The Most Delicious Pumpkin Bread Review

On the weekend we wanted to make a tasty treat. I was looking for healthy recipes on the internet, and found The Food Network cooking website. It is a great site for whomever likes spending time in the kitchen cooking. They have very easy instructions; they have simple recipes written by professional chefs, excellent photos of dishes, and recipe preparation videos.

I tried to prepare some dishes from their recipes, and they came out very tasty. The last one was pumpkin bread. It had high ratings from people, who had prepared this bread, and I decided to write about their experiences; and now I am preparing my review of this recipe.  It was not a hard recipe, only what I changed, I added brown sugar, instead white, and put walnuts, not pumpkin seeds. A lot of people, who tried this recipe, did not suggest using the pumpkin seeds, and they suggested using a fresh pumpkin, not from a can, because it has more water.  I also used a  cake pan, instead of a glass pyrex, because it comes out prettier.

The secret is to prepare the mixture correctly as stated in the recipe, you need to mix dry ingredients and wet ingredients separately, and then add it all together. Once it was baked, it was very delicious bread! It has a nice golden-brown color on the outside, and moist and delicious inside, with pumpkin and cinnamon flavoring. Also, people could modify the recipe by adding their own ingredients, like adding raisins, or cranberries to the mixture.

This is very yummy, and if you want, you can make it for your Thanksgiving Day family get together.  It will be a great hit with your guests.

My opinion about FFN...

I found The Fast Food Nation a very interesting book. It affected me very deeply, I felt the author, Eric Schlosser, did very good research and presented it to the reader very effectively. It was very shocking to me, reading chapter after chapter, what really went on with these fast food industries here. I was really upset, especially reading chapters eight and nine, which showed how these companies treat their employees, and how they really do not care about what happens to their workers, in the slaughterhouses. I was frustrated reading how unskilled workers have been placed in the meat processing departments, and how  E.coli and Salmonella was being found on the meat, really made me sick. . It was really disgusting to read how they fed the animals, what was contained in the meat, and realizing, that the meat will then be eaten by the consumers.

Also we learned how fast food is unhealthy, and eating it frequently will make people obese and cause serious diseases.

I haven’t had much experience with fast food in my country, but after I came here, I have tried fast food, and haven’t any desire to eat it. After reading this book, I immediately changed my interest in fast food, and the consumption of meat also! Humorously, my family and I have learned to graze on grains and vegetables. We have completely changed the way we eat.  This book not only affected me in making a serious change in my eating habits, but also my entire family.  We have eliminated meat from our diet, and have decided to stick with fruits, grains and vegetables.  But we are still all refusing to give up the cheese!

This semester in college...

On the blog which is true, my true statement was: My dog loves cats. We have a dog, her name is Jassie, and her best friend is cat named Natty. Every morning Jassie runs and greets Natty goodmorning, and licks her ears and her face, until she finally drives Natty so crazy that Natty chases Jassie around the yard. It is truly hilarious to watch. Who says cats and dogs can’t be friends.

This semester in college

It’s my second semester taking my classes in college. Speaking the truth, starting this semester was hard for me, especially with this English class. The first time I saw the assignments we needed to do online and in class, and how much reading and writing we needed to do, I was confused! In the beginning, I spent about 8-10 hours a day doing my assignments. It was hard, because it was hard to translate from my language to English, sometimes it worked, and sometimes it didn’t make sense. The meaning got lost in translation. It seemed like I would never finish this, but what could I do…I said to myself, I’m not the first or the last, everybody is going through this.

By the way, I am fine now, a little nervous about finishing the research papers, and the other essays. I chose this hard class, and it is challenging and pushing me to do my work better, and I am trying. I stay motivated because I have a very clear goal in my heart to achieve success, each time I feel like I will lose it, I think of the outcome of reaching my goal for myself and my family, and know that I will.. It was very hard for me to come back to school the second time, as all my professional licenses of 12 years of education, could not be converted to American medical licenses. We sometimes get pushed to square one to start all over again, but at least we can imagine we are still moving forward. Regardless of the set backs, you need to be sure of what you want, and to push yourself to get it.

