General Weekly Features

IV. General Weekly Features

Health Tip: The Six Different Types of Sugar & What's the Healthiest

by BistroMD

The word "sugar" is loosely thrown around in this general, sugar-loving society. But simply suggesting sugar is much more complex than averagely realized. So what are the different forms of sugar and is there such thing as a "healthy sugar?" BistroMD is sifting through six types of sugar!

Types of Sugar

1. Granulated sugar

Granulated sugar is the sugar you more than likely recognize as the common "white" or "table" sugar. further known as the "everyday" sugar, granulated sugar is vastly used in commercial products and recipes. it is almost completely sucrose, a natural sugar occurring in sugar cane, and processed down to a salt-like texture.

2. Caster sugar

Similar to granulated sugar, caster sugar shares the same composition yet with a much finer texture. being small in size, caster sugar dissolve quickly, making it best for baking into dessert products.

3. Confectioners' sugar

Also known as powdered sugar or icing sugar, confectioners' sugar is an extremely fine sugar. among all sugars, it is the finest and smallest in size. confectioners' sugar is easily dissolved into toppings (such as icing, hence "icing sugar") and fillings. the finely ground sugar is typically mixed with cornstarch to prevent clumping when stored.

4. Brown sugar

Brown sugar is essentially white sugar with molasses, a sugar by-product that has been boiled down into a thick, dark syrup. though it comes in both refined and unrefined forms, both display the properties the molasses provides – a moist texture and rich taste. brown sugar is mostly used in conjunction with granulated sugar in standard baking recipes such as chocolate chip cookies.

5. Cane sugar

The identification of cane sugar is suggestive to its origin, sucrose extracted from sugarcane. sugarcane is a tropical plant naturally containing a highly-concentrated, sweet substance. though reasonably similar to granulated sugar, many desire the sweetness of cane sugar over common table sugar.

6. Fruit sugar

While less commonly used in the food supply, fruit sugar (also known as fructose) resembles common table sugar. naturally-occurring fructose originates in fruits but more commonly, the natural fructose is chemically combined with glucose to form sucrose or high fructose corn syrup (hfcs), where most of the concern of fructose stems from. while fruits are known to be rich in nutrients and fiber, hfcs intake continues to rise and fill products such as soft drinks.

What Is the Healthiest Sugar?

Considering the overwhelming intake of sugar the general American population consumes, tying the word "healthy" to "sugar" is not a simple task. So when it comes down to deciphering the healthiest sugar, the typical consensus is this: Sugar is sugar. Despite differences in flavor, appearance, and texture, one teaspoon of any sugar generally offers 16 calories. For that reason, all sugars should be consumed in moderation – the American Heart Association recommends no more than nine teaspoons (or 36 grams) of added sugars for men each day while women should not exceed six teaspoons (or 25 grams). And with the average American consuming almost 20 grams of sugar each day and the consequences that may follow with high intake, the concept of sugar control is stressed now more than ever!

Recipe: Fish Manchurian Dry Style

by Sherly Aji

Ingredients

1) Fish pieces cubed (I used king fish) - 500 gm s.
2) Big Onion-3-4 nos.
3) Spring onions chopped - 4 tbsp
4) Green chilli diagonally sliced- 4 nos.
5) Capsicum chopped - 1 no.
6) Ginger minced - 1" piece.
7) Garlic cloves chopped - 6 nos.
8) Dark soya sauce - 4-5 tsp.
9) Red chili powder - ½ table spoon.
10) Vinegar - 1 table spoon
11) Pepper powder - 1/4 tsp
12) Lime juice - 1 table spoon
13) Salt - 1 tsp
14) Oil - 3 tbsp
15) Egg - 1 ( Beaten)
16) Bread crumbs - As required

Directions:

Marinate the cleaned fish with little salt, pepper powder, 1 teaspoon soya sauce and lime juice and keep aside.

Beat the egg and keep aside

Combine chilly power with vinegar and keep aside.

Dip the fish pieces in the beaten egg and roll it over with bread crumbs

Heat oil in a pan and deep fry the fish pieces till slight golden brown, and drain the fried fish pieces on paper towel.

Prepare Sauce: Heat 3 tbsp. of oil in a pan when hot, add chopped ginger, garlic and sauté for few seconds then add diced onion for a mint, then add chilly paste for few more seconds.

Add soya sauce, lower the heat and add fish pieces.

Then stir fry until the fish pieces are coated well with onion mixture, finally increase the heat and add chopped capsicum and spring onion stir for few more seconds and remove from fire.

Serve hot with fried rice or your choice of food.

Source: ammachiyude-adukkala

It's Possible . . . Not Easy!

by Stephen Davey

I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.
- Philippians 4:13

God's will is not always easy but it is always possible. For with God all things are possible. Rest in the fact that God will never command you to do something you can't accomplish. He will never direct your steps without providing the strength to walk the path.

Jack Handey wrote in his book entitled Fuzzy Memories:

There used to be this bully who would demand my lunch money every day at school. Since I was smaller than he was, I would give it to him. Then I decided to fight back. I started taking karate lessons. But then the karate instructor told me I owed him five dollars a lesson. Five dollars! So I just went back to paying the bully.
Truth be told, it's sometimes easier to pay the bully than it is to learn how to defeat him. However, God never commands you to live for His glory without helping you to overcome the obstacles you will face. Whether it is loving your spouse, witnessing to friends and family, or remaining pure on a college campus, Christ will enable you if you obey Him. Paul did not say, "I can do most things through Christ," but "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."

