Two Simple Savory Empanada Recipes

Empanadas are a South American staple. They are eaten for breakfast, lunch or dinner. The typical flavors in Paraguay are beef, chicken, ham and cheese, and corn. You may find a shop that has branched out and added some other flavors, but, that isn't as common. To say I grew accustomed to eating empanadas while living in Paraguay is an understatement. I love them! We used to joke that empanadas are the Paraguayan sandwich, and I'm not a huge sandwich person, but I do love me an empanada. The whole time I was down there I kept dreaming up recipes I could make for my family when I got home and had access to more ingredients. So now, I have two simple filler recipes for you. You can make home-made dough too if you would like, but, making empanadas is a whole day kind of process so I cut a lot of time out by cutting circles (as large or as small as you want) out of store bought pre-made pie crusts.

 

Cheesy Creamy Chicken Empanadas

2 cups of cooked/shredded chicken

1/2 cup of taco/mexican shredded cheese

1/2 cup of monterray jack shredded cheese

1/2 cup cream cheese: softened

1 medium red onion: chopped

1 red bell pepper: chopped

2-3 garlic cloves: finely chopped

2-3 tablespoons of taco seasoning

salt and pepper

hot sauce - to your taste

Saute the onion, red pepper and garlic. Once finished mix with remaining ingredients in large bowl. Take an empanada circle, using a brush wet the edges and now depending how large your circle is add about a spoon full of filling to the middle. Fold in half and us a fork to press the edges closed. Place all prepared empanadas on a baking sheet. Brush tops with olive oil. Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. Serve with sour cream.

Sausage Pizza Empanadas

1 lb. ground sausage

1 medium onion

1 red bell pepper

1 green bell pepper

1/2 cup tomato sauce

2-3 garlic cloves: finely chopped

2-3 tablespoons oregano

salt and pepper

shredded mozzarella cheese 

Cook sausage, onion, peppers in a frying pan. Once cooked most of the way add the tomato sauce, oregano, garlic, salt and pepper. Once fully cooked, let filling cool down completely. Take an empanada circle, using a brush wet the edges and now add a pinch of mozzarella cheese and depending how large your circle is add about a spoon full of filling to the middle. Fold in half and us a fork to press the edges closed. Place all prepared empanadas on a baking sheet. Brush tops with olive oil. Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. Serve with sour cream.

Empanadas are great for lunch or dinner. But they also make a great dish for this weekend for your Labor Day celebrations! 

Have you ever tried an empanada before? What did you think?

Off the Beaten Path - Eleuthera, Bahamas

When visiting the Bahamas most travelers head to the bigger more touristy islands like Nassua and Grand Bahama. The "out islands" or the "family islands" have less crowds, there are no cruise ships and no high-rise hotels and they give you a more unique, slow paced vacation experience. 

On my trip to the Bahamas, I visited the "family island," Eleuthera. It is a quick 20 minute flight or 2.5 hours ferry ride from Nassau. It is a long, thin island that is 110 miles long and at its thinnest point, its less than a mile wide. I decided to visit Eleuthera because my sister was doing an internship at Bahamas Methodist Habitat, which is based off the island and a stop over there was only a little bit more expensive than a flight straight home from Paraguay, so I thought, why not?

It was a whirlwind trip, many days spent at the beach and many days trying out some fun new activities. I went snorkeling and saw numerous tropical fishies. I went kayaking for the first time and hunting for starfish. I ate conch fritters, a traditional Bahamian food made from the conch shellfish. I attempted surfing, which might deserve its own blog post to describe the hilarity. We also rented golf carts to explore a tiny neighboring island.

All and all this week in paradise was a great way to relax and prepare myself for the overwhelming re-entry back into the United States.

Bahamas Travel Tips:

- The Bahamian currency is the Bahamian Dollar it is equal in value to the American Dollar so everywhere in the Bahamas also excepts the USD.

- Drivers in the Bahamas follow the British Rule, which means everyone drives on the left side of the road.

Have you ever visited the Bahamas? Did you venture out to any of the "family islands"?

There is More to the Bahamas than Paradise Island

When I was in the airport in Nassau, Bahamas waiting to check my luggage for my flight to the United States there was a typically American family standing in front of me and overheard their conversation.

Daughter: "So every flight out of this airport has to be an international flight doesn't it?"

