I'm just here for the food!

Eventually I will post about the notes I took in all the wonderfully uplifting classes I attended. But today's Women's Conference post is dedicated to one of the best things in life: food, glorious food.

For some reason I feel that I can spend ridiculous amounts of money for special treats I can't get anywhere else. You have already seen the pictures of the cheese curds and lemon custard ice cream I had on the way to Provo. Here are a few pictures of the wonderful delicacies I partook of during my two days at BYU.
These are the best yummy-i-licious spiced almonds. And of course they taste better in the blue and white paper cone. Last year I waited until the last day and stood in a ridiculously long line. But I learned from my mistakes and this year I grabbed some up the first morning. Good thing, because I never had the chance to buy lunch, so they had to sustain me all day long. We all missed lunch because we never wanted to stand in a long line, and so when the afternoon session was over we rushed to our favorite Italian place La Dolce Vita. Yes this is where I ate with Diana just two weeks ago. I got the pasta this time and it was yummy.

The next morning I had this divine mint brownie for breakfast. So good!!!

Later that day I had a delightful chicken taco salad for Costa Vida. Sadly I was so hungry that I ate it before I remembered to take a picture of it. Dang, I hate it when that happens.

Here is my sister Kris purchasing strawberries and whip cream for the crepes we would have for breakfast thanks to my sister Jen. We also had Nutella with the strawberry crepes. Heaven on earth, I tell ya. Just as good as IHOP.

And finally our two sister in laws joined us for a feast at Brick Oven. It was scrumptious pizza and conversation. Such good times. I am so blessed to have these wonderful women in my life. Glad to know I am stuck with them for eternity as well. There was much laughing and sharing and feasting. It was the perfect end to a perfect day.

And don't you think great food makes everything better.

Green Eggs and Ham

Here is one good thing about living in Vegas, people do come to visit. This weekend is the basketball championship tournament for the Mountain West Conference. Yeah, for BYU making it to the finals. This may surprise some, but I am not that big of a basketball fan. Of course since it is BYU, I am rooting for them to win, but it is just not the same as football for me. However, the good news is that my aunt Sally Sue and my cousin Dean came up from Mesa to attend the game. Marion and Jared were on a campout, and Trent spent the night at a friends house, so we had more than enough room. Sally was kind enough to take Diana and I out to IHOP for breakfast this morning. Diana was so excited because she has seen the commercials advertising the Green Eggs and ham and Who cakes. She also got this Who drink, which was sprite with blue and red jello chunks floating in it. Go figure. Here she is preparing to enjoy the festive feast. And here is a close up of her food. It turns out she does not like Green Eggs and Ham, not in a box, not with a fox, not in a house, not with a mouse. But she did thoroughly enjoy the Who cakes. Above is a lovely shot of my aunt and cousin. Thanks Dean, for the wonderful shot of SEE food. Come again any time, and GO COUGS in the championship game this afternoon.

Sometimes things don't change, Yay!

While we were in Utah in December, we took advantage of some free time to eat at some of our favorite restaurants. The first stop we made was to "La Dolce Vita". This is a great Italian place we discovered while living in Provo. We used to eat there about one a week, when I was working and we had quite a lot of disposable income. I love the spinach calzone, and it was still just as good. Marion got the pasta and gnocchi. Tragically, I forgot my purse with my camera so I don't have a picture of this outing. Dang. I will try to get over the disappointment.

The other place we were able to visit was the "Brick Oven". They specialize in pizza and have great root beer. They would have free root beer on Mondays, and we used to order in often to eat while we watched Monday night football. This is us with my two brothers and their wives. The food was still just as yummy. It is very comforting when some things in this life stay the same. And it was enjoyable taking a walk down memory lane. For some reason it was very cold at this pizzeria and hence we are wearing our coats. Ah, good times.

On the Ninth Day of Christmas.....

life's blessing gave to me NINE DELICIOUS DELICACIES. Today I decided to pay tribute to my favorite holiday goodies. These are things that I love to eat during the Holidays. Each one brings a special memory and you always know that it is Christmas when one of these treats are being served. So here they are in no special order. I don't have time to post the recipes right now, but if anyone wants one, I would gladly share. Just let me know.
1. Divinity- This is a yummy sugar confection that tastes like fluffy heaven. I have even managed to become proficient at making the stuff. Usually if I do not go home, I try to ship some to Seattle. Not this year, sorry guys.
2. Peanut Brittle - I pretty much adore the peanut in any form. Toffee is also one of my favorites, hence peanut brittle is an awesome mix of two of my favorite things. This is another candy I enjoy making. Another great toffee thing is almond roca. I am lucky to have a sister who makes this every year and shares.
3. Artichoke Dip - Artichoke hearts, cheese, and garlic...need I say more. This is a mouthwatering recipe that I found in the Desseret News and it is scrumptious. One great thing about this is nobody else in my family likes it. This means I get to eat it all by myself. I love this stuff so much I can eat it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner and never be tired of it.
4. Reese's Peanut butter cup Cookies- These are the most addictive, moreish kind of cookie, I think I have ever had. I got this recipe from a cookie exchange when I first moved to Vegas. As long as you like peanut butter, you will love this cookie baked in a mini muffin tin with a peanut butter cup pressed down in it once it is done cooking.
5. Brie cheese & French bread - My parents lived in France before I was born and learned to love bread and cheese. This was always part of our Christmas day smorgasbord. I love this and eat it all through the year, not just at Christmas. The luscious, soft cheese spread on the crusty bread, yummy!
6. Sugar Cookies - Of course no Christmas season would be complete without sugar cookies. Sometimes I run out of energy for this project, but I remember always doing it as a child. My recipe has lemon extract in it and I find that to be quite enjoyable.
7. Spinach Dip - I first tasted this recipe at a New Year's eve party in Riverside. Years later, I am so glad that I asked for this recipe. I would have to say that I make this more often than about anything. It is so good and great for baby showers. It is so simple, I will put this one on here: 1 box frozen spinach thawed and drained, 1 can water chestnuts chopped, 1 box Knorr leek soup mix, 1 cup sour cream, 1 cup mayonnaise. Mix all together and serve on sourdough bread cubes or crackers.
8. Honey Candy - This is something my Grandma Nelson would always make for us when I was growing up. The other day Diana was looking through my recipe box and pulled this one out. I do not remember ever making it. Just thinking of it, brought back fond memories of pulling the candy once it was cooked. My Grandma Tanner would always send these special shaped suckers to us in her package. I have good memories of those as well.
9. Cinnamon Rolls - This recipe is from my Aunt Shauna. They are known as her famous cinnamon rolls because they are so delightful. It is interesting because they have mashed potatoes in the dough. How exquisite to have tempting sweets to eat on Christmas morning.