TopYaps

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• Top 10 Mouth Watering Italian Dishes
• Top 10 Greatest Military Leaders of the 20th Century
• Top 10 Card Games You Can Play to Escape Boredom

Top 10 Mouth Watering Italian Dishes Posted: 23 Jul 2013 04:10 AM PDT When it comes to Italian cuisine, Pizza and Pasta are the two delicacies that leave our mouth watering. However, there is much more to Italian food than these two dishes. Italian food has mesmerized everyone around the globe. Everyone seems to have been besotted with the kind of variety Italian food offers. Restaurants serving Italian food are located at every nook and corner of the world. Pastas, Pizzas, tortellini and all the common Italian dishes that are just one phone call away. However, true taste of Italian food only comes from experienced Italian hands giving it an authentic touch. It doesn’t matter if you are a vegetarian, non-vegetarian or vegan; there is an Italian dish for all kind of palates. Let's have a look at some of the tastiest Italian dishes and see if you’ve tried them before or not. Given below is a list of top-10 mouth watering Italian dishes that would make you forget everything else: 10. Parma Ham: Locally referred to as Prosciutto! This is the Italian name for the famous Parma Ham, which is usually served as an appetizer. It is thin-sliced and is served uncooked. This style is known as prosciutto crudo in Italian. It can be eaten in many differently during the different seasons of the year. For instance, one can wrap it around bread sticks during the summers, and eat it with honeydews and lemons in winters. 9. Gelato: Gelato is a famous Ice-cream of Italy. People are often seen wondering why Gelato is such a big deal in Italy. This is because of the way it is prepared. Seldom can outsiders replicate the original Italian Gelato. When you taste authentic Gelato, you know it is nothing like the ordinary ice cream, but something truly spectacular for your taste buds. 8. Ravioli: Ravioli are noodles, but not as common as the name. These are small pocket noodles stuffed with the right kind of Italian ingredients. The different ingredients give the noodles a special taste which truly belongs to the Italian culture. Ravioli is available in different flavors, depending upon the ingredients used. 7. Risotto: Risotto is a delicious rice dish that can be flavored in a hundred different ways. It comprises of rice cooked in meat and cream based broth and is then flavored with Parmesan cheese, butter and onion. Alla romana and alla Milanese are the two common varieties of Risotto. 6. Minestrone: Minestrone is a vegetable soup that leaves behind all the other appetizers in the world. The thick soup is made with vegetables, rice, beans, potatoes and pasta.  It can also be flavored with carrots, onions, celery and tomatoes. People who like eating a soupy pasty will surely love the taste and texture of the minestrone. 5. Scaoppine di Vitello: This is breaded veal scallops deep fried in olive oil. The scallops can be flavored with a variety of ingredients, depending upon the flavor you would like to have. It can have thousands of interpretations with capers, marsala, leafy vegetables etc. 4. Chicken Parmesan: The Chicken Parmesan is commonly known as sub sandwich in United States. The deep fried and breaded dish has also got a great deal of attention all over the world. For Italians it is a classic dish of all times. 3. Lasagna: Lasagna is accumulation of ingredients that reflect the taste of a person making it. The basic dish includes plenty of ricotta, sausage, parmesan cheese, beef and mozrella cheese. This is a very old Italian dish, the best Lasagnas are home made. Italy is the only place where this dish can be prepared with its true essence. Nowhere else in the world you can taste Lasagna as good as in Italy. 2. Pasta Primavera: This is the well-known Italian spring time dish, which is purely vegetarian. Primavera is made of a special mix of different vegetables, pasta and variety of sauces. This is known to be the tastiest form of Pasta by far in Italy. 1. Spaghetti with tomato sauce: Spaghetti is the oldest and one of the most inexpensive dishes in Italy. Being the oldest, people have tried to make it in various forms using ingredients like mushroom balls, broccoli, ground beef, meatballs and sausages. Though it tastes delicious with any sauce, the most popular remains the tomato sauce, which adds a scrumptious flavor to the dish. The post Top 10 Mouth Watering Italian Dishes appeared first on TopYaps.

Top 10 Greatest Military Leaders of the 20th Century Posted: 23 Jul 2013 04:08 AM PDT The 20th century saw two world wars which changed the world forever. Apart form the two great wars many other wars have also been fought in the 20th century. With the technological improvements of weapons and tactical changes to warfare, the battlefield has changed a lot over the last 100 years. We’ve seen a lot of great military leaders during this time, so many that it is really hard to pick the top ten among them. Here’s just another attempt to present my personal list of the greatest military leaders of the last century. Here are the top 10 greatest military leaders of the 20th century. 10. Ahmad Shah Massoud: Ahmad Shah Massoud, also known as “The Lion of Panjshir”, was an Afghan freedom fighter and a great military leader during the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan between 1979 and 1989 and during the civil war that followed. He was an engineer from Kabul University where he got involved in the anti communist movement. When the Soviets attacked he was one of the hundreds of local guerrilla leaders who resisted the Red Army. He was one of the best leaders in Afghanistan and defended his territory in northern Afghanistan against all other factions. He kept trying to unite the several factions of Afghanistan under one united government but failed when the Pakistan backed Taliban came to power. In 2001, two days before the twin towers attack, Ahmad Shah Massoud was assassinated by Al Qaeda suicide bombers. 9. Chester W. Nimitz: Chester W. Nimitz was the Fleet Admiral of the United States Navy and during World War 2 he held the dual command of Commander in Chief, United States Pacific Fleet for the United States Navy and Commander in Chief, Pacific Ocean Areas for U.S. and Allied air, land and sea forces. He took over the command after the Pearl Harbor attacks by the Japanese and his tactical strategy which he stuck to diligently proved that his campaign was one of the most successful campaigns of World War Two and helped in defeating Japan. 8. Sam Manekshaw: Sam Manekshaw was known as “Sam Bahadur” which literally translates to “Sam the brave”. He was the first Indian Army officer to be promoted to the rank of Field Marshal. His career started in the British Indian Army during World War Two. He became the 8th Chief of Staff of the Indian Army and led the victorious campaign during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 that resulted in the independence of Bangladesh. 7. Bernard Montgomery: Field Marshal Bernard Law Montgomery, 1st Viscount Montgomery of Alamein, was one of the most interesting characters of World War Two. He started his military career in First World War but gained fame in World War Two when he commanded the 8th army in the Western Desert Campaign and defeated the German Erwin Rommel in the Battle of El Alamein. He planned the D-Day invasion of Normandy. After the war he became Commander in Chief of the British Army of the Rhine and then Chief of the Imperial General Staff. He was notorious among fellow officers for his pomposity and disregard for other officers but also beloved to the troops who fought under him for his genuinely emphatic concern for their welfare. 6. Dwight D. Eisenhower: Dwight D. Eisenhower was a five star General in the United States Army before going on to become the 34th President of the United States. During World War 2 Eisenhower served as the Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces. He planned the invasion of Africa in Operation Torch and later the invasion of France and Germany. He was also the first Supreme Commander of NATO. He was a great strategist with a lot of political tact and administrative flair that made him the best candidate to lead the vast western military coalition during World War Two. 5. Erich Von Manstein: Erich Von Manstein was the most prominent commander of the Germany’s Nazi forces of World War Two. He became the Field Marshal and was considered to be a great military strategist. He was born into a family that had a great history of military service and began his service in the First World War. He was Chief of Staff to Gerd Von Rundstedt’s Army Group South during the invasion of Poland. He planned the invasion of France and was active in the invasion of the Soviet Union. 