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waterreflecting's Profile

Website: http://www.greenme.vg

Location: Longmont

About: Currently a SAHM and nutrition student on a "break." I will be starting up again this summer to finish the course work to become a dietitian. I also love gardening, hiking, reading and of course, cooking!

Favorite foods: Strawberries, fresh homemade bread,

Last bite on earth: A bowl of fresh, ripe, organic strawberries.

The Ten Most Recent Posts By waterreflecting

From Talk

Poppy seed cake recipe. Anyone?

Posted by waterreflecting, April 11, 2008 at 6:30 PM

I need a moist poppy seed cake recipe that is tried and true. Anyone have one to share? Thank you!

7 Comments

From Talk

Need Lemon Poppy Seed with Raspberry filling cake recipe!

Posted by waterreflecting, April 11, 2008 at 11:47 AM

I have been scouring the web for a good recipe and I've come up with many similar recipes but not one that is perfect. I have also had way too many crumbly dry poppy seed cakes and I'd like to avoid this. One recipe I came upon suggested soaking the poppy seeds in milk for 2 hours prior to mixing the cake, which might help with the dryness. I also have the cream cheese frosting down pat, as that is the only kind I make (I despise butter cream). If you have a really good, moist poppy seed cake recipe and or a recipe for a rasberry filling, please, please share! I am on a two fold mission, practicing cakes for my son's first b-day in July and making my own b-day cake for this Sunday (as no one else around here cooks). Thanks a million!!!!

2 Comments

From Talk

Vegetarian Challenge

Posted by waterreflecting, February 9, 2008 at 1:21 PM

Hi,

My husband and I are trying to be more green and reduce our impact on this little planet of ours. So, we have decided to eat vegetarian for one week out of each month. To make a bigger impact, I have started a vegetarian challenge on my blog. To check out the recipes, participate in the challenge and win a chocolate bar, visit my blog!

Vegetarian Challenge

Thanks,

Alison

7 Comments | Tagged: vegetarian

The Ten Most Recent Comments By waterreflecting

From Talk

Poppy seed cake recipe. Anyone?

Thanks Joan! Sour cream may be the key! I am a little weary of using a loaf recipe for a layer cake (anyone think it will work?), but I just found a recipe for a Ukrainian sour cream poppy seed cake that is similar...I'll let you know how it turns out!

waterreflecting at 1:07PM on 04/12/08

From Talk

Clueless with Fennel

Mmm. I think I want to try the above granny smith recipe!

I just made a coleslaw (red cabbage, green cabbage, shredded carrots and fennel) with a mayo (veganaise in our house), rice vinegar, and a little sugar dressing. It was tasty!

waterreflecting at 12:56PM on 04/12/08

From Talk

Can bread starter be frozen?

You can freeze sour bread dough starter, so I imagine (but don't bite me if I'm wrong) you should be able to freeze it...

waterreflecting at 12:54PM on 04/12/08

From Required Eating

Weekend Book Giveaway: 'Around the World in 80 Dinners'

Morocco, Pakistan and Thailand, because all three cultures drink Green Tea, but eat different food. An interesting theme IMHO.

waterreflecting at 4:22PM on 03/22/08

From Talk

Vegetarian Challenge

Thanks for the feedback! I only picked one week, because my goal is to get people who are normally big eaters to give eating veggie a try. I figure that at this point they won't agree to do it forever, but maybe they could try it out for one week. My hope is that after a week of eating veggie, they'll ad a few regular vegetarian meals into their average week...

waterreflecting at 12:15PM on 03/11/08

From Talk

Does anyone make an angel food cake from scratch?

Always make them from scratch. The boxed AFCs have weird ingredients in them, I did that once and was severely disappointed. Easy to make. Never had one fail. Have used the recipe in the KAF book and Joy of Cooking. My mom uses the Betty Crocker recipe. They are all pretty much the same.

waterreflecting at 4:20PM on 02/07/08

From Required Eating

Are You Affected by Rising Food Prices?

