Because it was the closing weekend of the film festival, there wasn’t as much going on. It seems like most of the celebrities had already slipped town. This was definitely a disappointment, as I was absolutely convinced that I was going to run into Susan Sarandon and George Clooney. The biggest celebrity we saw was main actress from the most terrible doctor show on television right now (and that says a lot as most of them are pretty terrible), Mob Doctor. I just went to google it now, and it looks like it was canceled halfway through its first season.
We recovered from the disappointment by pretending that we were celebrities instead. Cue sunglasses, big cameras and headscarves:
“No photos please!”
Luckily, our friend Steve is a photographer, so we were able to take our own celebrity glamour shots:
I’m really photogenic, don’t you think?
All photos courtesy of Steven Knurr
Happy Monday! For whatever reason, I feel absolutely refreshed by a wonderful weekend and ready to tackle the week. That doesn’t happen that often!
By February, it always seems that winter has outstayed its welcome. One of my favorite things about winter is that citrus season. Although grapefruit are on the way out, there is still time to pick up a bag to make this amazing grapefruit sorbet recipe! It is the perfect mix of tart and sweet, and is absolutely refreshing. The color is absolutely stunning too! It’s enough to make me wax poetic.
I remember reading somewhere that if you put your citrus in the microwave for a few seconds before squeezing, it makes it easier to get every last bit of juice out. Of course, I forgot to try it, but let me know if you do and have any success!
Grapefruit Sorbet Recipe
Adopted from How Sweet Eats
Ingredients:
5 1/2 c. freshly squeezed grapefruit juice (from about 6 large grapefruit)
1 1/2 c. sugar
Directions:
1. Combine grapefruit juice and sugar in a saucepan over medium heat and whisk until sugar dissolves, around 5-6 minutes.
2. Refrigerate for 25 minutes, or until chilled.
3. Pour the chilled mixture into your ice cream maker and churn according to the directions – for me, this was about 25 minutes.
4. After churning, pour into a container and freeze for 6-8 hours until frozen.
As a part of the residency interview process, I had a job interview at the children’s hospital in Salt Lake City. It just so happened to be the same weekend as the 2013 Sundance Film Festival, which was only 45 minutes away in Park City. The Sundance Film Festival has always been on my bucket list, so I knew I had to make it happen!
Pat was already out in Colorado skiing, so he drove to meet me in Salt Lake City. We were also joined by our friends, Holly and Steve. Thanks to some work rewards points, Holly was able to snag us a beautiful room at the Marriot Mountainside, at the base of the Park City Ski Resort! The best thing about the rooms is that they have full kitchens.
We decided to take full advantage of all the Mountainside had to offer. Before Pat left, I packed his car with the spices and dry ingredients to make several meals for us, as well as lots of snacks for when we were hitting the slopes! I don’t think the staff at the Marriott had seen anything like us. It took two hotel carts to unload Pat’s car – it was like the Beverly Hillbillies were moving in!
We had the last laugh though – we ate like kings all weekend! We stopped at the Costco in SLC and picked up a huge fillet of salmon, a 2.5 pound bag of spinach (!), blue cheese, eggs, and yogurt. This was enough food that we did not have to eat out all weekend. We had pomegranate-balsamic glazed salmon, turkey chili, egg scrambles, couscous, delicata squash and lots and lots of spinach! It became a running joke that the spinach bag refilled itself. Even though it felt like we had used so much of it, it never showed signs of emptying.
Our kitchen was stocked with bright yellow Fiestaware – isn’t it gorgeous? I had to suppress the urge to run out and buy a set as soon as we got home.
We also packed some homemade limoncello and some Wisconsin beer, anticipating that alcohol would be expensive and hard to come by.
We were able to see three films over the course of the weekend. They all turned out to be in the ‘Next’ category, which is reserved for up-and-coming filmmakers with small budgets. I wish I could say that our minds were blown by the films we saw, but unfortunately they all seemed to teeter on the brink of art and….what-the-heck?
Our favorite film was This is Martin Bonner, which won the audience favorite award. It tells the story of a man just out of prison and his mentor, Martin Bonner, as they both help each other get their lives back on track. It was definitely a gem.
The other two films – Computer Chess and I Used to Be Darker – were just a little too weird for our simple tastes.
Stay tuned for the 2013 Sundance Film Festival, Part II on Monday!
