I met my best friend Michelle when I was just 14 years old.  After we got over first impressions and our initial dislike for each other, we became the best of friends and remain so to this day.  We survived high school together.  We “hung out” together ALL. THE. TIME.  We would call each other in the morning before school just to see what we were going to wear that day. We would sit by each other in class and tell inside jokes and laugh hysterically until we were separated to opposite ends of the room.    We would chat on the phone late into the evening rehashing our daily events.  On weekends, we would have sleepovers followed by a late morning trip to the donut shop in our pajamas and slippers.  We were inseparable.

When we graduated from high school, we went on to attend the same college.  There we were roommates.  We lived the dorm life together.  We made great new friends with the girls on our hall but when the occasional homesickness set in, we cried to each other.  We discovered things like credit cards, clubs and bonfires on the beach.  We helped each other get ready for dates and would stay up waiting to hear all the details afterwards. We supported each other through relationships and heartbreaks.  In college, we learned who we were and what we wanted to be.

Soon after college, I stood by my best friend Michelle while she said her vows on her wedding day.  Not long after, she did the same for me.  We both married, had jobs, and lived miles apart.  However, we kept in constant contact on the telephone.

When I had my first baby, she and her husband drove 500 miles to meet him.  Two months later, we made that same road trip to meet her new baby girl.  A little over two years after our first babies were born, Michelle welcomed her second child into this world and THE VERY NEXT DAY I welcomed mine.  Less than eight months later, I was unexpectedly horrified surprised when I discovered I was pregnant again!  Michelle swore that she WOULD NOT be signing up for round three with me quite yet.  However, it was only a matter of days before she had to make that very humbling phone call.  She was pregnant too!

Those early years of motherhood, of having three babies in three years, were barely survivable.  However daily phone calls in the midst of nursings, diaper changes, and toddler tantrums, with someone who was living this same life and could relate completely made it so much more manageable.

Michelle and I grew up together.  She is a part of my family and I a part of hers.   We have walked alongside each other at each life stage, high school, college, marriage, motherhood… I can’t imagine having a better best friend than her.

I couldn’t help but reflect upon all these things as I stood by Michelle’s side a few short weeks ago.  Her Dad was dying, a man who loved her more than anything in this world, a man who was very much a part of my growing up years.  She needed me and I needed her.  Together we stood, next to her Dad’s bedside, tears streaming from both our eyes, as I said my last goodbyes to an amazing man, father, and grandpa.  He passed away only days later.

I am so incredibly saddened by his passing but my heart breaks even more for Michelle.  To watch a friend lose her first love, her father, is heart wrenching.  However, I can’t help but to feel blessed to have been given the gift of a few moments with Michelle’s Dad in his last days, to tell him exactly how much he meant to me.  He truly was a remarkable man,  much like his daughter, my best friend Michelle.

This semi-homemade salad is one of Michelle’s quick and easy go to recipes and has become a favorite of mine as well, easy peasy and delicious!

Quick and Easy Spinach Salad
1 Bag of Trader Joes Spinach Salad (with cranberries, candied pecans, blue cheese and raspberry vinaigrette)
1 (11 oz.) can mandarin oranges
1 Granny Smith apple
1 green onion
1 avocado

Dice the apple and avocado.  Drain the mandarin oranges.  Thinly slice the green onion.

Place the baby spinach in a large bowl and top with apples, avocados, mandarin oranges, cranberries, candied pecans, blue cheese and green onions.  Reserve some of the toppings to pretty up your salad once plated.

Pour  1/2 to 3/4 of the raspberry vinaigrette over the salad and toss.

 Sprinkle with reserved toppings and serve.

Enjoy!

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Heat broiler, with rack set 4 inches from heat.
Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil.

Source:  adapted from Martha Stewart Everyday Food

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I am on vacation right now in beautiful Lake Chelan, Washington.  I knew I would be too busy building sand castles, enjoying boat rides, and reading trashy magazines while laying out on the beach to write a post this week so instead I have a special guest post for you from one of my favorite food bloggers.  Take it away Reeni….

Hi! This is Reeni a.k.a. Cinnamon Girl from Cinnamon Spice and Everything Nice. I’m guest hosting for Allie while she is on vacation. I hope you enjoy my salad and will give it a try!

This recipe is a recreation of one of my favorite salads from my favorite diner. It is packed with blue cheese, pecans, dried cranberries and topped with grilled chicken. The creamiest, most-delicious, homemade honey mustard you can imagine is drizzled over top.

The textures and different flavors in this salad make it so fun to eat. My taste buds are totally addicted to tart and sweet flavor pairs. I love dried cranberries! They take on a whole new life compared to fresh ones. They are sweeter, less tart and the contrast between them and the bite from the bleu cheese is off the flavor charts. Soft, savory, sweet, smoky, salty, crunchy, chewy, creamy, crisp, tangy, tender and juicy; this salad has it all!

It is the most perfect Summer dinner salad. You can throw the chicken on the grill and have the dressing and salad assembled in the time it takes to cook. And it is nothing short of sublime! Light yet filling and completely addicting!

The great thing about this salad is you can make it for one or for a crowd. You can adjust how big or how little you want the salad to be. That’s why I haven’t included measurements for the salad fixin’s. But be on the generous side. They really make the salad.

Red, White and Blue Grilled Chicken Salad
(by Reeni)

For the salad

Chicken breast, boneless, skinless
Romaine hearts, chopped
Dried Cranberries
Pecans or Walnuts
Blue Cheese, crumbled

For the dressing*

2 tablespoons Dijon Mustard
3 tablespoons Honey
2 teaspoons Rice Vinegar
Salt and pepper
Mayonnaise (optional)

1. Pound out your chicken breasts between saran wrap using a mallet to your own desired thickness. Season well with salt and pepper. Grill until cooked through.

2. Meanwhile toast the pecans or walnuts in a dry saute pan for about five to seven minutes on low tossing a few times.

3. In a food processor emulsify the mustard, honey and vinegar. Taste and adjust to your liking by adding more honey or more mustard. If too thick thin with a little more vinegar. Season with salt and pepper. For a creamy dressing add a teaspoon or two of mayonnaise. I save my empty honey bear bottles for storing my home-made dressings in. *For creamy honey-mustard in a pinch mix equal parts Ranch dressing and honey mustard.

4. Assemble your salad, start with the romaine and top with generous amounts of cranberries, walnuts and bleu cheese. Drizzle with honey-mustard and top with the grilled chicken.

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Thanks for asking me to guest post Allie! It’s been a pleasure!

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When I was single and making all of my own financial decisions, Nordstrom was a place I frequented often.  The Nordstrom Cafe was a place I ate at regularly.  The one and only thing that I would ever order on my visits to the Cafe was their Mixed Berry Chicken Salad.  It is by far the most delicious salad I have ever eaten.  Now that I am married (to a man who hates to shop) and have three little ones (who also happen to be terrible shoppers), I rarely go to Nordstrom and I never eat at the Nordstrom Cafe.  Occasionally I miss my shopping and eating at Nordstrom days.  However I do find condolence in the fact that I have been able to recreate the Mixed Berry Chicken Salad in my very own home and eat it in the company of my four well loved though non-shopping family members. 

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