I ate new things!!!!

I know, I know. That NEVER happens, right? Jen, try new foods? Impossible. But I did. And Anthony and Paul are my witnesses!

On Marco's last night here in the states, we went out to dinner with him and his family on his dad's side (we are his Mom's side of the family) and there was no getting around it - we were doing things the Lebanese way. No excuses, no backing out. :-)

This is what our table looked like. Look at all that food! The empty basket in front of me was pita bread, but we ate all that!!!
Happy Brothers eating good food:

Saddie (and Paul) with her Felaflels. She loves them.

So here is a list of the new things I tried:
- Hummus
- Almond Rice
- Chicken Shawarma
- and a Lebanese dessert that I can neither spell nor pronounce, but it was essentially a rice pudding soaked in Rose Water with Bananas, Strawberries, and Honey on top. Looks like this:

My Dinner: Shish Kabab (so beef on a stick) with Almond Rice! Yummy!So, here is where it all stood on the Jen eat-o-meter: Hummus - gross. Texture and taste are just NOT for me.

Almond Rice - AH-MAZING!!!!! Loved it. Sooo good. I want to learn how to make it at home. And Saddie (Marco's Aunt) said she'd teach me! Whoo!!!!

Shawarma - Pretty good. Not my favorite, but I'd eat it if that is what they were "serving for dinner" so that is a step in the right direction!

Dessert - YUCK! I immediately tasted the rose water and nothing else, and then the texture of a thick, sticky, rice pudding set in, and I had to wash it down with some coke!!! BUT the point is, I tried it. And they were proud of me for that. Cool!

Oh - and the first night we met them all (2 days after Marco arrived), I tried Kafta for the first time which is a ground beef mixed with a whole bunch of herbs and spices, and grilled on open flame inside a piece of pita bread. That was yummy too! Even Gaby (Anthony's Dad) was proud of me for trying that one!

It was great fun, and we had a blast laughing about my silly eating habits. I'm so glad to have had the chance to get to know more of Anthony's family. They are wonderful people and (now that we know where they live/how close they are!) we'll be seeing them much more often. Cheers to new adventures!!

Take #1 - Saddie trying to feed me - a theme in Lebanese families - EAT MORE!
Ok, normal, nice family. We miss you, Marco!
-Jen