Mama Chulisima!

My own Mama bought me a tortilla de patatas from Spain in her purse! Mind you the flight was only nine hours, but it didn't spoil and tasted delicious. Even if you manage to bring him just a couple of tamales, I'm sure he'll be in heaven.

Just a side note - I bought a sizeable wheel of queso manchego to the US on my last trip.I shared it with friends during the columbus day regatta. People were coming off the other boats on the anchor-up just to see what we were all raving about. One of my friends however had the audacity to dip a chunk of manchego cheese in velveeta mexican chip dip! Lord have mercy! What sacrilege!

Churrito

For the record: MadridMan LOVES tamales (WITH corn husk, please!), enchiladas, burritos, REAL tortilla made by hand, posole among the MANY other Mexican foods - I'm a BIG fan! And I prefer the green chili over the red if it's HOTTER on that particular day. (I'm almost 50% "New Mexican" by the amount of time I've spent there)

But unfortunately it's currently illegal to transport through customs "fresh foods" like tamales, meats, fruits, plants, etcetera unless they're somehow factory packed, air sealed, etcetera.

Saludos, MadridMan

[ 02-21-2002: Message edited by: MadridMan ]

MaMa Chula,

Here's a remedy for the A&W root beer crisis. It's the same with all American sodas not available there. You can buy the syrups from distributors, or wholesale outlets. Then, when you get to Spain, you buy carbonated water, or make your own using a small spritzer with a C02 bottle, and mix it with the syrup. Voila! You have soda.

A&W's syrup makes a tasty drink. We do it all the time, and in fact can even match up Mountain Dew by buying that syrup.

You just look for food distributor outlets that will sell directly to customers in your area, and you can buy the smaller bottles of syrup and carry them safely in your luggage. In fact, the next time we go to Spain, we intend bringing home some of the Coke syrup from there, so we can make the real coke for ourselves back here.

There aren't any problems bringing the syrup through customs. Since it's not pre-carbonated, it don't matter.

Wolf (Who makes all his own sodas with a post mix system. I'm an old guy, and like the old ways of doing things. That's why we have our own "soda fountain," complete with all the trimmings, and the juke box for the room - )

Here's an idea for those who travel back and forth often...my sister got one of those "as seen on TV" FOOD SAVER vacuum-sealing machines for Christmas, and loves it! You can buy bags for it and vacuum pack tamales, tortilla, whatever! Then you can get things through customs (and perhaps even past the sniffer dogs!).

Taravb --

Oreo cookies are now here in Spain along with Chips Ahoy sad to say. However, the Oreos here have been modified slightly to conform with the Spanish palate and do not taste quite the same as the ones that I am accostumed to in the USA. By the way Oreos and Nilla Wafers are the ONLY cookies that I buy commercially.

For you East Coasters, Dunkin´ Donuts is also here (unfortunately). So if you are looking for some "American coffee...café americano" (although with as rich as the cortados are here, I will never go back!)not to mention your fix on donuts and munchkins, head on down to the Plaza de Cubitos in Madrid (adjacent to the Plaza de España) and you will find yourself in fast food heaven.

Tara thanks for the recipes, but am still looking for those chocolate chips so the reeses´cup recipe will have to wait!

I am searching high and low for a good bagel place...that makes FRESH bagels...so if anyone knows of a place in Madrid or Segovia, please please please let me know. I am looking forward to my trip home when I can go to Manhattan Bagels, load up on the sundried, spinach and cheddar cheese bagels and haul them back here!!

Mama Chula...my parents had the same fear, that after studying in Spain, I would never return to the USA, but alas I did...for 13 years, only to fall in love with a Spaniard and move back here!!

[ 02-22-2002: Message edited by: Chica ]

[ 02-22-2002: Message edited by: MadridMan ]

Chica, I think a 12-oz bag of chocolate chips is the same as 2 cups, so you might be able to work out the math if you can find chocolate packages marked in ounces (or find a conversion table).

How are the Oreos different, chica?

I also would put cereal down as one of my important foods to bring to Spain (the variety here is better--though unlike MM, I am not a Lucky Charms fan)--and (VERY IMPORTANT) loose-leaf tea!! I drink tea every day (both green and black, and various blends), made from loose leaves, and couldn't find anything like that in Spain. As they say at my local tea shop, "tea is the new coffee!"

Other possibilities would be Pepperidge Farm cookies and goldfish crackers and Craisins dried cranberries. And popcorn too.

Hey taravb, do you have a recipe for Samoas? What's up with that?

As for me, when I spent my first extended stay in Spain, I attained God-like status amongst my fellow American peers by receiving a steady stream of Kool-Aid packets...the sugar-free kind (for ease of preparation).

