A Traditional Iranian Breakfast

Good morning!

I mentioned yesterday that we went over to our friend Ali's home on Saturday morning for breakfast. Ali wanted to share a traditional homemade bread with us and show us how a good breakfast is done...Iranian style!

To be honest, I wasn't sure what to expect. I knew there was going to be bread, but that was about it. I was pleasantly surprised to find a delicious meal, and even more good friends- Navid and his wife Zhoobin!

By day (and sometimes night) Ali studies for his PhD in engineering from UCF. But when he has some time off Ali transforms into a master chef, cooking up some amazing meals! So far he has made us two other traditional meals and both were to die for!

Ali grew up in a family of women, and didn't learn how to cook until he moved to the US to study and had to fend for himself. I think it's done him well, and his mother and sisters would be shocked that he's such a professional!

This Iranian Barbari bread is made by hand. It is a wheat yeast bread and is sprinkled with sesame seeds for cooking. When you break off pieces to eat you can split the bread open (kind of like a thick pita) and fill it with goodies.

Traditionally, you fill it with Tabriz cheese... it's like a feta but much fresher tasting. (You can see the cheese above in the top left corner of the table.) Some other fillings were fresh butter, raspberry jam, and cream cheese. It was so tasty and I could have easily eaten a whole loaf.

Of course, no breakfast (or any meal for that matter) would be complete without cup after cup of Persian hot tea. It has become my favorite tea to drink and the spices warm and relax you as you sip. (I will have a Persian tea tutorial soon, just waiting to purchase one more bit of appliance to make it the real deal.)

From left to right: Navid, Zhoobin, Hannah, John, and Ali.

We had such a great time talking. We caught up on the last couple months of our lives, discussed languages and cultures and Iranian cuisine. Ali and Navid are both engineers (electrical and mechanical, respectively) and Zhoobin is an M.D. Many times I think John and I just sit there, trying out hardest to soak up their intelligence. It is always a delight to be in their presence and enjoy the mixing of our cultures.

There are many things I love in life, but nothing brings me more joy than sharing a meal with people so much different than myself, yet so much the same. Our governments tell us that we are enemies, that we should hate each other, and that we might one day be at war. But there we were, five people sitting in a room, sharing a meal, and laughing about the absurdity of it all with the knowledge that loving others and enjoying peace is as simple as pouring a cup of tea.

Question of the Day:

What's your favorite traditional breakfast from your travels?



10 Ways to Keep the Peace This Thanksgiving

                                                                        Source: treasurefield.tumblr.com via Beth on Pinterest

Here we are. On the eve of one of our favorite days of the year. A day full of travel from far and wide, delicious foods tempting our gluttony, and the inevitable volcano that erupts when locked in tight quarters with people you're supposed to love. And you do love them, you just can't live with them, right?

Well, you're in luck today! Because I'm here to share my 10 Ways to Keep the Peace. I hope they bring a smile to your face...and maybe even help you get through the holidays a bit smoother...

Tip #1- Embrace the art of avoidance. Sure, a trained professional would tell you that the quickest way to healing is to "get it all out in the open." These people clearly have not met your family...

Tip #2- Do not, I repeat, DO NOT discuss politics unless you are sure everyone sides with you.

Tip #3-  Keep some candy in your pockets. When those brats you call nephews start to terrorize you in your Lazy Boy candy will be the cure.

Tip#4-  Pass out little bites of turkey every hour or so. The triptopan will act as a sedative. A sedate family is a happy family.

Tip #5- Keep some jokes up your sleeve. When someone at the table lets loose a Freudian slip and the table has gone silent a quick joke will bring everyone back to speed (and effectively activate tip #1).

                                                                                            Source: ks-waiting.blogspot.com via Beth on Pinterest

Tip #6- Keep an open mind. So your brother brought the flavor of the week home to bum some turkey from your table? Instead of giving him a piece of your mind, take some time and get to know her.

Tip #7- Reminisce. When things get awkward, harkening back to the old days will bring everyone back to what matters and remind them that under it all, you're still family.

Tip #8- Alcohol.

Tip #9- Games. You can't get angry when you're having fun.

Tip #10-  In all seriousness...cherish the time you have. You never know if someone could be missing from the table next year. Your time together is valuable. So soak it all up and enjoy the good times and the crazy ones!

Question of the Day:

How do you handle the stress the holidays inevitably bring?

I Wish That I Knew What I Know Now

Last night, on my drive home I was doing some big thinking. I started to recall all the moments in my childhood, teenage years, and young adulthood where things when horribly wrong. I wanted to see how these mishaps made me a better person. Surely I didn't go through them without learning something valuable! By the time I got home I had a list of ten things that I've learned so far in life, either through the Lord softening my heart over time, or through trial and error, and oh how I wish I could return and tell the younger me each one of them!

First some pictures of a younger me...

15 years old. Freshman in high school. Complete idiot.

17 years old. Starting to learn more about the world.

19 years old. Self-obsessed. Turning point in becoming the me I am now...

24 years old finally figuring out how to walk through each day without making a mess of it.

10 Things I Wish I Knew Then
 
1. Proving your point to someone isn't worth ruining a friendship. If your argument will build a wall instead of a bridge, shut up and rethink how you want to explain yourself.

2. You never know what people are going through behind closed doors, so don't judge them too harshly.

3. Don't judge at all.

4. Be the first to say sorry. It will save you a world of trouble and is the key ingredient to a happy marriage. Along with the next point...

5. Forgiveness is a choice. We rarely feel it, but we have to decide to extend it to others, sometimes over and over and over and over and over again every single day until it does feel right.

6. Life is too short to hold on to friends that suck the life out of you.

7. Sex has little to do with the physical and everything to do with the spiritual.

8. We spend too much time getting angry over the things that don't matter and too little time being filled with a righteous anger for the things that really do matter- all the injustice in the world.

9. Confession wins 100% of the time. If you have wronged someone and they don't know it, or if you lied to someone point blank and just can't let go of the guilt, a humble confession and honest pleading for forgiveness will get you 1,000,000 times further in life and with people than living the lie.

10. Falling in love with the risk of heartache is better than the heartache of not doing so.

And one more for good measure:

11. When all else fails, ask your parents, they are right about almost everything...

Question of the Day:

What life lessons have you learned as you've gotten older?

Can I Get an Amen?

                                                                                         Source: stumbleupon.com via Hannah on Pinterest

Question of the Day:

Which ones did you relate to most?

Mine were #4, #8, and #17.