DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018
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AWADAE -Adventures with Autism, Down Syndrome and Epilepsy Supporting Families through Domestic and International Respite Adventures with Helping Hands Karen Duncan, owner of Peeks Cruises and Tours, created a foundation to help families who want their children to experience a vacation while giving the parents a break. AWADAE (Adventures with Austism, Down Syndrome and Epilepsy) is a 501© (3) non-profit. AWADAE’s mission is to provide an extraordinary opportunity for respite vacations for families with special needs. They provide the opportunity for caregivers to go on a family vacation that provides a positive family experience without the financial concern: 1. They provide respite camp for the special needs child/adult, 2. Allow the caregiver to have time for relaxation, rejuvenation, and reconnection, 3. Provide the family opportunity through scholarships to the families,
4. Caregivers and their families get to connect with others in a fun and organized environment. These adventures are supported by our volunteer staff/specialist that travels with these families. Our helping hand specialist provide respite camp and activity support which allows caregivers to feel confident their family member is being well cared for. Our volunteer staff have a diverse but significant level of professional backgrounds: behavioral, physical, speech, and respite therapist, nurses, and special education teachers who are used to working with special children.We host workshops, provide themed parties, and the cruise lines arrange for us to have private group activities on the ship, like putt putt golf, ice skating, rock wall climbing, karaoke etc.
There are three components to the Black Pflugerville organization. Black Student Advocates. They advocate for Black students in Pflugerville ISD are currently working on a task focus along with Measure Austin, Pflugerville & Pflugerville ISD Police department to address the disproportionate number of Black kids being charged with assault while in school.
AWADAE also arranges one excursion as a group where we meet with Jamaica Autism Center or Autism Centro de Cozumel. We provide them with equipment and a financial donation to help their causes as well. This also allows for fun fellowship between our families. For more information visit: http://awadae.org/
HAVE YOU HEARD ABOUT BLACK PFLUGERVILLE?
It’s A Growing Organization that is Growing the Community Black Pflugerville was established on March 28th 2016 with the intentions to create a Hub for Black Organizations in Pflugerville and Central Texas. Founding members of the organization were Sheldon B. Lamey, Jamelia Styles, and Ashely Gordon. Black Pflugerville, is a non partisan 501(3c) non-profit organization which encourages informed and active participation for Black people in the city of Pflugerville. It works to increase understanding of public issues and influences public policy through education and advocacy and collaboration.
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Student Advocates have been successful in their ability to address the identification of Gifted and Talented Black kids and it is their hope to continue their work. The second component is the adoption of Historic Colored Cemeteries. They are dedicated to preserving Black History within our city. Volunteers are welcome to join us with the monthly maintenance of the cemetery.
EN T ER TAIN MEN T
The third component is the Black Business Builders. They meet every Tuesday from 7pm-8pm at First the Blade Barbershop 103-A West Pecan St, Pflugerville, Texas 78660. To become a member attend 3 meetings, have 3 1x1s, bring 3 guests and pay a nominal monthly membership fee of $5. The goals of Black Pflugerville is increase civic engagement, advocacy, preservation and support of Black businesses To join visit www.blackpflugerville.com
H EALT H & WEL L N ESS
T R AVEL
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Damita’s Corner Founder/Publisher Damita Miller-Shanklin
New Year. New Focus. New Start. Happy Holidays to you and your family. Ujima is happy to be celebrating the holidays with family and friends. As the New Year arrives, it is a good idea to take stock of your year and see where you may want to make improvements in your life or just get better at things you are already doing. Either way most people make some type of change for the better. We all need to move forward taking the lessons we have learned throughout the year, to adjust or change. Are you ready to focus on 2018? There is a lot of promise and new beginnings with the new year. Our world is changing everyday. None of us know what is coming but we can stay positive, treat people with respect and make a difference in our communities. Have a focus that will assist you in reaching your dreams and goals. Life is short so find a new focus and go for it whatever it may be and enjoy your life. I love the New Year because it gives us a restart button. I can start something over or find something that I would like I always wanted to do. Take some time and think about how you want to spend your time growing, learning and being a part of your community. Ujima will take in the New Year, focus on our goals and passions and start new projects to help us grow as a brand and company. Ujima wishes you and yours a fabulous New Year! Damita Embrace Your Community
Ujima Magazine is a free news publication. Visit online at Ujimamagazine.com. For Advertising Opportunities email us at UjimaMagazine@gmail.com
WORLD AIDS AWARENESS DAY
In Remberance of Those Who Lost The Fight World AIDS Day is celebrated every year on December 1st. World AIDS Day was founded in 1988. People throughout the world come together to fight and unite against HIV, to show support for people living with HIV, and to commemorate those who have died from an AIDS-related illness. Blacks account for a higher proportion of new HIV diagnoses, those living with HIV, and those ever diagnosed with AIDS, compared to other races and ethnicities. In 2015, African Americans accounted for 45% of HIV diagnoses, though they comprise 12% of the US population. World AIDS Day is an opportunity to show solidarity with the millions of people living with HIV worldwide. You can show your support by wearing a red ribbon. The Austin area will share in the World AIDS Awareness Day on December 1st at AIDS Services of Austin located at 7215 Cameron Road, Austin, Texas 78752 from 8am-9am. You can visit the World AIDS Day facebook page at https://www.worldaidsday.org/ Ujima remembers people in our community living with HIV and those who have died from the AIDS-related illness.
