A Taste of Southwest from Sedona

A week of vacation in Sedona, Arizona exposed me to the amazing tastes of southwestern cuisine straight from its origins.  With an emphasis on fresh fruits and vegetables, plenty of spice, and the discovery of the prickly pear margarita, this food was right up my gustatory alley! I photographed some of the best dishes to share with you, in hopes that you may find some inspiration from these dishes' southwestern influence.  It also influenced my next recipe, coming soon. Enjoy!

 Skim Cappucino...perfect start to the morning

 Southwestern cobb salad: a healthy take on the traditional chopped version, which is in saturated fat overload between the bacon, blue cheese and ranch dressing. This version consisted of sun dried tomato corn, portabella mushrooms, roasted red pepper, candied pecans, cucumber, asiago cheese, and a light balsamic vinaigrette. 

 Double chocolate mousse cake...yes, this tasted as good as it looks.

 Famous Elote corn dip spiced to perfection with Cholula brand hot sauce and pure-ground red chili

 Jicama salad with grapefruit, orange and cilantro

 Miso salmon salad with napa cabbage, mango, soba noodles, and broccolini

Quinoa salad wrapped in grilled zucchini with a blackberry and caramelized onion compote

Water with soaked orange slices created hints of subtle but refreshing citrus