All photos courtesy of Steven Knurr
Pat and I ran the UW Running Club Valentine’s 5K last weekend. It is put on by the local university running club, and even though it’s an off season race, some of the fastest people in Madison turn out to run it. The bad weather definitely selects for a more hardcore group of runners! It was a little icy and a little windy, but I’ll take those conditions over Wisconsin’s humid and hot summer weather any day.
The race is set up as a team competition. Neither of us had our best race, but we still managed to take 8th place out of 54 teams. The fastest couple ran 17:51 and 16:05 races! That is so fast.
The price was right for the race – it cost only $8 for the two of us to get out their and check our off-season fitness. Time to get things in gear to be ready to race in May!
Here we are, tired but happy:
This is the best carrot cake recipe I’ve ever made! In fact, it is so good, I’ve decided to make it for my wedding! I don’t think I’ve mentioned this on the blog before, but I’m planning to bake my own wedding cake! Is that crazy? If it is, then I should also mention that I’m planning a full dessert table – all of my own dessert creations. So far, I envision a two-tiered cake, a pie, a cheesecake, sugar cookies with royal icing, and cupcakes! I guess that does sound a little crazy. I think with a lot of organization, and a little luck, it will turn out ok – without me ripping my hair out. If it does work, I’ll definitely share what I learned on Running Blonde!
The rustic cake design is very simple. You can just dollop on cream cheese icing and spread it to make an even layer. You don’t need to level your cake layers, crumb coat, or do any piping! Check out the cake stand – Pat made if for me with a mug and plate we bought at Goodwill for about $2. I’ll share the full DIY soon!
Best Carrot Cake – Recipe
From Cooking the Amazing
2 c. (250g) All Purpose Flour
1 1/2 c. (300g) Sugar
1/4 c. Brown Sugar, packed (dark or light)
1 1/2 tsp. Baking Soda
1 tsp. Baking Powder
1 tsp. Salt
4 tsp. Cinnamon
1/4 tsp. Nutmeg
1/8 tsp. Ground Cloves
1/4 tsp. Ground Ginger
2 c. Finely Grated Peeled Carrot, packed
1 c. Sweetened Coconut Flakes
1 c. Raisins (Optional)
1 8 oz can Crushed Pineapple – reserve 1 T. of juice
1 1/2 c. Walnuts or Pecans, chopped
1 c. Vegetable Oil
2 tsp. Vanilla Extract 1 T. Finely Grated Fresh Orange Zest
3 Eggs
3 Eggs
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Spray two 9 inch cake pans with non-stick cooking spray and line each with a parchment paper round. Spray another layer of cooking spray on top of the parchment paper. You can also use 20 jumbo cupcake liners in a muffin tin.
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In a large bowl combine the flour, sugar, brown sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and all spices.
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In your mixer bowl, combine peeled and grated carrots, orange peel, drained pineapple, raisins (optional), coconut flakes, and nuts and mix at low speed until combined.
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Add the vegetable oil, vanilla, and eggs one at a time, mixing well, then add 1 T. of the reserved pineapple juice and mix well, scraping down the bowl often.
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Slowly add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix with a hand mixer or Kitchen Aid on low speed for about 1 minute or until just combined. Do not over mix.
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Pour divided into prepared pans. To ensure even layers, I recommend weighing each layer.
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Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 mins for cupcakes, 35-40 minutes for 9 inch layer cakes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Rotate pans halfway through baking.
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Allow to cool completely in pan for 1-2 hrs. Remove from pan and ice with cream cheese icing (recipe below). before removing to ice with Cream Cheese Icing. Recipe below. Place 1/4 of icing between the two layers and when placing the top cake layer on, put the flat side of the cake (the bottom when it was in the cake pan) facing up for a flat top which makes a more attractive cake and easier to ice.
Cream Cheese Frosting
Adopted from Cooking the Amazing
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
16 oz. Cream Cheese, softened (2 pkgs)
3 c. Powdered Sugar
4 tsp. Vanilla Extract
1 small pinch Salt
1. Cream the butter with a mixer for 2 minutes until pale and light.
2. Add the cream cheese and cream for 2 minutes, until well mixed.
3. Add the powdered sugar one cup at a time.
4. Add the salt and vanilla and mix well. You can add more powdered sugar to if you want it sweeter.
To assemble the cake:
1. Place on cake layer on your cake stand with the flatter end up. Layer with about half the cream cheese icing, letting the frosting hang over the edge slightly.
2. Place your second cake layer, flatter end up. Spread with the remaining cream cheese icing
3. Decorate as you like!
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