With a few exceptions, we eat mostly the same menu every week. And our menu is primarily Tanzanian foods.

While there are certain Tanzanian foods I really love–nyama choma, for instance–there are a few I absolutely cannot stand. So when those particular meals come up in the rotation–like dagaa and ugali* for lunch on Fridays–I seek out an alternative. This week I pulled out my last box of Kraft Macaroni & Cheese. When Max and Elly–who happen to love dagaa and ugali–see the iconic blue box, they refer to it as “mzungu food.” Mzungu is the Swahili word used to refer to white people, which Max and Elly do not consider themselves to be.

The truth is I don’t really even think Kraft Macaroni & Cheese tastes all that good. But it does taste familiar. Some days that’s the most important thing about what I eat.

And even though they tease me about eating mzungu food, Max and Elly still want their share.

*In a future post I’ll explain exactly what dagaa and ugali is.