With my mangoes finally having ripened, I decided to hurriedly prepare a delicious and nutritious meal for today’s lunch.  I say hurriedly because I started making this salad at exactly 11:34 a.m., a short 26 minutes before my family was due to pick me up for my first family vacation in three years.  Summer salads with no cooked ingredients actually make the fastest meal ever- gotta love ’em!  Gord, if you are reading this right now and wondering why the hell I made this salad without you, fret not, I will find something equally (if not more) scrumptious to make for your challenge prize as soon as I get back from vacation.  I promise.

This salad turned out brilliantly, and I got rave reviews from my mom who decided to pack up my leftovers for a picnic lunch later in the day.  Bestowing the ultimate honour on my cooking skills, she even asked me for the recipe (which can be found on the Canadian Living website here) so she could make her own version at home.  PS: mangoes are the best, most tender fruit ever.

So how is my vacation, you ask?  It is quite enjoyable, thank you for wondering!  I am currently typing this from inside a gorgeous Mont Tremblant hotel, nestled at the bottom of a group of seemingly endless mountains.  Arriving late this afternoon after getting lost several times in and around the Tremblant area (trying to navigate our way using my mom’s iPad = unsuccessful), we finally got to our hotel and quickly began exploring the village.

So far I have been on a handful of gondola rides (see above: I giggle like a child from sheer excitement every time I get on one) and have strolled around the vibrant streets of the village with the famjam.  I am proud to say that in true Duff-family fashion, several embarrassing touristy pictures have already been taken:

My favourite part of the day?  Going down a steep slope on a luge track, and waiting at the bottom for my mom who abused the brakes on her cart and arrived a complete five minutes after my brother, dad and I.

See you after my vacation hiatus, Blogosphere!