Food Variety and Recipes

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Americans love food. It's a stereotype, it's a fact of life. Food is awesome! After following the Americans in Norway group on Facebook, I've realized a common complaint among Americans is the lack of food variety in Norway. I'm guilty of complaining of the same thing - A LOT. I've made compromises, but for the most part, I've come to terms with it and do as Teddy Roosevelt once stated, "Do what you can, with what you have, where you are." This means making a lot of things from scratch and that's okay because I could desperately use the cooking experience and homemade meals are generally healthier.

****Just a side note of advice from one expat to another: Depending on my mood, sometimes it's not a great idea to replicate a family recipe. Even if I follow the recipe EXACTLY, it never tastes the same. It's frustrating and if you're homesick at the time, it just doesn't go over well.*****

Due to our daughter's approaching due date, I've been making a ton of freezer foods. I don't want to be spending time cooking when I could be spending time with her when she's at her neediest and most vulnerable state in her life. Pre-made freezer meals come in handy because my husband or I can just thaw them and put them in the microwave. This is where I can put my Pinterest addiction to good use! Thus far, I've made homemade cheesy potato soup, vegetable soup, chocolate chip cookies, Mexican rice and burritos, breakfast sandwiches and I plan to make chicken and dumplin's, chicken noodle casserole, chicken pot pie (any idea what my favorite choice of meat is?) enchiladas, tater tot casserole (tater tots can be found at Meny as a lot of American imported foods), taco soup, breakfast bars and after checking with the remaining space in our freezer, I'll determine whether or not I can make more meals.

Here are some links to a few recipes:

Mexican Rice
Homemade Biscuits
Kentucky Hot Brown (Parmesan cheese can be found in pouches at Meny or Spar grocery stores)
Chicken Pot Pie

Here is a list of common American foods and where to find them:
Campbell's products like soups, tomato and V8 juice - Meny
Chicken wings - Spar
Mamwich sloppy joe sauce (and other American sauces and seasonings) - ICA Maxi
Peter Pan and Skippy peanut butter - Meny and ICA Maxi
Hawaiian Punch, Dr. Pepper, Cherry Coke, Grape Fanta - ICA Maxi or Meny (I've only found them in individual cans)
Cheddar Cheese - Spar and Meny
Hershey's chocolate baking chips - ICA Maxi
Ranch dressing - Meny
Duncan Hines/ Betty Crocker cake mixes and icing - Meny

Those are just a few things and where to find them, but if anyone needs some guidance, feel free to comment. I'm usually pretty good at finding what I need and if I can't find it in a store, I can find a decent recipe to duplicate. :-)


Comments

Vic E said…
I didn't even know there was an Americans in Norway group! I have just joined. Having just made the trip over to Oslo to see Black Sabbath I also HAD to make a trip over to Nordby Shopping Center in Sweden. Found Froot Loops, Hawaiian Punch, Mountain Dew, and lots of American candy bars. I came back to Stavanger a happy man!
November 30, 2013 at 1:01 AM
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