Broccoli Cauliflower Salad

Whenever I make something new that my daughters will not only eat, but enjoy, I tend to think of as a major achievement or a minor miracle. While I like to think of myself as culinarily adventurous, I would describe my daughter as finicky, skeptical, and a little bit picky of most new (and familiar) food. My neighbor/friend, Jessica (who is lounging at a beach in sunny Florida at this very moment), peaked my interest a couple of weeks ago by saying that she was going to make a broccoli cauliflower salad. Now I could've taken the easy route and just asked her for the recipe. . . but I decided to do things like I normally do. . . intensive recipe scouring research on the internet, followed by a recipe that includes all the things I like, omits all the things that my kids don't like, and replaces all the things that Leila is allergic too. In this case, I created a broccoli cauliflower salad that included broccoli and cauliflower (duh!), bacon, shredded cheddar, craisins, and a dressing made up of mayo, sugar, and red wine vinegar. Now usually, Gabrielle (my older) tries to tell me that she doesn't like broccoli. And to top it off, we eat cauliflower so rarely that when I put her bowl in front of her, she asked why some of her broccoli was white. Nonetheless, they she took a bite. And she actually liked it. It wasn't until she'd eaten half of it that she even asked me what all the stuff was in it. Now, I know what you're thinking. .. who wouldn't like a salad laden down with a creamy dressing of mayo and sugar. . . and you can never go wrong with bacon. Well, I tend to agree, but I don't think Robert will be eating any of it anytime soon. He refuses to touch anything with broccoli in it.