Yelp's On Tap Reno!

Last night I attended an event at Siena Reno called Yelp's On Tap Reno! In addition to providing food and drink the mixer benefited the Volunteers of America and the important work they do for the homeless in Reno.

It was a fun evening with my dear friends Regina and Travis Cowell.  Their son Chris is the new executive chef and I was excited to sample some of his delicious creations.  The Rotunda Bar is hip, the adjoining Whitewater on the River is elegant (I can't wait to get back there for a brunch of Crab Benedict), the service was friendly, and the beer and food was great!

If you like beer, and I know you do, you should try nevadabeer by Under the Rose Brewing Company. 

It is served locally at some fine restaurant/bars, but I say you might as well hit the Siena, enjoy a beer in the bar, and then check out what Chef Chris is cooking up at Whitewater!  You'll thank me!

www.sparksrenohomesearch.com

Corn test

When I see recipes or videos on the Internet...not THOSE kinds of videos!...I like to test them to see if they actually live up to their hype.  Slow cooker pulled pork?  Yes please!  Easy pineapple cake?  Delish!  Mentos in a two liter Coke?  Fun! Messy, but fun!  So I was eager to test the "Microwave Corn Perfectly" video I saw on Facebook recently.

I went back to find the actual video so that I could share it with you and couldn't find it.  I went to YouTube and did a search and found several that show the same results.  Microwave your corn and it will slide, silk and all, right out of the husk.  I've been eating corn for a LOT of years and you'd think I'd have heard about this before now.  But I hadn't.  And now my life has been transformed!  This is so easy I could have corn every single day!

Feel free to do your own video search.  If you'd rather get right to it, here's what you do:

1.  Get an ear of corn in the husk.  You'll probably want more than one.
2.  Put the corn, still in the husk, in the microwave.  All I did was snip the silk and the stalk so that it fit in the microwave.
3.  Microwave for 4 1/2 minutes.  I saw anywhere from 3-5 minutes in the videos I watched, but 4.5 worked perfectly in my experiment.
4.  Using an oven mitt, remove the hot corn from the microwave and place on a cutting board.
5.  Cut the stalk end approximately 1 inch above where the stalk attaches to the ear.  You'll lose just a little tiny bit of corn.
6.  Still using the mitt, grasp the corn by the silk and husk.  Squeeze gently and shake the corn.  The corn will slide right out with just a little bit of effort!  Silk free!!
7.  Butter and season to taste. 
8.  EAT!

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RTO

I'm excited to update my blog with some new posts...the running streak, Reno Aces baseball, a drool-worthy mac and cheese recipe, some big changes to our quest for the perfect pizza, and stories about something my husband likes to call "tourist season".  That being said, one of the very best events I want share is the Reno-Tahoe Odyssey.

2014 marked the 10th annual 178 mile Reno-Tahoe Odyssey 12-person adventure relay. I mentioned this several weeks ago as a big motivator my running streak.  Todd, his co-worker Clay, Clay's triathlete friend Tim and I competed in the sister event, the RTO One. This 54-mile course designed for teams of 6 runners and is in its second year.

First let me say that this is one of the most well organized events I've ever been a part of, either as a participant or organizer.  Eric and Ryan do a phenomenal job putting this together and have rounded up some of the friendliest and most dedicated volunteers you could hope for.

We did the event as a team of four.  While it may have been nice to share the distance with more legs, I have to say it was an ideal experience.  It helps that my teammates are three of the nicest guys around.  And because there were just the four of us we fit very comfortably in our 4Runner so we didn't have to scare up a van or larger vehicle.

We did really well!  We took third place out of ten teams and our time beat the previous year's winning time.  Not bad considering we had two fewer runners than any other team.

The party in the park at the finish was a blast and a great place for family and friends to join in the fun. 

If you're interested in getting into an epic relay event this is the one for you!  Act fast!  Registration is open for 2015 and they filled up quickly this year.  Follow the link above for details, maps, pictures, results and testimonials!

www.sparksrenohomesearch.com

Home Improvement

My husband and I have been busy recently working on projects in our back yard and helping some friends do a surprise update on their daughter's bedroom.  I love to see the immediate results of this type of hard work.  When I start one project my mind starts jumping ahead to the other projects I might like to do...swimming pool, hot tub, fire pit, pizza oven, etc.  As a homeowner and a Realtor I always consider the return on investment of these projects.  It is great to be able to maximize your financial investment when choosing to make changes to your property.  But that isn't the only consideration.  Your quality of life, the enjoyment you get from your home, are important too. 

The notion of a pool keeps coming back to me.  When I start thinking I'm going to push ahead I get into a cycle of analysis paralysis.  In ground or above ground?  How much should I spend?  How much would we actually use it? How much do they cost to maintain?  How will this impact my homeowner's insurance?  What safety features do I need to implement?  Where would I put it?  Can we do the work ourselves or would we need to hire someone? 

I felt this was a good article to help prioritize some of the pool issues:

http://www.zillow.com/blog/above-ground-swimming-pool-guide-155527/

Now I'm going to go look for fire pit plans.  And maybe some info about apple trees.  Did someone say "horseshoes"?!

www.sparksrenohomesearch.com

It has "easiest" right in the name!

Some time ago I posted a recipe for my favorite carrot cake with a heavenly buttermilk caramel glaze and cream cheese frosting.  It is so delicious that is totally worth the time and effort to make it.  But I don't always have that time!  So I was very excited to see a recipe posted on FaceBook called "Easiest Pineapple Cake".  I am not kidding...this is EASY!  And really delicious with a texture that makes you think it was much more labor intensive than it is!

EASIEST PINEAPPLE CAKE

2 cups all purpose flour
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla
pinch of salt
1 20-ounce can of crushed pineapple in it's own juice - not syrup (DO NOT DRAIN)
1 cup chopped nuts, optional

CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

1/2 cup butter
1 8-ounce cram cheese, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cup confectioner's sugar
coconut for garnish - optional

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Mix all of the cake ingredients together in a bowl.  Pour into a greased 9X13 inch pan and bake for 35-40 minutes, until top is golden brown.

Frosting:  Beat butter, cream cheese and vanilla together until creamy.  Gradually mix in powdered sugar.

Frost cake with cream cheese frosting while still warm.  Sprinkle with coconut if desired.

I don't like to mess with a recipe the first time I make it, but I did make a few modifications since I was making this as a birthday cake for my mother-in-law:

 - I added about a half cup of chopped walnuts to the cake mix.
 - I used two round pans instead of a 9X13".  In the picture the cake was frosted and served from the pan.  I let the cake cool and frosted it as a layer cake.
 - Because I wanted them out of the pans in good condition in addition to spraying the pan with Pam, I lined them with parchment paper cut to size.
 - I doubled the frosting recipe so that I* had plenty for decorating
 - I* sprinkled the top with more chopped walnuts

* By "I" I mean "my adorable husband Todd".  :-)

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