4. Vo Nguyen Giap: Vo Nguyen Giap is a retired General of the Vietnam’s People’s Army and a politician. During World War Two Giap took up arms with Vietnamese communist leader Ho Chi Minh and led the guerrilla arm against both French and Japanese occupation. Later during the Vietnam War against USA, Giap fought the world’s greatest superpower in a conventional war while also supporting the guerrilla Vietcong. After about 40 years of armed struggle, in 1975, the Indochina peninsula became one nation because of the military genius of Gen. Giap. 3. Erwin Rommel: Erwin Rommel was popularly known as The Desert Fox because of his success as the leader of the German and Italian Forces during the North African campaign. He is considered one of most able commanders of World War 2. He won immense respect from the troops who fought under him and from his enemies for being a humane and professional officer. During his campaigns none of his army ever did anything that could be called a war crime. He ignored the orders to kill Jewish soldiers and civilians and this didn’t sit well with Hitler. Rommel was also linked to the conspiracy to assassinate Hitler. Hitler didn’t want to prosecute him openly because of his stature as a national hero so he is said to have given Rommel a cyanide pill to commit suicide along with the promise to not persecute his family after his death. 2. George S. Patton: If the British had Montgomery, the Americans had George S. Patton. He was a great military commander that was respected by his own troops and feared by his enemies. He was also notorious in the media for his flamboyant remarks. He led the Seventh United States Army during the North African Campaign in World War Two and later the Third United States Army in the European Theater. He was a leading expert in tank warfare and known for his high speed attacks. He died in an automobile accident in Europe in 1945. 1. Georgy Zhukov: Gregory Zhukov was feared as much by his enemies as by his own troops. He was a Soviet Commander of the Red Army who played a major role in defeating the Axis powers and ending their occupation of the Soviet Union. He ultimately ended up conquering Berlin, the capital of Germany at the end of the war. He was a great tactician and a ruthless commander. He is the most decorated officer in the history of Soviet Union and is respected as the most able commander in terms of the numbers and scale of his victories. Montgomery and Eisenhower, among other generals have been known to acknowledge Zhukov’s brilliance. His combat achievements have changed the world’s military theory. The post Top 10 Greatest Military Leaders of the 20th Century appeared first on TopYaps.

Top 10 Card Games You Can Play to Escape Boredom Posted: 23 Jul 2013 01:49 AM PDT When you’re getting bored, card games can be a great way of passing time. You can play cards whether you are with a couple of people or with a whole bunch of people. You can even play some games on your own. Card games are also a great way to spend time with your children and teach them important lessons of life. And of course there are those gambling games that get your adrenalin flowing. There’s a card game for every kind of man, woman and child. Here are top 10 card games you can play to escape boredom. 10. Solitaire: Solitaire is for those lonely people out there. You only need one person to play solitaire; yourself. Technically solitaire refers to any tabletop game that can be played by one person. In the UK the card version of this game is known as Patience. Solitaire on your Windows OS is the most popular solitaire game. The game is simple where cards are placed in a particular layout and you have to sort them into individual suits. 9. Go Fish: Go fish is a classic card game to play with kids. The dealer deals 5 or 7 cards to the players and places the rest of the cards facedown in the center. The player with the turn chooses another player and asks them, “do you have any X”. They have to have the card they are asking for and if the player they are asking has any of the same cards they have to give all of them up. If they don’t have the cards being asked for they say, “go fish” and the first player has to pick up a card from the center. When you complete the set of four cards you can keep them aside. The player to finish all their cards before everyone else wins. You can play this game with two or more people. 8. Memory: Memory is a great card came to play with kids or even on your own if you are feeling bored. It also improves the memory of the children. The game is played by placing all the cards face down in a grid. Each player gets to turn any two cards at a time. If they match they can keep those two cards. If not, they have to turn them back. Once the game has moved along a bit, it comes down to your memory to remember which card lies where. The player with the most cards at the end of the game wins. It is also sometimes known as concentration. 