Anyway I wanted to talk about something light hearted for my first post back, but I couldn’t find any good ideas. Cue Sander and his European ways.

My mom sent me a bunch of baking mixes in her last care package (which I forgot to write about! Expect that post soon!). Since I have several boxes of Trader Joe’s Pumpkin Bread & Muffin mix, I decided to bake a little. That’s when we got into a conversation about the strange American cooking methods. And that brings us to today’s post… The strange cooking habits I have, as an American!

Cups and spoons
Don’t ask me how we got started on using cups for measuring but I’m stuck. I was lucky to find some measuring cups that fit what I need and I use them every day. I’ve got the 1/4, 1/3, 1/2, and 1 cup… Cups! I make a lot of foods with American recipes so these have been a blessing. Sander has no idea what they mean though. Sometimes I’ll tell him to get at least a cup worth of something and he’s confused about it… I’m sorry Sander! I don’t understand the measuring standards of the Dutch! We also have teaspoons and tablespoons but I could have sworn I saw them in a Dutch recipe at least once before. It could also be wishful thinking.

Sweets galore
When it comes to sweets, America’s on the ball. Everything we make is overly sweetened because let’s face it… Americans love to over indulge. I’m guilty as well. I prefer to make American brand cakes instead of Dutch brand. My palette is different from Sander’s and so are my cravings. He loves to reach for snacks with milder flavors. Sander does love M&M’s though, so that’s a win I suppose. But I’ve gotten a lot of comments on how my desserts are super sweet, and honestly, I like them like that!

Unique flavors
Sander mentioned before that I use a lot of baking soda in my baked goods. Now I can’t say that the Dutch don’t use it because they might. But then I did notice the difference in the normality of our meals. Dutch pancakes are flat and can be savory or sweet. I’ve had them with cheese and ham, or apples and ice cream! We eat them so rarely that I don’t even have a post about them. I’ll be sure to do that later. Back to the matter at hand. American pancakes call for both baking soda and baking powder for that wonderful thick cake. Our syrup is watery and sweet enough to pucker your mouth. Dutch syrup is thick, almost like molasses. We pair our American pancakes with Dutch syrup because maple syrup is almost €5 a bottle!

Interesting measurements
This was the topic we laughed most about. A pinch. A dab. A splash… Add according to taste. Sander demanded I explain what all these terms meant. And said “Well, you know. Add a dash of pepper, like you dash the pepper into the food or whatever. Or a splash of wine, splash it into the pan. You gotta eyeball that stuff.” And he said it was irresponsible! I don’t disagree with him, that cooking as an American brings about adventurous meals. There was one time I didn’t have cumin and so I added taco seasoning to rice to imitate it. I can’t say it was a reasonable thing to do but boy was that rice tasty!

The thing about cooking like an American, is that you customize your meal. Love garlic? Add more! Hate salt, add less or skip it. I love when recipes say add a heaping amount. Like what does that mean? It’s all up to you! I’m going to add a heaping amount of whipped cream to my cheesecake. Because in my opinion, that’s how my cheesecake will taste amazing! Sander will skip that though.

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But I can’t eat chocolate. It’s terrible for my skin and counterproductive to me and my bareface routine. I had to improvise. It’s not easy to find American Halloween goodies but My American Market came to the rescue! I picked out a few Halloween treats that I could enjoy… But not to many so get into my Halloween candy haul!

Peep Marshmallows
Peeps are either loves or hated. These ones are marshmallows, sweet in flavor with a gentle sugar coating on the outside. They’re soft and oh so delicious. Peeps appear for Easter when they sell shaped as baby chicks, hence the name Peeps. But the company branched out after a while and made Halloween and Christmas flavors. While I enjoy the traditional flavor of these bad boys, I love the Christmas flavor more. Those are peppermint and amazing with hot chocolate… Which I can’t have now anyway…

Candy Corn and Autumn Mix
This is another candy that gets a lot of hate! But in recent years the taste of this has improved by ten fold. In the past this candy was criticized for its waxy texture and strange taste but now it’s delicious. It’s pretty much sugar in fun shapes but I’ve seen people get creative and bake it into cupcakes and pies. I’d like to try a crack at it so I bought some too!

Trolli Sour Brite Bats, Cats and Rats Gummies
Tasty gummies wrapped in a sweet and sour coating… There are tons of variations to the shapes but the nostalgic flavors are always the same. I got some because it’s been ages since I last ate them. Sander loves them too so it’s a win/win!

