Raindrops on Roses and Whiskers on Kittens

Just like the song says! These are a few of our favorite things. Just wanted to give some good ole free marketing to some great products that we really enjoy. From our pantry to yours, try it you'll like it : )

At the top of the list is Xochitl Mexican style Totopos de Maiz. At $4 to $5 a bag they are not cheap. The sticker on the bag proclaiming it was voted best in 2005 intrigued us. We always get excited to try a tortilla chip that proclaims to be restaurant style. Then we are sadly dissapointed when it is not at all what we hoped for. This was a very different experience. We are almost embarrassed to admit that our first bag lasted 2 days. The kids had none! Great flavor, thin, crisp, not coarse at all. Truly the best chip we have ever had. In Ohio available at Mejier. In Arizona looks like World Market carries these. Worth every penny! They have other flavors such as lime, cajun etc but have been told to stick with the Mexican style.

Our local grocer remodelled and now they don't have any Dipping Spices in stock. We've gone through 4 grinders and just ran out. Can't find any at other grocers so looks like we will have to order directly from Alessi. Dipping Spices is a grinder. It has the best blend of itailian herbs and seasonings. It is meant to be grinded and added to olive oil so you can dip your bread. It also works remarkably on any italian dish and we really love to add it to our eggs! We use it a lotFreezing cold outside? Need something to go with that hot cocoa? Tres Estrellas makes a great and simple churro mix. Just add water! Just fry them up and throw them in a bag of cinnamon sugar and shake. Makes a ton of churros. It even comes with its own pastry bag so you can squirt the dough into the hot oil. Available at most Mexican food grocers in both AZ and OH.

One restaurant we did not have time to see when we visited NY was Peanut Butter & Co. They serve some very creative sandwiches (like the Elvis with peanut butter, bananas, honey, and bacon). We were excited when we saw a bottle of their peanut butter at the store. We call this "the adult peanut butter". Comes in flavors like dark chocolate, white chocolate, maple, honey, old fashioned, etc. In AZ looks like Fry's carries this too! Seriously good straight from the jar. No bread required.

Nueva Cocina carries a great line of products. Our favorite is the Chipotle Taco Beef Seasoning. This is for those of you who have graduated or gotten sick of Taco Bell seasoning. This seasoning atually has flavor and even has raisins. Welcome back Taco Tuesdays!

We used to buy Naturas Horchata at Wal-Mart in AZ. We were sad to learn they don't carry it here and we are too lazy to ask them to order it. We can't even find it at the Mexican markets here. All they carry is Klass brand. When we went home to AZ this is something we stocked up on. This is a powder to make Horchata. You can actually just add water to make the Horchata but we never make it that way. We add milk and ice in the blender and make a kind of Horchata milkshake. We have tried Klass powder mixes and some liquid concentrates and they are all horrible. This is the only one we like. At least for Horchata milkshakes : ) The kids can not get enough.

Mrs. Renfro's makes quite a few flavors of salsa. They have a peach thats pretty good but our favorite is Raspberry Chipotle Salsa. Goes great with aforementioned chips and tacos too. They even carry pineapple, pomegranate, and mango. Fairly cheap at around $3 a jar. We are excited to try to make our own raspberry salsa this summer with the garlic, onions, tomatos, and cilantro thats getting started in the garden. The raspberries on the bushes are starting to take shape too.

There are thousands of variety of bananas. Most grocery stores carry the mini bananas nowdays but they really are our favorite. They are much creamier, sweeter, and better-sized for the kids. Unlike their larger cousins the smaller variety have B vitamins too. We still like to get the big ones and stuff them with chocolate and marshmallows. Then wrap them in tinfoil and throw them in the fire for a little while. YUM!

Fryums!! This is an Indian (India) snack we found at an Indian market last summer. Our Fryums are these colors but in the shape of the Star of David. They are made with flour, cornstarch, and salt. They only carry them in stock in the summer. Seems like you would eat a fried food more in the winter but we are told this is a summertime only snack. They fry up quick. They are typically eaten plain but we did some experimenting. We shook some in a bag with powdered sugar just after they are fried. Now the kids make the Fryums disappear.