3-4 lingurite iaurt)
• 1 teaspoon of lemon zest(1 lingurita coaja de lamaie)
• 110 grams of all purpose flour(110 grame faina)
• 1 egg(1 ou)

Now that you have these,mix them all in a bowl until you get a mixture with the consistency of a more liquid cream.Heat some oil in a pan and pour a ladleful of the mixture in the pan.Then you know the drill :)
You will have about 6 crepes resulting from the mixture.
RO:Amestecati totul intr-un vas pana cand obtineti un amestec de consistenta unei smanatani mai lichide.Incalziti niste ulei inr-o tigaie si puneti cate un polonic din amestec.Ar trebui sa va iasa cam 6 clatite.

Fill it with whatever you want and dig in!:D

Favorite Friday: Nail Polish(1)

Hello ,lovely people of the world!:)
How's your weekend going?It's raining and cold here ..

I know I haven't done a Favorite Friday in a long time,but today I'm back with a "beauty" item : le nail polish.
I have experimented with make up,but it always felt weird to have a layer of something on my face,so I stopped using foundation or BB cream or whatever is similar to these.I tried mascara ,but seeing as my eyelashes are already naturally long, they ended up looking "spider legs" scary.

But of course,I have to have a weakness :) and that is nail polish. I can't go a day without having nail polish on my nails.My mood is always brightened up when I look down at my nails and see a pretty color.

These are 5 of my favorite nail polish shades,from the top left corner:
1.Orly Glowstick
2.MaXFactor Sunset Orange
3.Orly(I can't find the name of the dark red one,it rubbed off the package)
4.Golden Rose Paris #222
5.Kinetics Grey,no Pink( great name :p)

Which one of these is your favorite?:)