dreaming of miami – cuban food care package

Some good friends of ours were supposed to spend a sunny, fun-filled weekend with us back in March. They had to cancel their much needed trip at the very last minute. It is the strangest thing to be happy that your friends cancel a trip to see you. That sounds odd, right? Well, it was for the BEST reason. They got word that they were bringing home a sweet little boy of their very own. They got the adoption call the same week they were scheduled to come down here. Baby > Miami. This has been a long, hard road for them so I have baby stuff I’ve been hoarding for a while. I couldn’t get it all together in time and they still had to wait for the little guy to make it to their home so my first care package was a Miami consolation prize – a Cuban food care package of their very own.

Cuban food makes lots of things better. Sometimes too much so, which is possibly why my butt is so big. I figured some easy to make and tasty treats for Miami would make their wait for their little boy easier. It ended up arriving after he was placed but that doesn’t mean it is not getting good use during these sleep-deprived wonderful first months.

Here are some close ups of what I bought:

• Cuban coffee is a necessity for tired parents. Liquid jet fuel.
• Black beans. No Cuban meal is complete without them.
• Mojo and Adobo for seasoning all your savory food.
• Yuca. I have never made it from a can but you can only ship so much 😉
• Maria cookies. A classic served with Cafe con leche (coffee and milk).
• Pork chicharones (pork rinds). A not-so-healthy but yummy treat.

• Yellow rice. Because who doesn’t like rice?
• Black beans and rice easy to cook packet for those extra busy nights.
• Plantain chips. We eat plantains any way they can be cooked, this is the easy to ship, no cooking needed variety.
• Flan. A classic dessert staple.

Now I’m hungry. I wish I had some of these items from the Cuban food care package now to snack on. Have you seen any of these brands or products in grocery stores near you? What is your favorite type of care package to send?