by Lola Jaye
Lastly…
No cupcakes were harmed during the writing of this book—they were eaten.
A+ Section
Recipes
Nan’s 888 Cake
It’s probably an understatement to say “I love cakes,” but I love cakes—and eating a piece of my nan’s cake, always reminds me of a huge part of my childhood. Fairy, rectangular, circular, iced, or plain; birthdays, weekends, or just … because. There’s always time for cake.
It’s also my belief that not much beats being handed over a sticky icing bowl, knowing a tummy ache is probably inevitable … but just not caring!
1 cup self-rising flour
1 cup margarine
1 cup caster sugar
½ teaspoon baking powder
4 eggs
2 tablespoons milk
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, mix together the above ingredients.
Line an 8-inch tin with margarine and greaseproof paper (finished with a bit of margarine on the top to smooth).
Pour the mixture into the tin and bake at 350 degrees for just over one hour (depending on the oven).
Butter Icing
½ cup margarine
¾ cup icing sugar
Mix well until light, fluffy, and delicious!
When the cake has cooled, split it in half.
Smooth the butter icing mixture onto the inside of each section (add a layer of jam if you like).
Smooth the remaining butter icing onto the roof of the cake. Leave to harden. Then you’re done!
(Serves: 1 to 8—depending on just how much you want to share!)
Mama’s Puff Puff
In Nigeria, when a new baby is forty days old, Puff Puff is handed out in celebration. During Christian wake keeping, it is also handed out to mourners, typically a day before the funeral.
To me, Puff Puff is simply delicious! A spongy, round doughnut that, with every bite, takes me back to being a nine-year-old, running around the yard as the aroma of frying Puff Puff filled my nostrils, knowing I would soon get the call to “Come and take!”
1 cup plain flour
2¼ teaspoons yeast
5 oz water
Sugar (to taste)
Pinch of salt
Cooking oil (for deep frying)
Using your fingertips, mix the above ingredients (minus the oil) in a bowl until soft and fluffy (this may take a while and a lot of strength!). Mix well and into a dropping consistency. Cover and keep someplace warm for at least four hours or overnight.
Heat oil in a frying pan—when hot (test by putting a drop of batter into the oil; the batter will rise to the top if hot enough) place dollops (or balls) of the mixture into the pan for a few minutes until golden brown. Carefully take out the balls with a spoon (please be careful, the oil is very hot) and place them on a paper towel to soak up the oil, then sprinkle with sugar if desired. Now, you’re all set!
Serve hot or cold.
(Serves: 1 to 2—depending on how hungry you are!)
Enjoy!
About the Author
LOLA JAYE was born and raised in London, England, where she still makes her home; she has also lived briefly in Nigeria. She has a degree in psychology and a master’s in psychotherapy and counseling. By the Time You Read This—Lola’s first U.S. novel—was published by HarperCollins in 2009. Her inspirational essay “Reaching for the Stars: How You Can Make Your Dreams Come True,” in which she charted her journey from foster child to author, was also released in 2009 as part of the U.K.’s wildly popular Quick Reads program.
Lola has also written for the Huffington Post and Marie Claire, and her novels have been published in various languages, including Korean, German, and Serbian.
Find out more about Lola and what she’s been up to by visiting her website and blog: www.lolajaye.com, Twitter, and Facebook.
Visit www.AuthorTracker.com for exclusive information on your favorite HarperCollins authors.
Books by Lola Jaye
BEING LARA
A Novel
ISBN 978-0-06-206934-4
(paperback)
* * *
Lara has never been comfortable with being adopted, but when a woman claiming to be her mother shows up at her thirtieth birthday party, she must face her biggest fears. Torn in too many directions, desperate to just hunker down and hide, she has no choice but to grow. And as the lives of her mothers are revealed, she finally understands what it means to be Lara.
* * *
BY THE TIME YOU READ THIS
A Novel
ISBN 978-0-06-173383-3
(paperback)
* * *
When he discovered he only had six months to live, thirty-year-old Kevin Bates wrote The Manual—advice to guide his then five-year-old daughter, Lois, with entries to be read on her successive birthdays from twelve to thirty. While The Manual can never be a substitute for having her father, it becomes the cure for all of Lois’s ups and downs and the secret to remembering what really matters most.
* * *
Visit www.AuthorTracker.com for exclusive information on your favorite HarperCollins authors.
* * *
Available wherever books are sold, or call 1-800-331-3761 to order.
Credits
Cover design by Mary Schuck
Cover photograph © by Jose Luis Pelaez, Inc./Getty Images
Copyright
This book is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents, and dialogue are drawn from the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
BEING LARA. Copyright © 2012 by Lola Jaye. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.
FIRST EDITION
ISBN 978-0-06-206934-4
EPub Edition © APRIL 2012 ISBN: 9780062069351
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