Do You Have Glaucoma? What Are You Waiting For? Glaucoma is a complicated disease than can damage your optic nerve that leads to progressive, irreversible vision loss. Glaucoma is the second leading cause of blindness. There are several types of Glaucoma but the most common type is hereditary. This disease steals your eyesight. There are typically no early warning signs or painful symptoms of open-angle glaucoma. It develops slowly and sometimes without noticeable sight loss for many years. Most people who have open-angle glaucoma feel fine and do not notice a change in their vision at first because the initial loss of vision is side or peripheral vision, and the visual acuity or sharpness of vision is maintained until late in the disease. By the time a patient is aware of vision loss, the disease is usually quite advanced. Without proper treatment, glaucoma can lead to blindness. The good news is that with regular eye exams, early detection, and treatment, you can preserve your vision. It is suggested you get regular eye exams to monitor the progression of your Glaucoma. Caring for your eyes may include medication, surgery, or a combination of glaucoma treatments. To start anew, get your eye exam and have your doctor evaluate your eyes for Glaucoma as a precaution. https://www.glaucoma.org/glaucoma/
Make Sure You Take Care of Your Mental Health You Have Too!
The holidays have arrived. We all enjoy the gift giving, being with family and friends, eating, and the hustle and bustle of the season. But there are some people who feel the pressure and the anxiety. They can’t handle being around a crowd or meeting new people or having to participate in parties. The holidays can create serious anxiety,sadness and depression for some people. Some familiar things are to take your medications. If you don’t want to attend a party or be around friends give yourself the okay to say no,set a time to meet with them later when you feel better. It is important to reduce the stress that you adopt some strategies that work for you to enable you to have a wonderful holiday you should not set yourself up for failure by overcommitting. When you have a sad moment or memory, think of something that makes you happy or feel calm. Here are 5 tips to help you manage your mental health during the holidays, recommended by 21ninety.com. 1- Set boundaries 2- Stay active 3- Holistic approach with Essential oils 4- Journaling 5- Spend time around people who lift your mood and decrease your stress Consider these tips to help manage your mental health during the holidays. This tips can be used long after the holiday season goes away. https://21ninety.com/5-tips-tohelp-you-manage-your-mental-heal th-during-the-holidays
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COMMUNITY Passion to Purpose What Are You Passionate About? By Adolph Evans, Contributing Writer “With the two hands that you have, one is for holding onto the precious moments of the present, while the other should be an open palm for the hopes of the future. Therefore, there’s no hand left to hold onto the past.” As the New Year begins, we have a fresh opportunity to reach a never before set and targeted goal. No more creating New Years resolutions that may or may not pan out. It’s time to set goals that are personal and meaningful to the pursuit of our passions in life. Stop chasing your goals and move toward them using your passions as the vehicle. What are you passionate about? What would you do for free? What are some of your internal creative expressions yearning to be released and shared with others? What do you do in your passion time? Name and claim your passion time daily. As with “Build it and they will come”, if we pursue our passions our goals will follow. Finding one’s passion and living it daily is the best that anyone can do in their life. I believe we all have many passions that lie within us. Once we find and begin to work in our passions , it will lead us to obtaining greater goals. Thus this will add a larger component of success to our lives that will not only stimulate us but will make a great impact on others. Set great big goals! Your goals should cause all who hear them to doubt their attainment. There’s no goal too big to be realized. But there are many so small that there’s no room to mobilize. Conceive, believe, achieve and the
attainment of your goals is coming to a future near you! Conceiving is thought; believing is action while achieving is results. You don’t have to be great at pursuing your passions to reach your goals. You just have to be passionate about the pursuit. Fear– Fear is a key component to achieving success. It can paralyze, cripple or mobilize. Paralysis causes us not to move. Crippling allows getting part of the way there. And mobilization leads to victory. Past Failures– In order to become a success, one has to become a successful failure. Achievers don’t just survive in the setbacks and failures of the past; they thrive in the learning from them.