Oddly, enough I have not noticed it...I even just double checked a few items and they are the same price as last year. For example, my free range Maverick Ranch chicken is still $6.99 a pound. However, I shop at a discount natural grocer (Vitamin Cottage) and they tend to have the lowest prices around. We spend about $100 (plus/minus $20) per week on organic & free range groceries for 2 people and a baby (he doesn't eat much yet). Beef never gets added into this total as we buy it in the fall from a local farm and that goes in our freezer. The beef we buy is grass fed, so feed doesn't factor into that price either. My dad claims his eggs and milk are more expensive, but I don't know if that is a recent change or just a big difference from when he was a kid (he is 79).

waterreflecting at 11:15AM on 01/21/08

From Required Eating

Cookbook Author Sues Jerry Seinfeld for Defamation

Haha. I hope that Jerry prevails on this one, I mean how many recipes are really truly unique? I think Sneaky Chef is just mad, because Ms. Seinfeld took a similar idea, spiced it up, made it look great, and generally did a better job. I've compared a handful of the recipes and some are similar, but really, how different can you get for a recipe of brownies? This first time I heard of sneaking pureed veggies into a recipe was at least 3 years ago, and it wasn't from the Sneaky Chef. I am sure she wasn't the first person to ever come up with this idea, so how can she fault Jessica Seinfeld for writing her own book?

waterreflecting at 5:14PM on 01/08/08

From Required Eating

McDonald's vs. Starbucks: Big Macaccino, Anyone?

Yuck. I could be wrong, but I think that Starbucks just puts COFFEE in their coffee and pretty other straight ingredients in their mixed drinks. McDonald's on the other hand can't even serve straight black coffee without adding in various other suspect ingredients. I wouldn't drink a McDonald's latte in a million years, although I do patronize Starbucks, when I am out of range of my local coffee shop. At least what they serve tastes good and is consistent.

waterreflecting at 3:54PM on 01/07/08

From Required Eating

I Prefer to Call It 'Fat-Challenged'

I am confused. I thought they already called drinks skinny and have for years? "Skinny" (nonfat milk + sugar free syrup if ordered), "why bother" (skinny + decaf), "half calf" (1/2 caffeinated, 1/2 decalf), also known as "schizo," which could potentially be insulting. Personally, I find these cutesy names entertaining and find that they add to the coffee drinking culture. Silly barista worrying about being politically correct in regards to how one orders coffee. I am sure there are even other names out there and there should be little reason to take offense, what is the point of life if we don't live a little and enjoy it?

waterreflecting at 11:30AM on 01/06/08

Responses to Comments by waterreflecting

From Required Eating

McDonald's vs. Starbucks: Big Macaccino, Anyone?

umm the iced coffee that you are talking about has classic syrup in it...

and i don't care if you get your coffee at a mom and pop place ar McDonalds, I ♥ Starbucks and it's just quality coffee...how much you wanna bet McDonald's coffee is Folgers coffee...Ü

ktpunya at 4:14PM on 07/09/08

From Required Eating

Costco is Selling Mexican Coke!

Even better than Mexican Coke? BERMUDIAN COKE. I'm fortunate enough to be a dual-national and grew up tasting the difference between US and Bermuda coke. Now that I've had a chance to try Mexican coke (I'm in Mexico now), I can tell you Bermudian coke is even crisper, and less harsh than Mexican. In Bermuda, you can also find Sprite made with real sugar. I've even gone so far as to bring back Coke syrup with me and carbonate it with a tabletop carbonator! The people in customs tell me it's not that uncommon to bring a Coke syrup-pack across.

powermd at 8:14PM on 07/07/08

From Required Eating

McDonald's vs. Starbucks: Big Macaccino, Anyone?

I'm no apologist for Starbucks frozen Frappucino drinks but if you try to make frozen coffee drinks at home you'll find out how quickly the components separate. Granted... it's different as you won't see an oil layer but the only way I get my simple sugar, concentrated coffee and milk liquid base to hold together with the ice for more than a few sips is to add food grade carageenan in very small quantities. It's the drinks that don't separate that should REALLY have you worried.

