“What is proper time and improper time?”
I looked up at Zoe, her brows furrowed in confusion. I sighed as I looked at the same question, I had no idea. I was tired and this physics test was driving me crazy.
It was just one of those Saturdays. The day didn’t start very well. Waking up this morning was so difficult. I woke up at noon, after deciding wrapping myself up in my warm blanket and staying in my oversized shirt and teddy bear pajama pants was the best option. I was so tired and I really didn’t want to get up. After much deliberation, I finally dragged myself out of bed.
Then I decided to check on my vegan cheesecake – the one we made last night. The first thing I noticed when I pulled it out of the fridge was the huge crack in the center. It looked awful. I leaned in to take a sniff – it smelt funny? Oh no. My heart sank a little. I tried to pull the cake out of the tray by tugging on the edges of the parchment paper but I just ended up ripping up more and more bits of paper. In frustration, I turned the cake upset down. Guess what? It didn’t even come out! Finally, I had to slice it up and take it out piece by piece. It was really disheartening and frustrating. I was really hoping that my baked vegan cheesecake would turn out decent! It has been so long since I had eaten one.
After my failed cheesecake episode, I dragged myself to Zoe’s room to start studying physics. It was quite the sight – Zoe and I with pens, notebooks surrounded with papers and textbooks. It was absolute torture – Relativistic calculations, Bohr’s model and diffraction gratings was giving me such a headache. Zoe wasn’t making any progress either.
Somehow in the middle of my frustration, we both ended up lying on the floor, sprawled out amongst our mess. I can’t exactly remembered how it happened (clearly I was completely out of it), but exhaustion hit and soon enough we caught each others eye and burst out into laughter. Exhaustion and the excessive amount of grapes we snacked on must’ve made us a little hyper. Giggling and crying at the same time – it definitely lifted my spirits.
Although I had wasted the whole morning, ruined my cheesecake and failed at studying for physics – spending that 30 minutes laughing with her made up for it. There is something amazing about finding reasons to laugh even if its about something very small, you just feel so much happier. A chuckle or a giggle will never be enough to make me finish physics easier or salvage my failed cheesecake, but it is enough to lighten one’s heart and to make life seem a little brighter.
Thats my goal. For finals weeks, to find a reason to laugh each day even if its something small. I’m grateful that I was reminded once again of what happiness really is and what laughing can really do for you. So if you’re having a bad day, finding a reason to laugh may just help you lift your spirits up.
Oh and of course a slice of this miso banana bread wouldn’t hurt either. Especially with that sweet-salty combinations slathered with nut butter.
- 1½ cups Oats (blitzed into oat flour) - use ¾ cup almond flour, ¾ oat flour if using a loaf pan[/b]
- 1 tbsp tapioca starch
- 1½ tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 7 tbsp Coconut Sugar
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 400g Ripe Banana, mashed (around 4 medium bananas)**
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 1 large egg
- 5 tsp low sodium miso paste
- 1 tbsp oil (coconut oil, olive oil or avocado oil)
- Put oats in a blender and blend until it becomes flour. Mix in the tapioca, baking powder, baking soda, sugar and cinnamon.
- Weigh out 400g bananas (bananas come in different shapes and sizes, we recommend you weighing this out) and then mash by hand OR blend till smooth.
- Mix mashed banana, vanilla, egg, miso paste and oil.
- Gently fold the wet and the dry mix together.
- Option 1: Preheat oven to 325F. Pour batter into a lined 8 x 8" inch baking pan.
- Bake for 45-50 minutes on the middle rack until done toothpick comes out clean.
- Option 2: Preheat oven to 350F. Pour batter into loaf pan.
- Bake on middle rack for 45 mins or possibly longer until toothpick comes out clean.
- Allow to cool and transfer to the fridge to chill for several hours/overnight before serving.
- 1½ cups Oats (blitzed into oat flour) - use ¾ cup almond flour, ¾ oat flour if using a loaf pan[/b]
- 1½ tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 7 tbsp Coconut Sugar
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 400g Ripe Banana, mashed (around 4 medium bananas)**
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 3 tbsp aquafaba (liquid from a can of chickpeas)
- 5 tsp low sodium miso paste
- 1 tbsp oil (coconut oil, olive oil or avocado oil)
- Preheat oven to 325F.
- Put oats in a blender and blend until it becomes flour. Mix in almond flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar and cinnamon. Set aside.
- Weigh out 400g bananas (bananas come in different shapes and sizes, we recommend you weighing this out) and then mash by hand OR blend till smooth.
- Mix mashed banana, vanilla, egg, miso paste and oil.
- In a clean bowl, add aquafaba. Beat aquafaba until foamy or stiff peaks. (this should take a few minutes).
- Gently fold (BY HAND) the aquafaba into the banana mixture.
- Add in ⅓ of the dry mixture. Fold before adding another third in. Repeat until mixture is blended together.
- Pour batter into a lined 8 x 8" inch baking pan.
- Bake for 45-50 minutes on the middle rack until done toothpick comes out clean.
- Bake on middle rack for 45 mins or possibly longer until toothpick comes out clean.
- Allow to cool and transfer to the fridge to chill for several hours/overnight before serving.
Quick question:
Is the measurement for the flour the same is starting with straight up out flour?
Thanks!
Hi Haley,
Thats a great question so you would usually use slightly less oat flour than oats. This has been my experience:
If you are grinding your own oats, the ratio is 1:1.
For store bought flour it would be a few tablespoons less.
I hope that helps! Let me know if you have any more questions!