Our First Valentine's Day!

Yes, that's right... yesterday was our very first Valentine's day as a couple. We struck up our first real conversation at the Sugarhouse 24 Hour Fitness on Feb. 16th last year, missing V-day by a mere 48 hours (we moved FAST!). BTW, that means Scott and I have now been conversing on a pretty regular basis for exactly one year as of this very day! I think we'll go to the gym later to mark the occasion... and attempt to work off a few of the gazillion calories we consumed on Saturday. Speaking of which...
Scott told me he already had some plans in mind for the day (seriously, I really think I am the luckiest woman in the world! My husband is AWESOME!), but I wanted to contribute to the occasion... So, I put together an overly ambitious brunch that actually turned out really well. I think those cooking classes paid off! Here are some photo highlights:

Traditional Mexican hot chocolate with cream and a homemade churro.

Paula Deen's Brie en Crout with green apples

A Cuban/Colombian hybrid sandwich... Colombian arepas for the bread, black beans, plantains, avocado, queso fresco, and Cubano style pork. Praise the Lord for Latin American cuisine!

A little love teart with caramelized shallots, Spanish drunken goat cheese, thin sliced tomatoes, basil, and parmesan.

Are you drooling yet? Mmm!

Scott told me earlier in the week that I needed to find a formal dress for the evening. (How much fun is that?!? Bonus: Scott looks SO HOT in his tux!) At first I was really excited about the idea of getting all dressed up for a romantic night with my honey, but then I realized how much I DON'T love shopping for dresses. Thank goodness I was able to find a great little number on sale at Macy's (for reals, Macy's! They actually have some really cute dresses. Who knew!?! Thanks to Mary for meeting me at the store on her way to class to confirm my purchase. Sometimes you've just gotta have a little validation!). Am I still telling this story!?! Is anyone still reading this?!? Bless your heart if you're actually reading this not just browsing through to look at the pictures ;) I'm using this blog as a journal of our first year being married, so I'm more concerned with capturing my thoughts on our adventures than I am about writing some brilliantly brief summary of each event.

Anyhow, moving on... Scott made reservations for us to eat at La Caille (Oh la la!) which, let me tell you, completely lived up to the hype! That's a once in a decade place to dine, so make sure you show up hungry! But don't be tempted to eat the entire hot out of the oven bread basket before ordering... damn those French and their perfectly baked bread! For appetizers we ordered lobster bisque and pate d'jour (which happened to be duck that day), then they brought out an amuse-bouche of smoked duck with a herbs and a pickled cucumber slice. SO GOOD! We both had the arugula, goat cheese, and yellow beet salad with a balsamic vinagrette (we re-created this at home... so simple and SO delicious!). For the main course Scott ordered the Tournedos Vin Campignon (grilled tenderloin tip with a mushroom-white wine sabayon) and I got the ahi tuna Chinois (rare ahi tuna tempura-style, rolled with nori and wasabi). We were in HEAVEN! Despite bursting at the seams with fullness we ordered the trio of La Caille desserts... creme brulee, chocolate chantilly cake, and beignet Francaise. Like I said, this place is a once in a decade experience... I feel confident that we made the most of our experience.

After dinner Scott surprised me with tickets to the Pioneer Theater Company's production of Romeo and Juliet (are those of you still reading this extraordinarily long post just SO jealous of how awesome my husband is!?! I would be!).