7. War: This is a fast paced fun game to play especially with kids. If you have two children you can teach them and have them play with each other all day long without having to worry about them. The deck is divided equally between the two players and each player lays down their topmost card face up in the center in quick succession. For each pair the card with the highest value wins and that player gets to keep those cards. In case of a tie, three cards are set face down and one card face up as the battle card. He who wins keeps all four cards. The player who has all the cards in the end wins the war. 6. Lie Detector: Lie detector is also sometimes known as bluff. It can be played with up to 6 people and the idea of the game is to finish off all your cards and you can bluff to do so as well. Each player is dealt 7 cards and the rest of the deck is placed facedown in the middle. The player who starts can start with a single card or group of cards and lay them down facedown in the middle while declaring aloud which and how many cards he has laid down, for example, “two tens”. The next player has to either beat these cards with next highest card or pick up a card from the center pile. He can also choose to bluff and place dummy cards. He can say, “two jacks” and place down a two and three. The next player has to judge whether the previous player bluffed or told the truth. They can challenge the hand by asking for a lie detector and turning over the cards. If it was a bluff all cards go to the liar otherwise they go to the one who asked for a lie detector test. The one who finishes all their cards fastest, wins. The rest can continue to play if they want. 5. 21: 21 or blackjack is a grown up gambling game but can be played without gambling with kids to teach them to calculate quickly. It is one of the most popular casino games and can be played by adults at home as well. The game is played between a player and the dealer. More than one player can play against the dealer at one time. The objective is to reach 21, known as hitting blackjack or reaching a score higher than the dealer without exceeding 21. Face cards are worth 10 points. Ace can be counted as 1 or 11 points and all other cards are worth their face value. When playing with kids to make it more interesting try playing for candy instead of money. 4. Gin: Gin is a variation of standard rummy and is sometimes known as gin rummy. It was created by Elwood T. Baker along with his son. It is designed to be faster than standard rummy. Gin is played between two players and the rules are similar to that of rummy. The cards are ranked from king to ace in decreasing order. The players try to make melds such as sets of same card of different suits or runs of one suit. Aces can only be in sets or runs of A, 2, 3, 4 etc. but not in J, Q, K, A. The cards that are not in any melds are known as deadwood. The total points of deadwood are calculated by adding the points of the cards. All face cards have 10 points. Ace has one point. The player can have all their cards in melds and this is known as going gin. They can also knock without having all the cards in melds. In this case the deadwood of the opposition player and the knocking player is matched and if the knocking player has less deadwood they get the difference as points. The aim of the game is to reach 100 points. 3. Rummy: Rummy is a term that combines many variations of the same game; gin being one such variation. The idea of the game is to make melds, either sets or runs. Different versions of rummy have different rules and scoring system. Rummy can be played by 2 to 6 players. It is a great card game to play especially with other adults to pass time on a boring evening. 2. Bridge: Bridge is one of the most popular card games of all time. Like rummy, bridge too has many variations. The most common game played today is known as contract bridge. The game is played between two teams of two players. The partners sit on opposite sides of the table and can’t see each other’s cards. The game includes dealing the cards, bidding, playing and then scoring. The rules of the games vary depending on the version of the game. The most interesting part is the bidding where the two teams compete in bidding for the contract of the deal. The contract is the suit, if any, that is trumps for an undertaking to win. 1. Poker: The number one card game of all time has to be poker. It is also a family of card games, just like bridge and rummy, where individual players play against each other. The winner is determined by the ranks and combinations of the player’s cards. There are cards that are dealt to the players and each version of poker has a different number of cards that are dealt. There are also certain shared cards that are open for all to see. And there are a certain number of hidden cards as well. Betting is a big part of poker along with judging the cards of others based on their reactions and body language. Poker can not only help pass time on a boring evening but can become an addiction in itself because of the great thrill of winning and beating others. The post Top 10 Card Games You Can Play to Escape Boredom appeared first on TopYaps.

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