Which is true?

1. I drink coffee before bed time, it really helps me sleep.

2. My dog loves cats.

3. Meryl Streep is my third cousin.

4. I have won large amounts of money in a lottery before.

5. My first job was a fortune teller.

6. I took my English class to improve my blog writing skills.

"Visions" by Armenchik - Nokia Concert 2009 Music (Video)

Should marijuana laws be relaxed?

In current times, marijuana law debates remain open. Many people today, especially young people, like to live in freedom and do whatever they want. For entertainment, they like using marijuana in the form of joints, or mixed in brownies, to experience a psychological reaction causing sedative and analgetic effects, known as a “High”. However, marijuana is a drug, and using it is illegal in the USA. This drug is bad for you, and has many negative effects on the body and brain, because it can cause such things as loss of memory, schizophrenia, paranoia, anxiety and breathing problems, and other such serious illnesses. On the other hand, marijuana has many therapeutic uses also, and has successfully been used for easing symptoms for patients with glaucoma, AIDS, cancer, multiple sclerosis, and patients with other chronic diseases or terminal conditions. Although each side presented good points on the Pros/Cons of their arguments for and against relaxing marijuana laws, I personally agree with the Con portion written by Robert L, Dupont, M.D. President of the Institute for Behavioral Health. As a doctor, I see his medical views very well. I know the medical complications that marijuana causes, not only to the physical body, but also the environment of the users, such as the negative effects it has on the families, or even worse on fetus of pregnant women, who are either users, or their partners are users, impacts the growth and development of the fetus. Also some babies may be born with dependency on marijuana, and have future learning disabilities which will impact them for the rest of their lives. It’s a personal choice for each individual, if they believe the consequences are worth it.

Armenian Family

Making a family is the most important thing in most cultures. Families can be big or small, young or old. Around the world the families can eat, dress and work differently, but all are united to take responsibility to care for their kin. Armenian families are not an exception. An average traditional Armenian house is composed of, a man and a woman. The man assumes leadership and major responsibilities, and is known to be the sole decision maker. The woman’s responsibility is assumed as the cook, housekeeper, dutiful wife, and mother who raise the children. These responsibilities are reserved for females, even though they may work outside the home.
The kitchen is the "territory" of the Armenian women and one dares cross the boundary, and especially not during cooking. When the man comes home from work, the dinner must be at the table. The Armenian man is an excellent food critic, so he thinks. They are very critical, as the food never measures up to that of their mothers, but in their eyes, they are offering constructive criticism. One thing that saves the Armenian woman from food preparation errors is that the recipes are "full proof", as they have been handed down generations after generations, from grandmothers and great, great grandmothers and on.
One of the delights in a day of the Armenian woman is Armenian coffee, otherwise known as Turkish coffee. It is a daily ritual for them; they may drink it several times a day. After drinking, it is traditional to put the plate on top of the cup; they agitate the cup a couple of times and make a wish, then turn the cup upside down onto the plate. This ritual has been taught to the family members from grandparents, who would then read the coffee grinds, which they believed told their fortunes. Younger Armenian girls look forward to this portion of the coffee drinking, as they are very interested to know when their Prince Charming will show up. The older women on the other hand, are very interested to know when the money will show up. These moments always leave room for lots of humor.
In Armenian families, it is a standard to have children. Average 2 or 3 children are in the home. Children are the center of attention, and are traditionally raised by their mothers, but grandmothers and aunts also help raise the children. When the first child is born, it is often named after either the maternal or paternal grandparents.
Armenian families are known to be very strongly united. The word "divorce" is not one that is appreciated or respected, as the mentality is to be married for life. I remember when I was married; my father said to me,” In our family we don’t know the word "divorce", if you choose your husband once, it is forever". It was a good advice from my father to me.
In our culture we have a big respect for man’s elderly parents’ .However they live together with parents and take care of them and their health.
Also Armenians like invited guests for an evening dinner, or call to invite themselves for coffee to spend together time.
For me family is big support, because you can to rely in a difficult situation, and you know they can help in a different time.