It's possible to trade profitably on the Forex, the nearly $2 trillion worldwide currency exchange market. But the odds are against you, even more so if you don't prepare and plan your trades. According to a 2014 Bloomberg report, several analyses of retail Forex trading, including one by the National Futures Association (NFA), the industry's regulatory body, concluded that more than two out of three Forex traders lose money.
This suggests that self-education and caution are recommended. Here are some approaches that may improve your odds of taking a profit.
Prepare Before You Begin Trading
Because the Forex market is highly leveraged -- as much as 50 to 1 -- it can have the same appeal as buying a lottery ticket: some small chance of making a killing. This, however, isn't trading; it's gambling, with the odds long against you.
A better way of entering the Forex market is to carefully prepare. Beginning with a practice account is helpful and risk-free. While you're trading in your practice account, read the most frequently recommended Forex trading books, among them
Currency Forecasting: A Guide to Fundamental and Technical Models of Exchange Rate Determination, by Michael R. Rosenberg is short, not too sweet and highly admired introduction to the Forex market.
Forex Strategies: Best Forex Strategies for High Profits and Reduced Risk, by Matthew Maybury is an excellent introduction to Forex trading.
The Little Book of Currency Trading: How to Make Big Profits in the World of Forex, by Kathy Lien is another concise introduction that has stood the test of time.
All three are available on Amazon. Rosenberg's book, unfortunately, is pricey, but it's widely available in public libraries. "Trading in the Zone: Master the Market with Confidence, Discipline and a Winning Attitude," by Mark Douglas is another good book that's available on Amazon, and, again, somewhat pricey, although the Kindle edition is not.
Use the information gained from your reading to plan your trades before plunging in. The more you change your plan, the more you end up in trouble and the less likely that elusive forex profit will end up in your pocket.
Diversify and Limit Your Risks
Two strategies that belong in every trader's arsenal are:
Diversification: Traders who execute many small traders, particularly in different markets where the correlation between markets is low, have a better chance of making a profit. Putting all your money in one big trade is always a bad idea.
Familiarize yourself with ways guaranteeing a profit on an already profitable order, such as a trailing stop, and of limiting losses using stop and limit orders. These strategies and more are covered in the recommended books. Novice traders often make the mistake of concentrating on how to win; it's even more important to understand how to limit your losses.
Be Patient
Forex traders, particularly beginners, are prone to getting nervous if a trade does not go their way immediately, or if the trade goes into a little profit they get itchy to pull the plug and walk away with a small profit that could have been a significant profit with little downside risk using appropriate risk reduction strategies.
In "On Any Given Sunday," Al Pacino reminds us that "football is a game of inches." That's a winning attitude in the Forex market as well. Remember that you are going to win some trades and lose others. Take satisfaction in the accumulation of a few more wins than losses. Over time, that could make you rich!
Mexican Chocolate Cake
Now that the school year has started, we have a new weekly schedule in place. Graham is in first grade so, obviously, he is in school five days a week. Spencer goes to preschool four days a week and spends Wednesdays with me. As much as I try to keep those days fun and Spencer-centered, they are often days full of errands. He is a great sport and happily accompanies me as I drive around town getting the necessary ingredients for cooking classes or catering jobs. I like to make sure those trips aren’t pure drudgery for him so there is often some kind of treat incentive.
To make things simpler, I’m giving you the cake as originally written, for a 12-cup bundt pan. (This is the standard size for a bundt pan in the US.) You can play around with what pans you want or if you just want to make all cupcakes. A site I find very useful when trying to figure out what pans to use is Joy of Baking. You can look up your pan size, find out how many cups it holds by volume, and then reconfigure. Sound complicated? It’s actually really easy.
INGTEDIENTS:
- For cake
- 2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter
- ½ cup Dutch-process unsweetened cocoa powder
- ¾ cup water
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- ½ cup well-shaken buttermilk
- 2 tablespoons vanilla
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- For glaze
- 2 cups chopped pecans (7½ ounces)
- ½ stick (¼ cup) unsalted butter
- ½ cup half-and-half
- ½ cup confectioners sugar
- 5 ounces fine-quality bittersweet chocolate (not unsweetened), finely chopped
- ¼ teaspoon salt
INTRUCTIONS :
- Make cake:
- Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 350°F. Butter cake pan well and dust with flour, knocking out excess.
- Melt butter (2 sticks) in a 3-quart heavy saucepan over moderately low heat, then whisk in cocoa. Add water and whisk until smooth, then remove from heat. Whisk in separately sugar, eggs, buttermilk, and vanilla.
- Sift together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt into a bowl, then sift again into cocoa mixture and whisk until just combined (don’t worry if there are lumps).
- Pour batter into cake pan and bake until a wooden pick or skewer comes out with a few crumbs adhering, 45 to 55 minutes. (Leave oven on.)
- Cool cake in pan on a rack 20 minutes, then loosen edges with a thin knife and invert onto a plate.
- Make glaze:
- Spread pecans in 1 layer in a shallow baking pan (1 inch deep) and bake until fragrant and a shade darker, 6 to 8 minutes. Cool pecans slightly in pan on a rack, about 5 minutes.
- Melt butter in a 2-quart heavy saucepan over low heat, then stir in half-and-half and confectioners sugar. Add chocolate and cook, stirring, until smooth. Remove from heat and stir in pecans and salt. Cool glaze until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes.
- Spoon glaze over top and sides of cake (cake will still be warm) and spread with a small offset spatula or knife to cover completely.
- (Cake (with glaze) can be made 2 days ahead and kept at room temperature in a cake keeper or covered with an inverted bowl.)
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