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When you come back from a vacation, you have a sad face.

We just got back from a very warm, very sunny, very extra relaxing vacation to Arizona and I think I might have mentioned it a million times already. I am still grieving the loss of the vacation, but I am excited to show you some pictures of the trip highlights! Sometimes I need two posts to get my act together, and today I have half of the vacation photos in my post.

But wait a second! There is a salad salad. Okay, okay.

Almonds, spinach, pea shoots, avocados, cilantro, garlic, and olive oil are on the plate this week. It’s good for your body, mouth and flavor. Thank you for asking, I think I will add a sprinkle of Feta cheese to my salad. That is the way I do these things.

Is it possible that I will announce my new green discovery of the week? Pearl shoots.

Hey handsome. Let me think that those little sprouty guys are delicious. I found them at Trader Joe’s, but maybe they are sold at all grocery stores? I would not know. I still don’t know much about the new vegetables.

Let’s talk about Arizona highlights after lunch on tasty greens. The first stop.

Grandma and Grandpa’s House

My grandparents are from Minnesota and migrate south every winter to enjoy the sunny paradise of A-Z. We like to crash at their place and eat my Grandma’s cooking and play frisbee with my Grandpa and chill out under the orange trees in their backyard because it works out well for us.

We had a long breakfast table talk after we ate some of the things we found in the backyard. After drinking some coffee, talking about life, and getting a refill of orange juice, you have to grab one more croissants. Was anyone going to eat the last half of the croissant here? That is the way we roll at grandma’s house.

The orange trees are my favorite part of going to Arizona in the spring. It was like, WOW. The orange trees smell like a dream during this time of year, because they have those pretty little white flowers over and over. Whenever the snack attack hits, you can pick up fresh oranges.

What do they call it when a person is sneezing left and right? All I know is that the smell of the orange blossoms is one of my favorite smells in the world. It is similar to breathing in candy-sweet fruit SUGAR OXYGEN all day. It is just incredible.

I was able to stay with my grandparents and eat grandma’s lemon pie after every meal for three days straight.

Don’t be foolish, next time. We might set up shop for a bit longer.

Montelucia Resort and Spa

So after part one of the ultimate relaxation, we moved on to part two: Montelucia Resort and Spa.

I would like to tell you that most of the time, Bjork doesn’t wear pants or a sweatshirt at the pool. But, it’s not good. I have no idea. He isn’t really a fan of the sun.

The kind of resort where you don’t have to go to the real spa to feel like you’re there is this one. Do you know what I’m talking about? It has a close-your- eyes-and-feel-good vibe about it. I spent most of my time at the pool, reading The Book Thief, crying for a few minutes into Bjork’s sunscreened shoulder over The Book Thief, eating french fries like a good vacationer, and reading and eating Divergent.

Finding a good pool or beach set up is not something that we do well, we are that couple that goes half sun and half shade, so finding a good pool or beach set up is not something that we do well. We usually end up on the other side of the pool, where we can just eat dinner. Montelucia has two pristine pools, shady umbrellas, comfy chairs, palm trees, incredible mountainous view, and mesmerizing fountains that made for a perfect pool experience, and once we found our half-and-half spot, we were each in our happy places.

We had this gorgeous room overlooking the mountain/pool/fountain/greens and flower and palm trees and such. If you want to see more thoughtful, less rushed-to-get-to-the-pool pictures of the room, check it on out. My favorite part which is partially pictured here was our spacious patio.

Although a close second for me would have to be the bathroom. Like, seriously. There was gold, glass, patterns, textures, clean lines, and sparkly things. One thing worth mentioning: I LOVE NICE BATHROOMS. Good thing we bought an old house with a sort of weird small bathroom, right? Mmhm.

I was on Spring Break from my job as an elementary school teacher this week, but the funny thing is that I can do my other job from anywhere. The kind of relaxing where you don’t do any work was what we tried to do.

We are also the kind of people who like to relax by going to the pool, catching up on email, and then reading another book. Sometimes it is hard to pull away because there is a lot to do, and both of us love our work. I mean that in the most serious, reverent way possible, and that’s what a gift is. We are grateful.

I got some work done on my website on the patio in the sun with coffee in hand and a muffin at my side. That cannot be work, right? But I think it was. It felt like a vacation. What is happening?

I’m sure that you’re aware of this. I have a chicken pox scar on my forehead, which is perfect for a person who looks closely at faces. We can be friends now that we know about the scars I had on my face.

So.

What a beautiful place. We loved it. Thanks to Montelucia for showing us such warm (literally) hospitality! I would totally for sure in a heartbeat recommend this resort to anyone looking for a nice place to stay in the Phoenix/Scottsdale area. Actually, a few of you commented on Instagram and said that you had been here, too, so I know we’ve got some fans in the group already.

We are hoping that we will be back. I could start chanting if I closed my eyes and tapped my heels three times.

Er, too much sun.

The main event in this post is the salad.

When I return from vacation, I like to eat at a restaurant that I have eaten at before. The green goddess salad is a good choice.

We ate at Prado, the restaurant at Montelucia (wait though, go look at the main picture on their website and see how gorgeous it is and imagine how romantic it is at night, and then forgive me for not taking more pictures). One of the incredible parts of my meal was a shredded kale salad with house made Green Goddess dressing and cool creamy chunks of avocado. Yummy yumm yum-diddly-doo. I thought to myself –> go home and make Green Goddess dressing.

I made a salad with some other healthy things that would help me recover from the time I ate french fries and quesadillas on the beach. This could be just as good. I love that this salad makes my body glowy and powerful and healthy, and I love everything in it. Or something.

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Chopped Green Goddess Salad

None

• Author:

  Pinch of Yum, dressing adapted from A Couple Cooks

• Total Time:

  12 minutes

• Yield:

  4

  1

  x

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Description

The Green Goddess salad has a lot of good ingredients, like almonds, herbs, and a delicious Green Goddess dressing.

Ingredients

Scale

Salad Ingredients

• 4 cups

  spinach

• 1

  –

  2

  cups pea shoots

• 1/2 cup

  feta cheese

• 1/2 cup

  almonds, crushed or chopped

• 1

  avocado, cut into chunks

Green Goddess Dressing

• 1/2

  jalapeño pepper (I left the ribs and seeds – it was spicy and delicious)

• 2/3 cup

  Greek yogurt

• Juice from

  1

  lime

• 1/4 cup

  olive oil

• 1/2 teaspoon

  salt

• 1 tablespoon

  agave nectar

• 1/2 teaspoon

  minced garlic

• 1/2 cup

  packed cilantro

• 2

  scallions

Instructions

1. When the texture feels right, add the cilantro last and I went for small green pieces of scallion and cilantro.
2. The salad ingredients should be tossed together with the dressing.

Notes

This isn’t a “detox” salad because I included a small amount of feta and Greek yogurt. If it isn’t close enough for you, it’s also easy to remove both of those ingredients. If you want to use almond butter for the dressing, just increase the amount of oil and acid slightly. Enjoy it!

• Prep Time:

  10 mins

• Cook Time:

  2 mins

• Category:

  Lunch

• Cuisine:

  American

The green goddess salad is a healthy salad recipe.

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