List #17 - Irreplaceable Products

Being a Texan living in Australia, people often ask what I miss most.  For many people living away from "home", this question is not uncommon.  For all of us expats, there are people, places, and things that we miss.

Tex-Mex (a cuisine that is a fusion between Mexican and Texan foods), without a doubt, is what I crave the most when I'm away from Texas.  Other things that I miss?  Reasonably-priced make-up. (My mom always includes a mascara or lip gloss when she sends me care packages).  An affordable house cleaner (Isabel used to come to my house every other week, clean it perfectly, for only $35.  Man, do I miss Isabel).  Sonic. Taco Bell. Chick-Fil-A.  Oh, there are other things...but I've learned to live without them or find substitutes.

The following items are products that I miss where they are just no substitutes:

1.  Velveeta, or any other product that is processed cheese in a velvety smooth finish that can be made into chile con queso - This a pretty much a Tex-Mex thing.  It shouldn't be.  Smooth, melted cheese (or granted, a cheese-like product) should be appreciated by so many others.  You don't know what you're missing.  I've tried recipes that claim to be chile con queso without Velveeta.  I can't get it to taste anywhere close to what I'm missing.

2.  Bath & Body Works Body Cream - For me, this is the perfect consistency for a body moisturizer with fragrance.  I pretty much don't where any other perfume, and I always get compliments on how I smell.  I've tried other products since living here; nothing works quite as well for me.

3.  Blue Bell Ice Cream - First off, it's "the best ice cream in the country"; that's what they're advertising says, and we know all ads speak the truth.  Well, in this case, it does speak the truth.  The creamy goodness of Blue Bell ice cream is described in this post from textraveler.com - or if you are in the continental US, and you really want to treat yourself, go to their website and order some.  It's really that good, y'all.

4.  Green Goddess salad dressing - Australia has Kraft products.  Australia has salad dressings.  Australians eat a lot of salads.  This is not one available, and this is my favorite.  During this search, I found a recipe to make it.  I'm gonna try that.

www.hiddenvalley.com

5.  Hidden Valley Ranch packets - While we're talking about salad dressings, Australia has some Ranch dressings offered at some stores...but never Hidden Valley (which is the best) and never the packets.  They are so great for cooking and flavoring chicken or to make veggie dips.  Sure, I can look up a cheat recipe, buy all the ingredients, and mix it myself, but that ain't very convenient (or inexpensive).

www.vicks.com

6.  Anytime I am in need of a "sniffling, sneezing, coughing, aching, stuffy head, fever, so you can rest medicine", I want NyQuil.  Again, there are substitutes, but none that work as well for me as NyQuil.

Okay...before I post pictures of the next three items, let's get something cleared up: I love cheese.  All things cheese.  Even substitute cheeses (as if you couldn't tell by the first item in this list).  I know Americans have a weird orange-y cheese that exists nowhere else in the world, but I love it.  It's comfort food for me.  Australia has cheesy flavored items, but none that are quite the same.  Fortunately, I can skip over these super bad snack items in Australia, but I can't pass them up in the US.

7.  Crunchy Cheetos - Australia has the puffed ball Cheetos; I don't want those.  I want the Crunchy Cheetos.  Australia has Twisties, similar size and crunch, but different taste.  I want the Crunchy Cheetos.

8.  Cheez-Its and/or Cheese Nips - Yep, more cheesy goodness.  They try to tell you these are made with real cheese and "baked", so somehow they're not bad for you.  They're bad, very bad...but oh-so-good.

If you were to move to another country, what product would you need to pack just-in-case they didn't have it in your new place of residence?