Such a lovely (and delicious!) weekend! I got to meet and see a whole bunch of fantastic bloggers, like Shirley of GFE, Valerie of City Life Eats, Debi of Hunters Lyoness, Linda of Gluten-free Homemaker, Heather of Gluten free Cat, Andrea of Rockin Gluten Free and Denise San Filippo.
I figured that the best way to make new friends was to come with 2 chocolate cakes. It seems like that was a reasonable strategy. 😎 They’re my new chocolate mint cake with a not-so-secret ingredient (recipe to come soon) and my chocolate chestnut cake.
Of course, there was a ton of amazing food there. I’m new to taking phone pics, so I didn’t get shots of everything, and I am still on a learning curve, so bear with me!
My favorite sweet treat was probably Linda’s Grain Free Date balls Although they weren’t terribly photogenic, (and let’s be honest–I forgot to take a picture) they kept going right into my mouth. They were delicious, of course, and had the perfect amount of sweetness for me.
The food…oh man, the food. Every meal was quite the experience. Some highlights:
A vegan feast with spiralized carrot noodles, Valerie’s Cashew Cheese and some fresh greens.
Heather made these amazing tacos with jicama wrappers! I’ve never thought of that before, but need to do that again. Mine was filled with Shirley’s potato hash and some serious guac.
Debi had her Java Ice Cream. Because of the agar I just had a tiny taste, but WOW! It was amazing. The picture is from Debi’s website, and I think it’s gorgeous.
Last but absolutely not least, Shirley made her Brazilian Un-Cheese Rolls. They were AMAZING!!!! I will make them again soon, hopefully as breadsticks.
I also spent a lot of time with Sonny, Shirley’s wonder-pup. He’s love on four paws.
Fortunately, Valerie and I had much better traffic on our way home, and we had Edgar as our chief navigator. However, somewhere along the way, my container of saurkraut opened, and I have quite the kraut-y smelling trunk. I guess that’s how you know you’re a health nut.
All in all, a wonderfully delicious and restorative weekend!
Stumble It!
Oh that sounds like a really lovely weekend Cheryl! What a great time with great food! I’m glad it went so well! I have to admit I’m slightly jealous that my personality doesn’t like more than an hour or two of social outings (and overnight stays are a nightmare!) Boo!!! But I’ve also come to accept it and I’m truly happy others can enjoy those times together!! And if you made that cake that you shared with me, I have no doubt everybody there LOVED YOU! lol That’s an awesome cake!! I hope you have a lovely week!
Hiya Carrie,
Yep, that’s the cake! Hope you have a great week, too.
Wow, you are fast! What a lovely recap. Your pictures bring me right back to that beautiful weekend. Oh, and I can NOT wait for that cake recipe! Thanks so much for such delicious contributions to our weekend. It was wonderful to meet you in person!
Sounds like SUCH a lovely weekend! Lucky you to spend time with so many fabulous women–and Sonny! 🙂
I figured I’d better post before life got in the way. Great to meet you, too, Heather! And I may need a spiralizer as well. See what you’ve started!
Absolutely. You would have loved the people and the food as well. Hopefully I get to meet you in person some time soon!
I figured it was time to comment, Cheryl, as I just ate a sliver of your Chocolate Chestnut Cake! Just so you know, it now has the consistency of fudge–woohoo! 🙂 Both cakes are awesome, of course. 😉 The Chocolate Mint one didn’t last long enough to become fudge. LOL
I’m so glad you could make it to the retreat (cakes in hand or not!) and I love your recap here! I appreciate your highlights here, including my Brazilian Un-Cheese Rolls (I have more ideas on those myself!) and, of course, all the Sonny love. 🙂 It’s appropriate that you captured him right in the middle of everything–his favorite spot!
xo,
Shirley
Hi Shirley,
I love it when the cake turns into fudge. It usually doesn’t make it that long.
It was such a great weekend, and I’m so glad I was able to participate.
huge hugs to you and Sonny!
You rock, Cheryl! I had such a great time and I was so thankful to finally meet you in person. So glad you were able to come for the weekend with cakes in-hand. 😀
Your chocolate mint cake had me in Heaven! I had such a lovely time with you, was so glad to be able to meet you in person. Glad your ride home went much better too. 🙂
Oopsie, forgot to mention your sauerkraut was awesome too! Thanks for bringing it!
Debi,
it was great to meet you in person, too. It’s always cool/funny/fascinating to finally meet people after knowing them for a few years!
Andrea,
Me, too! I don’t think I could have handled another 4 hours. And I totally have to make a new batch of kraut!
Yes, I realize I’m a month late in commenting on this, but I’ve been swamped! I had a lovely time and often think back to it. It was great meeting you and putting a personality to the picture of your face that I see online. I’m so glad you loved the date balls. Both of your cakes were wonderful! I hope it’s not too long until we meet up again.
Absolutely great to finally meet you too, Linda. I’ve got to make the date balls again soon!