Father: "I guess you are right, since this is such a small island and country"

This conversation is the epitome of what bothers me about tourists, when they go on a vacation to another country and make no effort to learn anything about the destination they have chosen. The Bahamas actually consists of over 700 islands, over 20 of which are inhabited, which means there are hundreds of flights leaving Nassau for other parts of the country every day.

That is my biggest recommendation to those wanting to travel to the Bahamas. Look  further than Nassau and Paradise Island, look further than the exclusive beach resorts and hotels. There is nothing wrong with a relaxing beach vacation because the Bahamas has some of the most beautiful beaches I have ever been to and they are the reason so many people come to visit this wonderful country.  I'm just saying take a break from the sun and the sand and get out there and meet the residents of the islands you visit because they are incredibly friendly and welcoming, eat at the amazing restaurants outside your hotel and visit the historical sites. Try to learn more about the country and culture when you are visiting some place new.

DIY - Glitter Champagne Bottle

I was browsing through Pinterest one day and came a cross a DIY tutorial posted on Whitney's blog on how to glitter a champagne bottle. With the bachelorette party coming up I knew this would be the perfect gift! Being my first ever attempted DIY project from Pinterest I was a little nervous, but I think they turned out great.

Here is what you will need:

- Champagne Bottle (duh!)

- Modge Podge

- Glitter

- Finishing spray

- Small paint brush

So here is how you do it. In small sections paint the modge podge onto the bottle and then sprinkle glitter on top. You will want to cover the entire bottle, framing the labels. Once you have finished and let it dry completely, spray it with the finishing spray. Spray from a distance, not directly on the bottle, otherwise it could make the glitter less bright and sparkly. So simple, right! 

Here are a few tips I learned along the way. First make sure you have a nice open space to do this, preferable cover with newspaper or something because if you are anything like me you will make a mess. Second, make sure to wash the paint brush immediatly or it will be ruined forever (sorry Mom!). Finally, this was just a personal preference because I don't have the steadiest of hands, I used tape to frame the labels to make the whole process easier!

The bottles were definitely a hit at the party! They could work as a party favor or present for almost any occasion and they are seriously so easy to make. 

Have you ever attempted a DIY project you found on Pinterest? How did it turn out?

My First Weekend Home and a Bachelorette Party

 So remember how in my last post I talked about how American was overwhelming me? Well I had to forget all about that an hit the ground running my first weekend back in the States. One of my best friends is getting married in September and this past weekend was her bachelorette party. This was a weekend of firsts for me, my first ever bachelorette party and the first time seeing some of my best friends in over 30 months (except through the magic of Skype.)

For the first event of the day we went to the Siloppana Music Festival in Annapolis, MD, and for all of those who missed the obvious (like I did) the name of the festival is Annapolis spelled backwards. It was a beautiful day with amazing weather (and go me, no sunburn!). There were numerous great food trucks, offering a variety of food. Of course being a Maryland resident, I had missed out on eating crab for two summers in row, so I got a Crabby Patty, which was a cheeseburger with crab dip on top and it was incredible. There was also a wide variety of beer offered which thrilled me after two years of drinking watered down beer of Paraguay. It was a really fun day of listening to great music, dancing and just acting a fool with all my friends. 

*the bachelorette on the right

*Corey - one of the "bridesmaids"

At night, the bachelorette paraphernalia came out and the whole gang went out for dinner in downtown Annapolis and then went bar hopping for a night a fun and festivities. 

I don't know if I just can't handle America or I'm getting too old (never!) but, I slept all day Sunday to recover.

Coming to America.

After a fabulous vacation in the Bahamas I finally made it back to the United States after being away for over 30 months. As you may remember I had so many mixed emotions about coming home, excitement, anxiety, sadness about leaving Paraguay and so many more. Now that I'm back all those feelings are still here, I'm excited I have gotten to see my friends and family, but, I'm anxious about the future and still sad about being away my boyfriend and Paraguay.

All I can say is that America is over whelming. There are so many people everywhere and being in large crowds of people sometimes make me a little anxious, which is a feeling I have never experienced before. I'm getting used to things that I never had before Paraguay, like using my iPhone and all the fancy apps that come a long with it. I used Uber for the first time this weekend!

I also went to the grocery store for the first time today and boy was that an overwhelming experience. Just the sheer amount of options for every thing was insane, the number wheat thin flavors, kinds of cheese and types of chex mix blew me away. It took me at least 20 minutes to decide what kind of cereal I wanted to buy. It was also strange seeing the high prices for things that I used to get for free, like avocados, mangoes, oranges and so many more fruits and veggies.

