The trip to Colorado was a wonderful one! The taster and I walked around Denver so much that my legs actually hurt! (Sedentary job much?) The food was fantastic, some interesting drinks were had (a cucumber mojito that will have to be re-created) and I love that flip flops and a fleece are totally acceptable for pretty much everything! I’ll spare you every last detail and get right to my favorites:

Dinner at Rioja was amazing to say the least. It was recommended to us by friends and we would have gone back every night if not for the sake of variety. My favorite was the paella gnocchi: “rice crusted saffron gnocchi, PEI mussels, Hawaiin blue prawn, calamari, orange scented chicken sausage, artichoke hearts, smoked paprika tomato broth.” Could be a strong contender for the best thing I ever ate.

Daily trips to Larimer Square (Mary Beth I thought you would like the anthro-like banners in the street)

Rockies Game

Pictures around Denver

Day trip to Estes Park

Fondue & Flowers in Boulder, which I’m convinced is the hippiest city ever, in addition to being the home of many of my favorite food brands: Justin’s Nut Butter, Simply Boulder Sauces, Skinny Crisps, Celestial Seasonings, etc…

Red Rocks Amphitheater and some very necessary stair-climbing.

The Denver Art Museum

On my Birthday, a friend told me that 27 is the best year of your life and I must say, it is off to a great start. One of the presents I received, from my much-too generous friends, was some truffle salt and at first I didn’t really know what to do with it, other than sprinkle over french fries, but a quick internet search gave me a whole list of ideas – and pasta was one of them.

It turned out to be a meal that came together in minutes, but tasted so luxurious. I can’t wait to use the truffle salt again, I have a feeling it will start showing up on a regular basis.

Truffled Pasta with Spinach 4 servings

• 8 oz whole grain pasta
• 1/2 Tbsp olive oil
• 5 oz spinach
• pinch of truffle salt
• drizzle of truffle oil

Cook pasta as directed. Add olive oil to large pan, once hot, add pasta and spinach. Stir until spinach has wilted. Season with pepper, truffle salt and a drizzle of truffle oil.

*Note: I added a lot more spinach because it was also serving as the vegetable for my meal, so feel free to add any amount