You can check out their Halloween selection here. But be warned, they sell out fast!

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My American Market is an online store based in France that imports goods from both America and Canada. It’s a communicative store and ultra easy to order from. Let me share what I indulged in on this order. Yes, this order, because I’m sure I will order more in the future!

The Goods

ACT II MICROWAVE POPCORN – BUTTER
I grew up with this flavor of popcorn and I’m so excited it was in stock. Our local store has two flavors for popcorn, salty or sweet. I’ll eat the salty one but I refuse to do the sweet. It feels nice to have buttered popcorn in the house again! Popcorn has always been my favorite snack so we’re going to pop the first bag this weekend and watch something juicy. We finished Unsolved Mysteries and we’re dying for more. I watched the show growing up so it’s been a huge nostalgia fest in our home!

CRACKER JACK POPCORN BAG
Cracker Jacks were something that will contradict the first item… These are caramel coated popcorn pieces. And I said I don’t want sweet popcorn but these are caramel coated! They aren’t sweet. They used to come in a box with a little toy and that pretty much sums up what it was like growing up in American in the 1990’s. Everything is unhealthy and comes in a box with a toy.

STASH TEA PUMPKIN SPICE DECAFFEINATED TEA
I’ve has Stash brand tea before and it’s not the strongest tea but this is pumpkin spice flavored. Now don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed making my own pumpkin spice. But there’s something about waking up in the morning, on a cold winter’s day, and pouring yourself a ready made cup of pumpkin spice. It’s about having the easy way of doing things and premade tea mixes are right up that alley.

MUNCHIES CHEESE FIX SNACK MIX
Oh boy, this took me back real far into my childhood. All the goodness of the ultra cheesy chips I grew up with, this bag contains it all. It’s nostalgia in a bag but I have to limit how much I eat. More than a few chips and I feel sick! I wasn’t expecting that! It’s because it’s been ages since I’ve had junk food and my body isn’t used to it. Ah, oh well.

CHEETOS CRUNCHY FLAMIN’ HOT
It’s no secret that Americans love them Spicy Hot Cheetos… And now I found a place that sells them for a reasonable price! The flavor is so damn good and I can’t resist making a sandwich with some chips on the side. The sad thing is that these guys are junk food… And I feel sick after eating them. So while I enjoy stuffing them into my mouth, I can’t say my stomach appreciates it. I guess it was about time that I stop loving the junk food of my 20’s. I’m not young anymore and it’s healthier for me to stay away from them… But man, I still love that flavor!

MCCORMICK’S TACO SEASONING MIX
I haven’t used this yet but I hope that it will add some flavor to our tacos. The Dutch flavoring we buy isn’t as good as the stuff we get in America. I’ll try and update this post when we do use it!

KELLOGG’S POP TARTS FROSTED COOKIES & CREAM
Oh boy, the memories with these! Remember when I said I wasn’t eating chocolate? Well all that went out the window when I saw these on the site. I love me some cookies and cream and Poptarts? Get outta here! I was in heaven from the first bite but I know I can’t order these again. It’s got so much sugar, it’s too much for this 32 year old!

CHIPS AHOY! CHEWY REESE’S PEANUT BUTTER CUP COOKIES
Anyone who has ever tasted Chip’s Ahoy knows that familiar flavor they all have. While these cookies were super tasty, the peanut butter was difficult to taste. But I love these cookies to begin with so it wasn’t too much of a disappointment.

MEIJI HELLO PANDA BITE SIZE CHOCOLATE COOKIES and MEIJI CHOCOROOMS STRAWBERRY
I got this for Sander because he’s a huge fan of cookie and chocolate snacks. These were on sale so I got a ton of them for him. He enjoys them as an after dinner snack when he plays racing games with his gamers guild.

Ordering and Shipping
My American Market is like any online store. Search the site, order up, and wait for the package to come in. Ordering, payment and processing was easy and quick. I ordered on a Sunday and was able to get everything but Saturday. This store is in France so it was pretty fast for it to come in! And our order was over a certain amount, we got the My American Market Collector’s bag and a Harry Potter creature Gummy for free!

Please note this isn’t sponsored. Everything was better than expected and you bet I’ll be back around autumn time for all those Halloween goodies!

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This is because these pancakes have a special ingredient that isn’t found in America. It’s called koek & speculaaskruiden. It’s a delicious blend of premixed gingerbread spices in a single bottle.