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Partners– people with like-minded passions and goals or those who want to help you accomplish yours. Mentors– thoughtful companions who help advise and strategize potential achievements. Influencers– People who like connecting others to create a greater impact for dreamers and achievers. Social Media-a free way to promote your messaging for your passions and goals. Don’t cheat this upcoming year of its reward. Dare to be great by pursuing your passions on your way to achieving your goals. My hope is that all who read this message will proceed on their journey to passionately pursue their goals. Take your leap of faith on those desired passions and goals that’s been inside of you, waiting to be released and shared.
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In all that you do in 2018 Bring the Passion and Achieve Your Goals!
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Cleaning Up Your Social Media It Can Have Reprecussions As you plan to make changes for the new year, how about remembering to clean up your social media channels. There are several reasons to consider this.
The 14th Annual Firefighter’s Ball The Austin Firefighters Invite You to Join Them for a Wonderful Evening The 14th Annual Austin Firefighter’s Fall will be held on Saturday, January 20, 2018 from 6pm-1am. The event will be at the Crowne Plaza Austin. For Ticket information visit 2018austinfireball.eventbrite.com
If you are looking for employment, this is an important reason to clean up your networks or make them private. Employers look at our social media channels when determining if we would be good for an interview or employment with their company based on what they see on your social media channels. Another reason is if you haven’t had any contact with someone who follows you or if you really don’t know the person, you may want to disconnect.
Hashtags With A Meaning Hashtags have become a popular use of expression of feelings and beliefs on social media. #StayWoke is not to be taken lightly. It’s is time for all of us to know who supports disabled children and adults. What is being done about health care for everyone, food programs for senior citizens, education for children as well as affordable higher education. No longer can we not know who is in control and we all must Vote….#obligation #StayWoke
But be aware of what you post and how it may look to others. Don’t be too personal with what you share and keep it fun the way it was meant to be used. Consider what channels work best for what you and what you are expressing as well. For more information on how to clean up your social media, visit https://lifehacker.com/how-toclean-up-your-social-media-presence-1795699743.
Resolutions!!! Why Make Them? As the New Year begins most people will make resolutions on how they will improve or do something new to improve their life. But do you really keep those resolutions? I learned years ago, that resolutions stress me out and I don’t get anything done. Then I feel bad and eventually make myself sick. So the last couple of years I have not done resolutions but set goals that I know I can meet and I set them at 3 month quarters.
Celebrate Martin Luther King Day We Shall Overcome Someday! The Annual Community March celebrates Dr. Martin Luther King’s legacy while uplifting diversity and multi-culturalism in our city. The MLK Community March kicks off on Monday, January 15, 2018 at 9 a.m.with a short program at the MLK Statue on the University of Texas campus. The community will then march to the south steps of the State Capitol for a short program and marchers will continue on to the historic HustonTillotson University, where exciting activities are planned. Everyone is welcomed! For more information, http://www.mlkcelebration.com/celebrationevents/march-and-festival/ or call (512) 657-3064.
Follow Slow Jamz at https://www.facebook.com/sizzlingslowjamz/
What this system has done is allowed goals to be determined by what is important and allow time to accomplish without the stress and the feeling of failure. I do this for both my personal goals and my business goals. Allow yourself 3 months for each goal. You can also move the goals that you were not able to accomplish to the next quarter if you like. It’s all about stress free and feeling successful. So forget about making resolutions that will stress you out and take away your creativity. Give yourself time to be successful!