While you're at it, stay alert to the fact that opposition usually means opportunity is close at hand. In fact, there is rarely opportunity without opposition, so you must be prepared for both opportunities and obstacles at the same time.

Paul intends to encourage us as we follow the leadership of Christ, which in real terms means never throw in the towel. He challenged the Corinthians and every Christian to be "steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord." What a great promise--your toil is not in vain.

Endurance that demands blood, sweat, and tears, will be rewarded one day. So get ready for today's obstacle course and run it with patient diligence. The hurdles may be high, the track may be uneven, the distance may be great, but it's possible . . . not easy!

Prayer Point:

Ask the Lord to help you to discern opportunities masked by obstacles. Ask Him to give you the ability to see possible advancements in your character development that are presently cloaked in those difficult obstacles.

Source: A Wisdom Retreat

Finding Strength in Weakness

by Rev. Alex Stevenson

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 12:1-10

We all like to think we are strong. As Americans we take pride in the belief that the U.S.A. is the strongest nation in the world. We have the most stable government. We have the best laws for protecting individual rights. Our industrial base, despite decline, is still more powerful. And our armed forces are mightier than any Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines on the face of the earth.

But pride in strength is not just a national inclination. As individuals we all like to think that we are strong. One person takes pride in the tone of their muscles. Another boasts of the economic power which they have. And those who lack strength in other areas fancy themselves as possessors of inner strength. There are even those who boast of spiritual strength.

Because we take pride in our strength, we boast about it. We boast of our nation's power. We boast of our own personal strength. We boast of the strength of our faith.

We all like to think that we are strong, but in reality we are weak. It is part of who we are as humans. We were made from dust and we are nothing but dust. A stiff wind could blow us away. The smallest microbe or bacteria can kill us. And we are sustained in a fragile environment which we need to continue to exist. Here on Earth the climate and the pressure and elements in the air are carefully balanced to sustain us. In most other places in the universe we would die instantly.

Despite that reality, we continue to think we are strong. The illusion that we are strong is a psychological defense mechanism. Maybe if we convince ourselves and others that we are strong we don't have to face the truth. The truth being that in things that count, we are really helpless.

Perhaps our boasting is the best evidence for arguing that we are truly weak. If we were strong we would have no reason for boasting. It is because we are weak that we feel a need to convince others and ourselves that we are strong. We are weak and in need of help. But instead of asking for help we boast of a greatness we do not possess. So we receive no help, because we ask for none.

Paul the apostle knew that he was weak. He had a thorn in his flesh that constantly reminded him of it. Because of that thorn he knew that he was a mere mortal. Even though he endured great persecution, his ailment always reminded him that his life was held together by a very thin thread. Paul even says that he had prayed to God to take that pain from him. But God left it there to remind him of his mortality.

Paul knew he was weak and that all humanity was just as mortal as he was. But Paul also knew something even more important. He knew that God helps the weak. That is the kind of God, the Almighty is. God cares for those who are in need. This is because God loves. And that love impels God to help the weak. After all it is the weak who ask for and accept God's help.

This led Paul to make some rather odd statements. It led him to boast of his weakness instead of his strength. He knew that it was because of his weakness that God worked in him. His weakness was the basis of God's aid. He said, "I gladly boast of my own weakness that the power of Christ might rest on me." He also said that God's power is made perfect in weakness. How can weakness perfect God's power? It is only when we acknowledge our weakness that God's power can work through us. Only when we say, "Lord, I am weak and need you," can God help us. That is when we are ready to accept God's help.

As the Apostle Paul said, "Our strength doesn't conquer the world, our weakness does." We like to think we are strong. But in truth we are weak. If we persist in the fantasy or illusion that we are strong, we will not accomplish much. We will work and work, and get nowhere because we are too weak. But if we admit our weakness, then God can work in us, and the power of Christ will rest on us.

Paul was as great as humans get. He endured much for Christ. He was shipwrecked, imprisoned, threatened by mobs. He faced death over and over for Christ. Through it all he brought the Gospel of Jesus Christ to many. Despite his greatness he didn't boast of these things. He boasted only of Christ and his own weakness.

With this in mind maybe we should be careful about how we boast. Not just about ourselves but about our nation too. Instead of saying "look what I have done," we should say "I am incapable of doing anything. Look what Christ has done." After all it was Christ's weakest moment, the moment of his death, which conquered sin. As Christians we should take on his weakness. Otherwise we are pretending to be better than him.

Source: lectionarysermons.0catch.com

The Seven Major Negative Emotions (To Be Avoided)

by Napoleon Hill

The emotion of FEAR
The emotion of JEALOUSY
The emotion of HATRED
The emotion of REVENGE
The emotion of GREED
The emotion of SUPERSTITION
The emotion of ANGER

Positive and negative emotions cannot occupy the mind at the same time. One or the other must dominate. It is your responsibility to make sure that positive emotions constitute the dominating influence of your mind. Here the law of HABIT will come to your aid. Form the habit of applying and using the positive emotions! Eventually, they will dominate your mind so completely, that the negatives cannot enter it.

Source: Think and Grow Rich. The Ralston Society. 1937. Pgs. 297 and 298.