I found a good recipe for making it on Zoet Recepten. The website is in Dutch though!

How do these Apple Buttermilk Pancakes taste? It’s like biting into a super soft apple pie. Of course there’s no crisp crust, but you can have this for breakfast without feeling guilty.

Apple Buttermilk Pancakes

• Servings: 6-8
• Time: 1hr
• Difficulty: easy
• Print

Super fluffy pancakes with delicious pieces of apple in each bite.

Credit: allrecipes.com for the original recipe

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 tablespoon speculaaskruiden
• 2 cups of karnemelk (buttermilk)
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup butter, melted
• 1 1/2 cup diced apples
• cooking spray

Directions

1. Skin and dice apples into small cubes.
2. Combine all dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl.
3. Add in karnemelk first, then butter and lastly the eggs. Mix well until all lumps are gone.
4. Add apple cubes to the point where the mix is still mostly batter. The cubes must be all covered otherwise it won’t hold together in the pan. Extra cubes can be used as toppings.
5. Heat a pan over low heat and coat it with cooking spray. Pour 1/3 cupfuls of batter into the pan and cook until bubbles appear on the surface. The batter will rise slightly and cover the cubes. Then flip the pancake and cook until the other side is browned.
6. Serve with thick maple syrup or Schenkstroop

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Eat less chocolate
I know this is a no brainer. But if you take less chocolate and eat is slowly, it will feel like you have more. I do this a lot now to help deal with my cravings. I can enjoy a bit everyday as long as I don’t go overboard! It’s all about moderation and being accountable for what you put in your mouth.

Use less 
If you’re into baking and making home chocolate goods, consider using less sugar or butter. Sugar and butter are where those calories really start to add up. Use substitutes or low calorie alternatives to help keep those high calories out. I’ve seen chocolatey treats made with greek yogurt instead, so anything is possible!

Eat dark
Dark chocolate is supposed to be healthier for you because it cuts out the other additives and uses more cacao. According to CNN, consuming 1 oz. a day may have health benefits but everyone is different. If you do have chocolate cravings and really want to curb them, I do recommend eating trying it. It’s so rich (and bitter) that eating more than a small piece may make you cringe!

Don’t limit yourself
If you prevent yourself from eating chocolate outright, you might be tempted to binge at your first chance. It’s better to give into your small cravings and have that piece you’ve been longing for! In the long run you’ll be less tempted to consume a whole bar if you can have a little every day. This way you won’t feel guilty about overeating because you haven’t deprived yourself.

Enjoy yourself!
Let’s be a little honest though. We only live one life. It’s good to enjoy the things we love while we can. While you should be in control of your eating habits, it’s always ok to indulge in moderation. I love chocolate a lot but I’m always sure to eat the recommended amount. Eating too much makes me feel sick and regret overindulging. Always think about your portion control and decide on what’s best for you!

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Baking usually requires a reason. I like baking cookies because I’m craving something from home. I can’t buy sugar cookies here. I make them instead.

My Dutch tutor and I discussed this at one point and she said something I found enlightening. “You first have to put energy in making your food before you can take the energy out by eating it.”

When I think of Valentine’s Day, I think of red velvet cake. Wait, let me be honest. If I have to think of any baked goodie, all I can think of is Red Velvet. I previously couldn’t explain why I loved it so much. After putting this cake together I might have found the reason. I think it has to do with the slight sourness of the vinegar paired with sugar. I know that’s why I love our Sunday pancakes so much (they don’t look like much but it’s the taste that counts!).

I decided to look up Dutch recipes since I figured it would be easier to find ingredients by their Dutch names. That idea worked perfectly. Buttermilk is called Karnemelk! This entire time I was making pancakes through the vinegar and milk method when I could have just picked up a carton of karnemelk!

It snowed (very lightly) this past weekend and I decided it’s probably too cold to create an ice cream red velvet so instead I opted for a regular one. The recipe I used can be found here however I noticed that it calls for eggs so I compared it to this one and found two eggs should have been added to the list.

The mixing process went well up until the red food dye. Mixing the wet and dry ingredients eliminated all of the red. My tutor has given me a website to check out, Jouw Taart Shop (which translates to Your Cake Shop) and I’m going to peruse it for a while to see if I can find a good red.

While the original recipe calls for two 20cm pans, I only had one 24cm pan. All the mix went into one and then straight into the oven. Baking it took a little longer at a lower temperature. I think what I should have done, after it cooled, was to cut it in half. I really missed that middle layer of creamy goodness.

