Summer of American food

One of the things I look forward to the most when we're preparing for a visit to the US is EATING. During the end of May and most of June this year, for the five weeks before we left for the US, I ate 100% clean to not only give myself a little leeway when it came to gaining weight this summer, but to make it so the food I ate here would taste that much better.

I can't always predict what I'll make a point of eating in the US, but this year, I enjoyed (list is not exhaustive):

Ice cream (Tillamook, Umpqua, Reed's Dairy, Halo Top)

corn nuts (random road trip purchase; they tasted like adolescence)

Chipotle

caramel M&Ms, despite what seems to be a nationwide shortage of them

mizithra cheese pasta at The Old Spaghetti Factory (I KNOW)

corn tortillas that you cook fresh at home

Good & Plenty (it was nice to taste American licorice!)

those individually packaged Lifesavers, wintergreen flavor

Milano cookies (KEY LIME WHAT)

Goldfish crackers (I find myself drawn to the original flavor ones)

coconut chocolate almonds from Costco

Gushers (though I think the novelty of these is wearing off after 10+ years!)

S'mores made with Keebler chocolate-coated cookies and those amazing flat marshmallows. I once mentioned to a Finn that they had already-flat marshmallows in the US and it was like such a thing was too marvelous to imagine.

Fudgsicles

Otter Pops. So...these are made of juice now and they don't make me cough anymore. Huh.

Root beer!

LUCKY CHARMS (and other, more boring cereals like Oatmeal Squares and Chex)

American hot dogs

Costco pizza (the pieces are still as big as my head)

Papa Murphy's pizza (still delicious)

Voodoo doughnuts (thanks to my SIL Kristi!)

A chocolate-dipped ice cream cone from Dairy Queen! If corn nuts tasted like adolescence, this tasted like childhood.

Pretzel bread rolls

Tillamook cheese (pepper jaaaaaaaack!)

American black olives

Did...did you just realize that I am not a foodie? Sorry if this list disappointed you. But if someone gave you a few weeks every two years in which you could eat the food of your childhood, your youth, your formative years, your motherland, you would jump at the chance to eat Lucky Charms AND YOU KNOW IT.

And oh, about the picture. On one of our many road trips, I needed some caffeine so Jeremy stopped at a gas station and brought me this. It cost 99 cents. America!