I'm slowly falling back into some old habits that I had before. I was a little nervous to start driving again as I had only driven a car 2 times in the past two and half years but, once I started it was just like riding a bike, or I guess driving a car. It is nice to have my car and being able to go anywhere and do anything at the drop of a hat. In Paraguay if I needed to go somewhere I usually had to plan ahead (and walk long distances in the sweltering sun) to get anywhere.

Now, that I'm finally getting settled in, I'm going to start blogging on a regular basis again, and don't worry I'll let you know all about my trip to the Bahamas and my first weekend back in the US.

Sorry, I'm on Vacation!

Hey ya'll! I've been a little MIA lately and probably will be for another week or so. But, that is because I'm off visiting my sister and on vacation here on the beautiful  island of Eleuthera, Bahamas! Tell me if you were here would you be avoiding blogging too? But, I miss you guys so follow along on Intsagram!

How to Survive Long Layovers

As we speak, I'm on a day long trip from Asuncion, Paraguay to Eleuthera, Bahamas. The trip will take about 15 hours and and 3 different flights and layovers in Panama City, Panama and Nassau, Bahamas. Layovers can be tough. With all the excitement of traveling, being stuck in an airport for seemingly endless hours can make you a little crazy. Over my many years of traveling and flying, I've learned a few tricks on making long layovers fly by.

Sleep. This is an obvious and common one. Find a nice corner or bench that you feel comfortable in and take a nap. I usually make sure to wrap the strap of my carry-on around my arm or foot while I sleep to keep my stuff safe You should also set an alarm so you don't miss your flight.

Distract yourself. Do this by bringing a good book or fun magazines. If you have a laptop, tablet or mobile device load movies or TV shows on them ahead of time, especially ones you have never seen.

Get up, move around. Traveling can take a toll on your body, sitting on long flights can be uncomfortable. Take a walk around the terminals. Find a nice empty corner and stretch out and do some yoga or some squats and lunges, you may feel a little embarrassed but, who cares, people do all kinds of weird stuff in airports.

Eat and drink your layover away. Airplane food is the worst but airport food is quite the opposite. There can be some surprisingly amazing and diverse restaurants available to you. Check the airports website ahead of time to see what they offer and which terminal its in.

People watch. One of my favorite things about airports is all the people. There are all kinds of people there and sitting down, relaxing and watching people as they pass by can be quite entertaining.

Leave the airport and go sightseeing. Depending on how  long your layover is take advantage of the surrounding city and get out and explore! Leave your bags in a locker at a left luggage counter, just make sure you have your boarding pass and passport.

What are your tips for surviving a long layover?

Leaving Paraguay - Going Home

I can't promise this post will be coherent, it is probably going to be a collection of my ramblings but, I'll give it my best shot.

At 1 AM on Wednesday, practically still Tuesday, I will be getting on a plane and leaving Paraguay for the foreseeable future. I have never been so excited about something and dreaded it so much at the same time. It's been two and half years in this wonderful country, a time that at some points went by so slowly, but, overall went by so fast. 

I'm so excited to go back to the United States, a place I haven't been in almost 30 months, to be with my family and friends, to eat all of the food I missed and to move onto the next step in life. But, going home means leaving behind the tranquilo life I've grown to love, the friends I've made, and the hardest part is the starting of a very long-distance relationship. Coming to Paraguay I didn't expect to fall in love, fall in love with this country or with my boyfriend, so it makes leaving even harder.  I've never had a big problem with change, I think its actually something that excites me, hence joining the Peace Corps and moving to a different country, but, this time I want to be able to have it both ways, to keep the new and the old. Obviously I know that is impossible, that is why these past few weeks have been so stressful. 

While most of my future is unknown right now, I am unsure of what I'll be doing when I get home. Getting a job? Applying to Grad School? Traveling? Who knows? I do have a few things to look forward to. Before I get home, I'm going to make a stopover in the Bahamas. Yes, the Bahamas! My sister is doing an internship there and she finished next week, so we'll be heading home together! Then in September, Jose (the boyfriend) is coming to visit! Only for 16 days, but its better than nothing. 

I might be MIA for the next week or so, I don't know what my internet situation will be like in the Bahamas. But, follow along for updates about my trip in paradise when I get back and how I readjust to life in America.