We also don’t have a large mixer so I did the best I could with the frosting. I couldn’t get all the butter down to a creamy consistency so I think the next time I should melt it slightly. That way it won’t look so chunky!

Other than being an ugly cake, the taste was pretty delicious! Since there was so much frosting, each slice gets an extra helping of it and makes up for that missing middle layer. The texture of the cake is moist and smooth. I found that putting the cake in the fridge between servings gives the frosting a very creamy consistency.

While I don’t exactly consider this a fail, there are a few things I would do differently. I hope that next time this cake will turn out even better. For now, Sander and I have an amature red velvet cake that we can sink our teeth into!

Have you ever make a cake fail? If so, how did you learn to improve for next time?

Also, have a Happy Valentine’s Day or Single’s Awareness Day!

Remember, that you don’t need someone to make you happy. You need to make YOU happy!

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I was so excited to see that my mom had prepared a small care package for me that was filled with my favorite treats.

Included in the box were my favorite flavor of popcorn, white cheddar. Cheddar here is super expensive because it’s not mass produced. Although more recently I might have stumbled onto a brand that might make traditional slices so I may be able to make mac and cheese without breaking the bank.

There was also a box of Trader Joe’s Garlic Mashed Potatoes! It’s a seasonal item where my family lives so it only appears around the holidays. My mom bought a ton of them and saved me a box because she knows I love it so much.

She also included the Trader Joe’s Pumpkin spice bread mix just because I’m a crazy person over pumpkin spice.

There were also a few Indian snacks included. The fruit biscuits were fantastic! They had the taste of India (I can’t explain it, but if you’ve smelled a suitcase that comes from India, you know that smell for life). It was a shortbread with dried fruits inside, super rich so you could only have one or two at a time.

Also my favorite hot mix! Well, I’m lying. My favorite hot mix is the Punjab mix while this one is the Mastana mix. From what I can remember though, the Punjab mix is pretty hard to find. The two are almost identical except for the raisins in the Punjab mix. There’s just something about the spiciness and the sweetness of the raisins that keeps me coming back for more.

She also packed the East Indian version of oliebollen (literally oily balls) which are called fugias. These are much smaller though and can be filled with raisins. Those are my favorite. While oliebollen are known for their oiliness, fugias are much less oily and can be eaten in bulk (although I don’t recommend it because it’s not healthy!).

This box came to me just in time for Christmas but I haven’t had the time to talk about it until today! It’s been a busy season and I can’t wait to see what else is in store!

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I’m so far away from home, in a country that doesn’t celebrate Thanksgiving so I knew at some point I had to do something. Thanksgiving is a time to be grateful for life and everything in it. Family, friends, everyone who makes my day brighter.

So this year we were a little more prepared! This was my first Thanksgiving preparing and cooking for the family. I wanted it to be stress free and simple. What does that mean? It means less is more. Our menu consisted of very simple items, cooked and prepared.

The turkey meat was slathered in butter and put straight into the oven. No muss, no fuss. There are so many ways of preparing a turkey but this year I only wanted a turkey that was edible and delicious. The butter kept it moist and tender, which worked out better than I had expected.

I didn’t want to worry or stress about what flavors everyone liked so I left that up to them. I didn’t add salt or pepper and somehow the food turned out so good! We had traditional turkey, green beans, mashed potatoes with gravy, sweet potato fries, and white rice. There was so much food that we were all able to take seconds!

We had the dinner at Sander’s parent’s house because our flat would have been too small. Their oven is a beast compared to ours as well. It was kind of them to let me take over the kitchen.

Dessert was homemade apple pie with homemade whipped cream! Sander’s mom was so nice enough to make us her delicious pie from scratch. The entire house smelled so delicious when I arrived and I’ll admit my mouth was watering!

As for the homemade whipped cream… I’m taking Dutch language lessons from a wonderful neighbor and she offered to show me how she makes it at home! I was so grateful because the flavor was fantastic, like nothing I’ve ever had before! But that’s for next time!

If I can help it, I want next year to be at our place. There were a few more people I really wished I could have invited. Yet, these they were in my thoughts and as we remembered what we were thankful for, I thought of these folks. Individuals who care about me and have changed my life! Some are old friends and some are new, but they are a huge part of what I am and who I will become. And Thanksgiving is the perfect time to be thankful for these people!

How did you celebrate with your family this Thanksgiving? If you don’t celebrate, what are you looking forward to for this holiday season?

The post Thanksgiving in Holland appeared first on A Daily Lee.

Holiday inspired goodies

I put together some mummy frankfurters (traditional hot dogs don’t exist here!) It was so weird to buy a can of wieners for our meal! There were 7-8 inside the can. And they turned out delicious! Of course our wrappings were a bit haphazard, they were the most popular.

Sugar cookies were something new to me but I still wanted to try and make some. They’re easy to throw together and quick to bake so I found this recipe and set to work. All I was missing was white sugar so I used brown instead but boy were they delicious!

I also made these brownies and turned them into dirt and wormy treats. I didn’t have the chocolate chips so the brownies were chunks of chocolate that I had cubed. But next time I’ll be doing the chips for sure! We also didn’t have a pan that catered to the required measurements so our bites were tall! Regardless they were delicious.

For the toppings, I took the idea from this recipe, to add pudding and then the oreo dust. It was a super messy process but pretty tasty.

Halloween Classics

What does NL do?

And now for how the party went!

If you know Disney and if you came from America, you know what a giant The Nightmare Before Christmas is. I haven’t been to the Florida parks but a large chunk of my early twenties was spent at Disneyland. We all know that Jack and the gang takes over the Haunted Mansion and we all know that there are entire stores dedicated to the movie.

But here? No one has even heard of the movie! Sander’s younger brother and his boyfriend were the only ones who knew what we were talking about. It’s surprising, I know. I’m curious to see if the Paris Disneyland Park has anything about it. We had planned on going this past May but ended up in California during that time.

Now the party went well and it was enjoyable to see everyone again but there was no excitement for Halloween and it got me thinking. Halloween is important to me, as I’ve stated thousands of times, but that sort of excitement isn’t seen here. In Amsterdam and (as far as I know) one major theme park celebrates Halloween. While Amsterdam is about the clubbing scene, this theme park, Walibi Holland, celebrates what would present at at Knott’s Scary Farm.

Otherwise, soon as October hits, the stores are stocked full of Sinterklaas products!

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Over the past few months I’ve tried recreating some American favorites with mixed results. Which is why none of these previous attempts ever made it online! The more I make, the more confidence I’m mustering up though, so expect some more cooking adventures soon (holiday season here I come)!

With the sudden approach of fall-like weather, I was struck with a craving for a pumpkin spice latte. Of course the nearest Starbucks is in the next down so it would be difficult for me to do a latte run and have it be worth the travel expenses. I could take the bus or bike out there but the bike ride is about 45 minutes. Not worth it.

So I decided to make my own.

Fresh beginnings
I used this recipe but had to tweak it just a bit to accommodate for some ingredients I couldn’t find at my local store. Last fall I found this Speculaas (think gingerbread) spice mix from our local Jumbo. I’m not a fan of “cheating” when cooking but this made it  easier to navigate the shelves of spices I can’t read (Dutch is hard).

First make the pumpkin puree, by boiling the pumpkin chunks. When the pieces are soft and well cooked, blend them until they reach a creamy consistency. I added about three tablespoons of the Speculaas spice and followed the rest of the instructions listed. What resulted was a yummy and creamy mixture that could easily be spooned into any cup of tea.

Pile on the flavor
The next step was to steep some chai tea (one of my favorite flavors) and mix a few spoons of the pumpkin base to warm milk. Just the smell of this phase made me swoon. I’m still looking for the perfect brand of tea here but the Dutch typically made very light tea. I’ve often had to double or even triple my bags for one cup strong enough for my taste buds.

After the milk is warmed and the tea ready, you add both together and tada! Homemade pumpkin chai latte! We don’t buy whipped cream because it’s a bit expensive here so I added a dash more of the Speculaas on top. It smells just like a Starbucks Pumpkin Spice! The whole house smells like memories of California autumns and it’s getting me really into the mood for fall!

As for the taste
I originally added one tablespoon of the pumpkin base to my chai tea because I wasn’t sure how strong the flavor would be. So I added one more in the end for a stronger taste. I think if you’re able to follow the recipe closely, you’ll have a fantastic and not overpowered sweetness. As for mine, I’ll add one more tea bag and the two tablespoons for my desired flavor. I’ll probably go less on the sugar as well. I rarely have sugar in my current diet, and I never have it in my tea.

For my first batch though, it was not bad at all! Next up, we have to decorate the house for Halloween and I’m super excited!

Are you excited for the autumn season and what do you crave once the weather gets colder?

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