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Puerto Rico Needs Help
For Your Fur Baby
To Heal, Grow and ReBuild
Poochie Trends and Pet Bakery All Natural Dog Treats
We have had some devastating storms that have come through our cities and towns and caused death and misplacement of people. All the affected areas still need help, Puerto Rico a part of the United States, really need us. I want to remind everyone, including myself, that the people of Puerto Rico are still trying to put their lives back together. The official death toll on the island has increased to 48 and over 100 remain unaccounted for. Here are several ways to donate. 1. United for Puerto Rico (started by the First Lady of Puerto Rico. http://www.unidosporpuertorico.com/en/ 2. UNICEF-https://secure.unicefusa.org/donate/ support-unicef-usas-hurricane-relief-effortspuerto-rico/32952 3. One America Appeal for Hurricane Relief (started by former Presidents)https://www.oneamericaappeal.org/
December Book Selection Behold The Dreamers by Imbolo Mbue A compulsively readable debut novel about marriage, immigration, class, race, and the trapdoors in the American Dream—the unforgettable story of a young Cameroonian couple making a new life in New York just as the Great Recession upends the economy. Named one of the best books of the year by NPR • The New York Times Book Review • San Francisco Chronicle • The Guardian • St. Louis PostDispatch • Chicago Public Library • BookPage • Refinery29 • Kirkus Reviews
Poochie Trends Pet Bakery was started in 2007 by mother-daughter team, Geraldine & Florine Taylor with a goal to offer pet parents safe and healthy alternatives to commercial dog treats and food. Baking for over 7 years, we have perfected allnatural fresh-baked dog treats. Located at the Cedar Park Farmers Market, we are visited by hundreds of health conscious people and most importantly, our four legged friends every week. Check out the website at http://poochietrends.com/
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Austin’s New Year 2018! It’s not to early to start making plans to ring in the new year right here in Austin, especially with the show-stopping headliners scheduled to take the stage at Austin’s New Year 2018. The annual alcohol-free celebration will showcase a variety of art, food trucks and live music on three stages. Austin’s New Year begins at 3 p.m. at Vic Mathias Shores (formerly Auditorium Shores), South 1st Street and Riverside Drive, with a fireworks finale at 10 p.m. http://austinsnewyear.com/
Have You Tried Fenty by Rihanna?
Start Your Own Log Book
Try Putting On The Fenty Face
It’s A Simple Way To Journal
You may want to ask Santa to bring you the makeup by Rihanna, the popular singer and philanthropist. Her makeup is all the rage and women are looking beautiful. She created the beauty line “so that women everywhere would be included.”
Journaling is a way to express what happens in your life. You can capture memories, work out your thoughts and express yourself creatively. Because of a busy schedule, I was drawn to the Logbook. It is a list, short and you don’t have to go into too much detail unless you choose to. I have started a logbook for the new year.
According to the Fenty Beauty website, there are 3 steps to putting on the Fenty Face. Start with the soft Matte Filt’r to prevent the unwanted shine. Layer the highlight. Light up where you want it using the Match Stix or the Killawatt highlighter and then blot on the fly, whenever and wherever, with the Invisimatte powder and/or the Blotting Paper. You still have time to add to your Christmas list!! Check out the website at https://www.fentybeauty.com/
Austin Kleon who lives in Austin, Texas introduced me to the Logbook. He is writer and artist. He has been using a logbook for many years. He uses it to list how he spent his day; what he did, who he saw and talked with, etc. It is a list of just short words and sentences to help jog your memory later. Each morning you can wake up and jot down yesterday’s life moments. To see how Austin does his logbook, check out his blog at https://austinkleon.com/tag/logbook/
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EDUCATION Create Her Stock Images for the Content Maker As a black writer/blogger, you know it is hard to find photos that reflect Black people engaging in life that you can use to represent your story. There is a great resource that solves this issue. Create Her Stock is a a go-to digital space for stock imagery that can be used for lifestyle, business, and even everyday content creation for bloggers, creatives, and online influencers. Check it out at https://www.createherstock.com/
Four Ways to Manage Your Time Be Productive Throughout The Year! In working with a business coach, I have been able to manage my calendar and schedule everything. I now schedule everything from my work time to my personal time.I know that may sound rigid and I fought against it at first myself. I have no stress because I know if something changes or new things are added, it has to fit into my calendar and be scheduled. I wanted to share a few of my tips. 1. Choose a calendar. I use the Passion Planner. I love to collect calendars so I’m very specific about what I use. It needs to have time allocation so you can see the time and schedule. It should be fun too, because if it is fun and pretty you will most likely use it more. 2. I review and plan my schedule every Sunday for the week. 3. I use highlighters to color code my appointments to keep me clear and focused on my task. For example, I use orange to signify magazine work, yellow for personal time, etc. 4. I schedule everything. I admit it was difficult for me because I thought it was too structured but it works! I know when I need to do things and my work life and my personal feels more controlled. Even if I don’t get to a task that is scheduled, it is documented and I know it has to be completed. It’s a visual reminder. Time Management is important to meet your task and deadlines. It is also the most important in being productive. So try scheduling your time and see how it works for you. You can also use this with your mobile calendar, i.e. google calendar. Google calendar offers color coding as well and the calendar is free.
