Nina Link's Real Estate Blog

Online Sleuthing for Homebuyers
The Web has helped homebuyers find places to live for years, but a number of sites have emerged that provide a raft of information beyond price, location and photos.

Comparison Shopping -Trulia.com and Zillow.com will show you just about any type of information about a house. Users can enter a city, town or zip code and see a listing of every home for sale, sort by price, address, number of bedrooms or bathrooms, broker or type of home.

What the Neighbors Say - Other sites are designed to give users a look at neighborhoods through the eyes of the people who live there. On StreetAdvisor.com, based in Melbourne, Australia, buyers can look for input from residents of a particular street, about their neighbors, local services and more.

Is It Green - Several sites cater to concerns about energy efficiency and the environment. Walkscore.com rates the walkability of a neighborhood by the proximity of stores, restaurants, schools, parks, libraries and more. At EnergyStar.gov users can find builders working with the EPA to build homes that meet the government's Energy Star standards for energy efficiency.

Schools, Crime, News - GreatSchools.net and SchoolMatters.com give information for public and private schools, including test scores, student ethnicity, student-teacher ratios and spending per pupil. Parents can rate schools for principal leadership, teacher quality, extracurricular activities, parent involvement, safety and discipline. For crime stats, AreaConnect.com/crime and FamilyWatchdog.us provide addresses and pictures of registered sex offenders.
Source: The Real Estate Journal


Ultimate Flourless Cake ~ Submitted by Wanda Campbell of Lehigh Acres, FL.

8 Large Eggs
1lb bittersweet Chocolate
1/2 lb unsalted butter
1/4 cup Kahlua or Coffee

Have all ingredients ready before starting.
1. Adjust oven rack to lower middle position. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line bottom of 8” spring form pan with parchment paper. Butter sides of pan. Set the spring form pan on a wide sheet of heavy duty aluminum foil and wrap the foil up the sides without tearing it. Set this pan is a larger baking pan or roasting pan. Bring kettle of water to a boil.

2. Beat eggs with handheld mixer at high speed until the
volume has doubled (approximately 5 minutes) If using a stand mixer (like Kitchen Aid) use the whisk attachment and speed 6.

3. Meanwhile, melt chocolate, butter & Kahlua in a large heat proof bowl set in a pan of barely simmering water until smooth and warm. Stirring frequently. Remove from heat. Using a rubber spatula, fold 1/3 of egg foam into chocolate until just a few streaks of the egg are still visible. Fold in half of the remaining egg foam, then fold in the remaining egg foam until all the egg is incorporated into the choc. batter.

4. Scrape batter into the prepared spring form pan. Set the roasting pan on the oven rack, add enough boiling water to come halfway up the side of the spring form pan. Bake until cake rises slightly and an instant read thermometer read 140 degrees (approx. 22-25 minutes) Remove spring form pan from water bath and allow cake to cool to room temperature on rack. Cover and refrigerate for at least 24 hours.

5. About 30 minutes prior to serving, remove sides of pan.

I like to add slightly sweetened whipped cream & raspberries. You can sprinkle powered sugar or cocoa.

Sounds wickedly delightful!

Thanks Wanda for this "delicious" recipe. This is great for those watching the "carb" intake!