Y.U.M.

What I've been eating:  I am loving this year because my roommate Christin and I eat many of our meals together.  We have been creating new recipes and trying out different concoctions.

Tostones: These are a typical Dominican staple at meals.  They are kind of like large french fries, but they are made from plantains.  Christin taught me how to make them.  They are not the healthiest things to eat, but boy do they taste good.

Oreo Truffle Balls from here:  I made these for a tea party I had with the boys while we were learning about the Boston Tea Party.  The only problem is the balls did not stay together.  With the humidity and heat of this country, they just melted apart.

I made them again for a sleepover with the church youth group.  This time I spooned the batter into cupcake holders to make it easier to eat.  They turned out much better, even though they definitely weren't truffle balls anymore.

Overnight Oatmeal from here: I love the peanut butter and jelly combination.  My favorite one that Christin and I made was one of our own creation.  We used chinola juice and milk for our liquid.  We added shredded coconut and crushed almonds.  It was so delicious.

Hot Italian Sandwiches from here:  These were probably fairly unhealthy, but man did they taste yummy.  Lots of meat layered with cheese.  The herb butter was the icing on the cake.  I never thought of mixing butter with herbs before.

Anything with rice: We have been using lots of rice this year, learning to be Dominican.  We typically mix it with corn, beans, peppers, cheese, etc.  We throw whatever we have in our pantry and fridge in together.  Christin has a rice maker, which makes it much easier to prepare it.  The next day for lunch we will throw it on a pan (since we don't have a microwave) and throw it in a tortilla, or on top of tortilla chips.  Super easy, simple, and yummy.

2 Ingredient Banana Muffins from here:  These are my favorite thing in the world to make.  You only need two ingredients, and bananas are super cheap here.  1 for 5 pesos, or 3 for 10 pesos.  10 pesos is approximately 20 cents in US currency.  I added chocolate chips to the recipe when I made these for Bible study.  It made them taste even better.

Chicken Salad from here : This recipe called for some improvising.  Dried cranberries are rather expensive, so we had to leave those out of the creation.  We ate these on pita chips, or on tortillas.  I love that it is super filling dinner or lunch.

Chicken Bacon Ranch Chicken from here:  This recipe did not work out as well as I would have liked.  The bacon was not crispy.  Next time we need to cook the bacon beforehand so that it tastes better.  Also, the whole recipe was rather watery.  I am not sure why it did that, but maybe next time I would try it with less ranch sauce.  It was not my favorite meal that we made.

Stuffed Bell Peppers from here .  These were incredibly delicious when we first made them.  It was harder to eat them once they were cold.  Since we don't have a microwave, we could not really heat them up.  They tasted okay cold.

Lucky Charm Treats from here:  These were really tasty.  I made these for our Readathon day in September.  We ordered pizza and I made these for dessert.  They were incredible.  It would be fun to try different cereals mixed in, or on their own with the marshmallows.

Baked Parmesan Zucchini Rounds from here:  I had never tried zucchini before, but when I saw the picture of these little sides, I knew I had to try them.  It took us awhile to find zucchini in this country.  Our oven has no top heat; the heat only comes from the bottom.  It was harder to melt the cheese.  These definitely need to be eaten right away.  They don't taste very good cold, but they were a great way to get another vegetable into our diet when they are warm.

What I want to make next: 

Ritz Cracker Chicken from here  Or I could substitute the crackers with pretzels.  This summer I tried pretzel chicken from the Cheesecake Factory.  It was so delicious, and I thought I could modify the Doritos chicken recipe I've used before.

Bloomin' Baked Apples from here :  These seem like the perfect fall treat.  I saw the caramel squares last  year in stores, but I have not seen any this year.  Fingers crossed they will appear so we can try these amazing-looking apples.

I bought a can of pumpkin last year and I still have not used it yet.  My friend makes really yummy pumpkin bars that I could try copying.  Christin and I also found an overnight oats recipe that calls for a can of pumpkin that would be fun to try.  

What are you eating right now?  Do you have any yummy recipes to share?

Con mucho amor.