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BUSINESS AND FINANCE They are queens and need to embrace that status!
Rising Visions: Alta Y. Alexander & Altatudes Contributed by Willie S. Anderson
Alta Y. Alexander, is the epitome of a majestic Black queen. She emanates brilliance, conďŹ dence, kindness, grace, elegance, and of course-style. All these traits are reected in her recently opened fashion boutique-Altatudes. Altatudes is a golden burst of sunshine, radiantly standing in the heart of historical East Austin. Within this charmingly classic building, one ďŹ nds vintage air woven expertly and exquisitely with contemporary designs and inspirational words of wisdomindeed “An exalted state of style.â€? Let’s talk vision. When did you receive your vision to open your boutique? I have always been passionate about clothes and accessories! During my college days, my friends were making sure they had money to go out. I was making sure that I had money to get an outďŹ t to go out in! Feeling good about the clothes I wear has always been pivotal to me and also an opportunity to express my inner joy. Whenever I dreamed of entrepreneurship as far back as a little girl at 7 or 8 years old, I thought of being a boutique owner. At that time, it was just to be privy to all the wonderful fashions. Now, it’s to provide other women that opportunity to have beautiful pieces to enhance the beauty they already possess. A second or third date with my husband 17-years ago conďŹ rmed
it when he asked me if I ever wanted to own my own business. I told him then, yes, it would be a boutique, and I would call it Altatudes! There’s an obvious signiďŹ cance of the business name “ALTATUDESâ€?— still, please expound. It’s obvious that my business name is a play on my own name – Alta – but the “tudeâ€? in this case means ‘style’—what is one’s style? Mine, of course, is Altatudes. The name is also a spin-o the word ‘altitude’ which means to extend upward towards the heavens. My business name also includes the tagline: “An exalted state of style,â€? which I intend to have realized in the clothing pieces I select for my boutique. Although Altatudes will happily provide personal styling and shopping, it’s always interesting to me to see how folks coordinate and accessorize same or similar items. I love it when patrons come into their own sense of fashion! I will be launching a forum – “What’s Your ‘Tude’?â€? The forum is an expanded vision utilizing Altatudes’ platform to uplift others, particularly young girls and women in underserved areas, to promote self-esteem and personal value through individual style. We are ďŹ nding more and more young girls relying on others for their self-worth and this needs to be turned around!
“an exalted state of styleâ€?-Is there a spiritual connection—beyond “high fashionâ€? and elegance? (Laughingly) It is spiritual in the fashion sense! My family and friends would likely swear (testify) that my predilection for fashion is somewhat a religion to me (smile)! I believe that when you have on that “justrightâ€? dress, outďŹ t and YASSSS that pair of heels; you can be transcended. The apparel I select for Altatudes will have an authentic style where modern contemporary designs and brands are sewn together with traditional tailoring and a vintage are. So, absolutely, as it pertains to Altatudes, my objective is to have fashions that are on a higher style/design level. I want my customers to feel like queens (as she points to the crown on her wall)! đ&#x;‘‘ You attended Huston-Tillotson College (University) –discuss your degree program/emphasis and the impact of being an HBCU alum. I am a proud alum of HustonTilloston University – an HBCU right here is the heart of not only East Austin, but also Central Texas! Both my mother and my father attended HT. Attending an HBCU taught me a lot about myself. My appreciation for learning was taken to another level, and learning with more cultural awareness was inspiring while at HT. My experiences there enabled me to understand my history, more speciďŹ cally African American history, and allowed me to come into my own. A newly found sense of pride was born! How wonderful is it to know I have a business just around the corner from my alma mater?! What are speciďŹ c/favorite designers in Altatudes? WOW! That’s somewhat of a loaded question given I love all designers I’ve selected to feature in my boutique! These designers oer a bold yet sophisticated style and possess the unexpected – embellishments, embroidery, sparkles – some froufrou with any understated enrichment that adds a bit of drama without “doing too muchâ€?!