And guess what? Starbucks now serves iced coffee that is already "lightly pre-sweetened". Yuck.

phaelon56 at 12:59PM on 06/10/08

From Talk

Poppy seed cake recipe. Anyone?

Poppy Seed Cake

Ingredients

1 recipe sweet pastry (above)
4 Tbs. milk, scalded
7 oz. poppy seeds (2 3 and 1/2 oz. jars) 1/3 C. sugar
1 egg yolk
1/2 C. grated or ground almonds
1/4 C. raisins
8 Tbs. butter
1/2 C. flour
3 Tbs. sugar

Directions

Prepare the pastry. Roll out to a rectangle on lightly floured pastry cloth, using a pastry sock over the rolling pin. Or chill 1/2 hour, roll out between sheets of waxed paper. Place in jelly-roll pan or on a baking sheet. Add hot milk to the poppy seeds; let stand 10 minutes. When cool, add sugar, egg yolk, almonds, and raisins. beat to blend well. Spread the mixture over the unbaked pastry. Combine 4 T. of the butter, flour, and sugar to make a crumb topping. Sprinkle over the poppy-seed mixture. Dot remaining butter over crumb topping. Preheat oven to 375 F. Bake until pastry is crisp, about 45 minutes. When cool, cut into squares to serve.

Makes about 16 servings.

Hillary
Chew On That

Chew on That at 11:01AM on 04/18/08

From Talk

Poppy seed cake recipe. Anyone?

I second the almond-poppy bread recipe. The glaze has a nice crunch when it hardens and keeps the bread moist.

eatmyfood at 9:50PM on 04/13/08

From Talk

Can bread starter be frozen?

Thanks guys - I was also wondering about the instant vanilla pudding thing. Somehow I didn't imagine the Amish having anything labeled "JELLO" in their pantries, either. LOL...

I'm going to try a batch tomorrow with some apple, walnuts and the requisite cinnamon and sugar. The recipe seems quite sweet, but what's the worse that can happen? SO will take it in to the office with him on Monday AM to share with the goo-giver and other co-workers. Tit-for-tat.

Does anyone remember a sourdough coffeecake recipe called "Herman"? SO still talks about it - his mom used to make it "all the time" (I asked her and that's not quite accurate), but the premise sounds similar.

frederika at 7:55PM on 04/12/08

From Talk

Can bread starter be frozen?

True @Perky. I kept mine going for over 10 years, but was really only into baking bread for maybe 2 of them, with occasional forays out for special occasions. But keeping the starter made me feel like I was weekly doing the whole Mother Earth kneading thing. Then one day I really needed the space in my fridge and dumped it. It was like an enormous weight had been lifted from my shoulders.

chisai at 6:27PM on 04/12/08

From Talk

Clueless with Fennel

I like to saute it with olive oil, kosher salt and black pepper too. I first learned to eat it by following Chef Kathleen on the Food Network: broil it and sprinkle with Parm and lime juice.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,,FOOD_9936_16675,00.html

Good luck!
http://nujoikitchendiary.blogspot.com/

NuJoi at 3:42PM on 04/12/08

From Talk

Can bread starter be frozen?

@jcmeloni.......PA here, too. I want some bacon egg and cheese bread from Shady Maple. Ever try it?

PerkyMac at 3:38PM on 04/12/08

From Talk

Can bread starter be frozen?

Thanks for the memory jolt chisai. Now I remember, it was like a pet I never asked for or wanted, but I had to constantly FEED it! It wasn't for a fabulous bread I'd want to bake every few days for my family, it was some kind of pseudo fruit cake bread, but the instructions guilted you into guilting others and keeping some for yourself to prove genuine friendship. Like a friendship pyramid scheme of a living evil sort of thing. It takes real courage to kill it, but you'll feel better in the long run.

PerkyMac at 3:14PM on 04/12/08