Happy Monday 🙂 I hope everyone had a great weekend!
Chris went out a day early for a work conference, so the first night we stayed at the Red Rocks Resort. Besides the cocktail hour for the conference, we spent our first evening away from the strip in our hotel. Chris had a long day at the conference and I got in late, so it was more of a laid-back evening.
We were greeted by a gorgeous gift basket in our beautiful suite, courtesy of Kern River (thanks!) with all sorts of goodies.
We gambled a little bit after our meal (penny slots) – we lost $25 at first but won it back on a bonus round plus $15 .
What did we do with our “high-roller” earnings?!? Instead of trying our luck again at the slots, we decided to stop by Ben and Jerry’s for a midnight snack dessert…we had no idea it was so late, they keep those casinos lighted in a way that you have NO idea what time it is!
I thoroughly enjoyed my double scoop of Mint Chocolate Chunk while Chris had one scoop of Chunky Monkey and another of Cherry Garcia in a waffle cone. Great night, no?
The next morning was breakfast with Chris’ boss, his wife and a two other couples in the natural gas industry at the Grand Cafe – a “California” Omelet for me – tomatoes, spinach and goat cheese with hashbrowns and granola, yogurt and eggs for the hubby.
That afternoon, we strolled down the strip – stopping at the Venetian, the Bellagio and a few little shops here and there. One being the Guiradelli store that was handing out free samples of their new Pumpkin Spice Caramel…hmmm pumpkin!
An impressionist painting in form of live plants, flowers and herbs!
And a GIANT pumpkin- and yes ma’am, it was real! 835 pounds of pumpkin…and who said there was a shortage this year?
Lunch was at Wolfgang Puck’s Postorio in The Venetian – loved this little spot in the center of the Grand Canal Shoppes – I shared a beautiful salad of endive, apple, fennel, dates, raisins, blue cheese and sherry vinagrette. I will have to make my own rendition of this salad at home sometime in the future!
We walked around the Venetian after lunch – I was in complete awe of the canals and the decor – it really looked like you were outside!
Afterward, we hung out in the Aria for a while, I read a bit while Chris napped and then we got dressed up for dinner at Eva Longoria’s Beso. Simply beautiful restaurant and absolutely stunning food. Chris had a filet and said it was the best steak he’d ever eaten. I didn’t want to get the same meal as him (that’s no fun!) so I opted for a luxurious beet salad for an appetizer with goat cheese fondue and candied walnuts (TO DIE FOR) and ordered a pan-seared sea bass with crispy-fried harissa potatoes, avocado pico de gallo and a creamy lump crab beurre blanc…so extremely decadent and worth every last calorie 🙂 I shared the ice cream with raspberry coulis that came alongside Chris’s fudge cake for dessert…needless to say, we walked rolled out the door more than stuffed but quite satisfied.
I wasn’t lying when I mentioned I ate my way through Vegas 🙂 I must say though, I am glad I live in a slower-pace environment – I could never keep up!
All that being said – I returned to Denver in much need of sleep and some clean food to counteract all the heavy (but delicious) meals and late night outs we experienced over the weekend. When I saw Sonia’s refreshing version of a Raw Cauliflower “Detox” Salad at The Healthy Foodie, I knew what I was making for lunch!
I know what you are thinking – raw cauliflower, carrots and apples with a light lemon-maple vinagrette? Sounds strange but it was so simple, light and delicious..exactly what I needed! I’m not usually a fan of raw cauliflower but this salad won me over. The dried black cherries, Granny Smith apple and golden raisins add a light sweetness to the crunchy salad of carrots and cauliflower while the lemon juice, maple syrup and apple cider vinegar compliment the flavors perfectly!
1. In a food processor, add the cauliflower and pulse (no stems) until fine. Add into large bowl.
2. Now process the carrots until fine or shredded and add into bowl.
3. Stir in the apple, cilantro/parsley or mint, dried cherries, raisins, walnuts and pepitas. Toss to combine.
4. In a small bowl, add lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, oil, maple syrup, salt and pepper and whisk to combine. Add dressing to cauliflower mixture and toss to combine. Enjoy!
Looks like you had a fantastic trip! I hope I get to see Vegas someday. It looks so HUGE and fast. Not sure I’d want to stay long, but I have to at least see it.
Not that I would call that salad “the price” though. It’s sooo good, which is suprising given the quantity of raw cauliflower that goes into it. But for some reason, it seems like you can eat this forever without ever getting tired of it. All the flavors work so well together. I’m real glad I found that one on Angela’s site. It’s a definite keeper.
It was wonderful! You should definitely go once in your life, it’s unreal and crazy huge!
I need to work on homemade version of the beet salad with the goat cheese fondue (which was more like a dressing underneath the beets) but it was gorgeous!
Whole foods, Angela and you all have great tastes as this salad was awesome and SO much more that what I expected from raw veggies?!? I just finished the last bowl this afternoon, I’ll be making this again for sure!