Who is your target audience? My target audience is the person who wants to look good, feel good and know they are living their true style. When they adorn apparel from Altatudes, they feel conďŹ dent and empowered and know they are ROCKIN’ it! The person who wants to go through their day, who wants to be comfortable and ďŹ erce at the same time – that’s an Altatudes customer! Speak on economic empowerment. What does that mean, and what does it look like? My interpretation of that deďŹ nition for myself and for my business is simply the opportunity to give back. If you’ve been blessed then it’s your duty to give back. I am looking forward to becoming completely acclaimed in my new business, so I can launch some of the opportunities as an empowered woman. I also plan to institute a “Hearts and Handbagâ€? initiative where women will give gently used or new handbags ďŹ lled with items and positive and empowered messages. Having a business in the heart of and being a part of historic East Austin is not only a point of pride, but also a point of responsibility. I feel that Altatudes stands for not only my dream, but also for what can be done in East Austin. My hope is to be a positive inuence on others aspiring to be a part of the economic engine to grow our city, more speciďŹ cally, my hope is to spur others to become empowered and to come, build, and support East Austin. What other information or “nuggetsâ€? would you like to share? I encourage ALL women to live their dreams! If I can do it, they can do it, too! Will it be scary? YES! Will it be hard? YES! Will it be worth it? YES! In the words of Nelson Mandela: “It always seems impossible until it’s done!â€? 1717 E. 12th St., Austin, TX 78702 altatudes.com 512.761.4292 alta@altatudes.com The full story will be posted to the Ujima website.
WONDERFUL WORLD OF FOOD AND DRINKS Yummy Cornbread Muffins
Festive Mocktails
They will go great with Chili!
Because not everyone wants to get their buzz on
These delicious cornbread muffins are slightly sweet, and the butter, sour cream, and honey make them wonderfully moist and rich. They’re awesome with chili, beans, or greens.
BLOOD ORANGE, ITALIAN SODAS are a must for any dinner party (your friends will be so impressed) or just for a quiet dinner at home.
WHAT YOU NEED: 1 cup all-purpose flour 3/4 cup cornmeal 1 3/4 teaspoons baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon baking soda 5 tablespoons butter (melted) 3 tablespoons sugar 2 large eggs 1/2 cup milk 1/2 cup sour cream 1 tablespoon honey DIRECTIONS 1. Heat the oven to 425° F (220° C/Gas 7). Grease muffin cups (10 to 12) or line with paper liners. 2. In a bowl, combine the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, salt, and baking soda. Stir to blend thoroughly. 3. In a mixing bowl, whisk together the melted butter and sugar. Whisk in eggs until well blended. Add the milk and sour cream, along with the honey; whisk to blend. 4. Stir in the dry mixture until well blended. 5. Scoop into the prepared muffin cups. 6. Bake for 14 to 16 minutes, until nicely browned. Courtesy of theSpruce.com
WHAT YOU NEED: Blood Orange Syrup 1 cup sugar 1 cup water The juice of 3 blood oranges 1 drop red gel food coloring (optional) Soda 1 large bottle sparkling water 1 cup coconut milk (unsweetened) Basil or Mint to garnish DIRECTIONS 1. In a medium-sized sauce pan, add the sugar and water and bring to a boil. 2. Remove from the heat and add the blood orange juice. 3. Stir together to combine. (If you want a darker red coloring, feel free to add some food colorant to help give it that deep red color). 4. In a glass, add about ½ cup perrier then about 2 tbs. of the syrup and ¼ cup coconut cream. 5. Garnish with mint or basil and serve immediately. Courtesy of theblondechef.com