When I last looked, peanut butter was available, but the brands, if my recollection serves me, were something like "Britain's Nice Try Super Dry", "This Was on a Shelf in Slovakia for Six Months Super Chunk" and "I Can't Believe It's Not Butter...Since That's What it Tastes Like-Extra Creamy"

Candy bars like Snickers were not readily available, and always welcome, but the best thing I saw for someone who's there for the long-haul was a mom that brought over one of those Costco gallon jugs of Pace "Hot" Picante sauce. Even though it probably doesn't match Mama Ramona's homemade salsa, you'd be surprised what a little salsa does for the soul on foreign soil.

Chica,
When you mentioned bagels it brought back a memory for me. When my cousin came to visit me in Madrid in 1980 My friends and I asked her to bring NY Bagels...and we feasted on them when she arrived. Bagels are boiled in water and they cannot be made just anywhere...we researched the idea of making them in Madrid (we thought the madrileños would love them)yet we were told the water in Madrid is not the best for bagel making...I wonder if someone was "tomándonos el pelo". It makes me think that it might be true since you still cannot find a good bagel in Madrid (or Segovia!).

Esperanza,

You use bottled water to replace the Madrid city water. A person I've talked to said that did the trick. That their bagels came out the way they wanted them. They suggested avoiding a mineral water though, since it leaves a heavier taste in them.

Like CaliBasco said, Kool-Aid is king. We always stuff dozens upon dozens of packages in everything. In fact, we even stuff them in shoes ( ). Also, like I said in an earlier post, the syrups from American soft drinks not available there, makes a good choice, since carbonated water can be made in a $20 gizmo with a $6 CO2 cartridge, and it costs about 4 to 6 cents to make an 8 oz. serving of the American soft drink. It's also very handy, since the ratio of water to syrup is very high.

The objective shouldn't be to bring completed items over there. Bring the ingredients you can't get there, and make everything from scratch, if you have kitchen facilities available. That's the ticket to having a touch of home.

Wolf

Good morning to you all,

I was once store manager at Taste of America (in Madrid), so I can guarantee you that they sell EVERYTHING that's been mentioned before, (though maybe not all the time, 'cause they run out of several things very fast, and then have to wait for the next shipment that always has some problems in customs) except for MMan's Lucky Charms, the tamales and fresh bagels(they're frozen, sorry Chica!).
It is expensive, of course, they're imported goods, isn't Spanish olive oil much more expensive in the US? Besides, they're the only and exclusive place in Spain to get many of the authentic American stuff, so I guess they can afford to "not be cheap", think about it.
Oh!, and here's an advice, you'll find real American foods at the Sanchez Romero supermarkets also, well, these are bought from Taste....so they're even more expensive.
And, the thought of Mama Chula(great name, I agree) having to carry the weight of cans of pop overseas, instead of paying some extra euro cents for the same product here..., I'm not sure it's worth it.

For those who get a sudden craving for a huge American steak, they may try restaurants such as Angus Beef , or maybe one of the 'chuletones' at one of the nice Argentinian restaurants could do the trick?

Feel free to ask me about the products at Taste, here's some of what they have and I can remember at this moment:
Marshmellows, Jiff's p.b., Reese's p.b., cups & pieces, several of the Pepperidge Farm cookies(Verona, Milano, etc....), Bisquick, semi-sweet chocolate chips(Hershey's and Baker's), sweet corn, corn flour, Paul Newman's spaguetti sauces, salad dressings, pop corn, dips & lemonade; cranberry sauce, yams, stuffing, and pumpkin pie mix for Thanksgiving; clam chowder, Bisto's gravy, cake and pie mixes such as Devil's food, Angel cake, White cake, Yellow cake,...also gingerbread, several brownie mixes, muffin mixes, pie fillings, cake toppings, icings, corn bread..., jell-o, Crisco, root beer, Dr. Pepper, M.Dew, cherry sodas, Canadian Splash, fruit rolls, vanilla and cinnamon waffers, fried beans, maple syrup, cheese curls, pretzels, Miracle whip, Coffe-mate, decaf tea, Celestial Seasoning's teas, sweet relish, French's mustard, oatmeal, Instant grits, Pop tarts, Ocean Spray's juices, margarita and bloody Mary mixes, Cheerios' cerals, Kellogg's squares, mini M&ms, Nerds, cinnamonn flavored gum(Big Red),...I could go on and on....

Oh! and what I sometimes miss food-wise is the American blueberry jelly, French beans,...Sloppy Joes! (is the spelling right?), AND those cans of frozen natural orange juice!

Mama Chula, have a great trip!

[ 02-23-2002: Message edited by: MadridMan ]

[ 02-25-2002: Message edited by: pim ]