mmmm...Pancakes

When we first moved away from home I knew that some things like food, clothes and language might be different from what we knew. However little did I know just how different it would be and how different every country would be. The grocery store seems like a whole new world! Most things are pretty easily acertainable- spaghetti, apples, meat, fish those kinds of things. The baking aisle is a whole new ballgame folks! Not a single thing is what you expect it to be and it doesn't take long for you to decide that experimentation will be the name of the game.

This week I was determined to figure out what I would need to make a killer batch of pancakes. That meant I would need flour, baking soda, and the ever mysterious baking powder. I headed to the store with a wish and a prayer and hoped that what I brought home would help out. Lucky for me I guessed right, but ended up with two types of flour.

That's right I label them in English when I get home. I don't trust myself to remember this stuff from one day to the next!

Now there are some things that are not the same, not ever going to be the same, and nothing I can do about it. I just go with it and am really grateful when I get back to mi madre's and can cook something larger than a loaf of bread and brew a good cup of coffee to go with it.

Stoves are tiny- that puppy fits one cookie sheet. Thats it!

This is a moka pot aka coffee maker.

And sometimes you have to become more creative than Martha Stewart to get what you want. This time it's vanilla extract- three groceries store and one erboristeria later and no luck. So what's a gal with a hankering for pancakes to do? Refer to Pinterest, those gals know everything! 

This is vanilla. Now I'm not a good enough cook to figure out how to use that powder or conversions if I do use it.   

One bottle of vodka, 4 vanilla beans and time. That's it.

In just 6-8 weeks I will be savoring a delicious stack of pancakes. I can taste them already! Up next... chocolate chip cookies!

Happy Day!