Geez... and here I thought I was LOSING weight....

So, another great part of being here is the food, of course.

The kids and I have been eating a LOT of fresh fruit and veggies, picked directly from my dad's farm or his friends' farms. (Plums, peaches or grapes for breakfast; fresh tomato salad with basil with almost every lunch; and either more fruit or veggies with dinner).

When it comes to actual meals, nothing has been processed; we've been making everything ourselves or have bought food others have made. As such, we've been eating a lot of Empanadas, one of Chile's most traditional foods, consisting of pastry encasing a mixture of ground beef, onions, pieces of hard-boiled eggs, an olive and a few raisins:

We've also had Humitas, made of fresh ground-up corn, basil (again!), some onion and garlic, a bit of fat to season and some sugar, all wrapped up in the corn's actual husks:

One thing Nicky in particular has fallen in love with are Chilean hot dogs, or "Completos." While the bun and wiener are the same as the North American version, nothing else is! No ketchup or mustard on these babies! Nooooooo. The main toppings here are piles of mashed up avocados, fresh tomato salsa and lots of mayonnaise. (Delicious! if you can get past the wiener part....):

I myself have (re) fallen in love with the ubiquitous "Mote con Huesillos" drink, which they sell EVERYWHERE. The national drink of Chile, it consists of thick peach juice, one or two dry, cooked peaches, and lots and lots of barley. (A bit like a Bubble Tea, only, better!) As it's both food and drink, you have to use a spoon to drink this refreshing concoction:

And of course, no evening would be complete without a serving of the deliciously fried Churros (all fat, all sugar, sometimes stuffed with chocolate paste, or Dulce de Leche):

And no next morning would be complete without "Pan Amasado" (home made bread... though nowadays, it IS made with a machine) and "Dulce de Membrillos" (Quince fruit jam):

As I said earlier, because nothing is processed and all comes from the garden, I was pretty sure I was losing weight....

Well, actually, NO. And while I haven't put on a hundred pounds, I need to start watching. Really soon. Just after these two "Papas Rellenas" (cheese-filled potatoes) that the kids made, and this double Mote con Huesillos.....: