Archive for the ‘Kitchen Inspirations’ Category
Fruitility
Posted in Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, tagged blueberries, culinary inspirations, fruit, green, images, limes, Photography, photos, pictures, yellow squash on September 4, 2011| Leave a Comment »
Illumination …
Posted in Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, Nature Notes, tagged colors, food, illumination, Inspiration, Photography, photos, pictures, sunlight, wine on August 30, 2011| 2 Comments »
Fruity Herbal Silhouettes
Posted in Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, Nature Notes, tagged color, food art, fruit, herbs, images, light, patterns, Photography, photos, pictures, seasons, silhouette on August 22, 2011| Leave a Comment »
While I do not look forward to summer’s end, one of the things I do like about this time of year is how the light shifts coming in through Steve’s kitchen window. It creates shadows that make me pause in my day. Like these “fruity herbal silhouettes.”
What you’re seeing: At the window there sits a tall glass jar overflowing with thyme. Beneath the jar sits a small bowl of fruit and chile peppers picked up at the farmer’s market, and next to the bowl sits a small seedless watermelon. Beautiful colors in light and shadow.
Lemon & Thyme
Posted in Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, tagged colors, fruits, herbs, kitchen, lemons, Photography, photos, pictures, thyme on August 18, 2011| Leave a Comment »
The Beauty of Simple Gifts
Posted in Branches, Kitchen Inspirations, Nature Notes, tagged cuban oregano, gifts, herbs, Photography, photos, pictures, plants on July 25, 2011| 2 Comments »
Today I am reminded of the beauty of small gifts. A while ago a friend gave me a small potted plant of cuban oregano. I’ve been rushing around lately so while I usually remember to water the herb — thank goodness, it is a succulent — I hadn’t really paid attention to the little patch of expanding greenery. But this morning, feeling a little pokey and thus moving slower, I leaned over and pressed my nose close. And what did I discover? The sweetest scent, of course, one that brought a smile to my face…and immediately brightened my day. 😉
Culinary Inspiration
Posted in Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, tagged blue, colors, family, food, life, Photography, photos, pictures, rice, white on July 19, 2011| Leave a Comment »
Yesterday’s article highlighted how much the kitchen inspires the photographer in me like in the above image. Here I remember I just wanted to play around with the colors white and blue. The kitchen also inspires the writer in me, in part, because the sights and the scents bring back so many happy childhood memories of growing up in Virginia. For most of my childhood my parents and my brothers and I only went into the living room for a few hours at night to watch television and on Sunday afternoons to greet family and friends visiting after church. Otherwise, we were in the kitchen around the table eating or playing games. In talking with my oldest brother, I recently realized that when he shares family stories they most often center in the kitchen as well. The latest stories focused on our father’s wine making. More to follow about that! 😉
Hot Off the Press: To Define or Not to Define …
Posted in Contributing Writer, Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, Nature Notes, Photography, Publication Updates, tagged beauty, creative writing, creativity, food, Inspiration, nature, Photography, photos, pictures on July 18, 2011| Leave a Comment »
Hi, all. I have a new article posted on the lovely website Creativity Portal.com. Check it out and let me know what you think. Meanwhile, wherever you are in your day, I hope all goes well! 😉
To Define or Not to Define: That is the Question
Sacrificing Thyme
Posted in Branches, Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, Nature Notes, tagged caterpillar, green, insects, Photography, photos, pictures, thyme on June 24, 2011| Leave a Comment »
I don’t know if the little guy was there when I purchased the lemon thyme, perhaps as an egg or a teeny tiny larva. All I know is that recently I’ve been worried about the lemon thyme. Was I watering it too much? Was it getting too much sun? After returning home today, I started watering things and as I watered the thyme I noticed a rolled up leaf. To myself I said, “Hmmm. I didn’t know thyme leaves grew like that.” I leaned to look closer and this is what I saw:
Probably tomorrow morning as I head off to work, I’ll take him outside to let him fend for himself. But if you know what this is, please let me know.
Ode to the Color Kittens
Posted in Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, Nature Notes, tagged colors, golden books, humor, imagination, Photography, photos, pictures, The Color Kittens on June 22, 2011| 1 Comment »
Recently I’ve been lucky enough to spend time with a little friend who loves the book, The Color Kittens. Since with the great authority of a three-year old she has been able to get me and others to read this book aloud again and again, I have been wonderfully reminded how to simply appreciate color in my photography. Not always get caught up in “perfect” captures of clarity, but focus on capturing expressions of color instead.
So, after my most recent reading of Hush’s and Brush’s adventures with different pails of paint, I found myself in Steve’s kitchen staring at a jewel-toned nasturtium blossom curling above a bowl of fruit. Many objects before me but really all I could see was orange. Beautiful orange. Snap. I thought I was done with my camera, but then further poking in cabinets and cupboards and the refrigerator revealed habaneros and some old mac’n’cheese. Snap. Snap.
After a while, no more orange, but red … delicious red was everywhere.
And then the sunlight shifted, and I found myself drawn toward a bit of purple and green … and then green and brown.
And so the day went until, like the Color Kittens, I grew tired. I don’t remember if I dreamed that night, as they did, “of a rose red tree that turned all white” on the count of three, but the next day I did stumble upon the following. Coincidence? 😉
A Seasonal Collaboration
Posted in Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, Nature Notes, tagged collaboration, food, gardens, herbs, Photography, photos, pictures, recipes, spring on June 8, 2011| Leave a Comment »
Well, just the other day, Steve snatched a large white serving bowl from my hands. As he clutched it tight, he said, “I best put this back on top of the cabinet else you’ll plant herbs in it.” He’s probably right. It’s just been one of those springs. Indoor gardening has consumed me a bit. During the long winter, I collected a lot of seeds. And so now, in pots and cups and old vases, on two floors of the house I live in, are growing: basil, dill, lemon thyme, marjoram, and two types of sage.
Later today, as a reward for completing a few writing projects, I’m hoping to run by the local flower shop for some mint plants. Mint used to grow wildly across my yard growing up in Virginia. My mom showed me how to make mint tea with it. Fun, but not really a palette pleaser. Then I learned that there are MANY varieties of mint. Today I intend to pick up chocolate mint, orange mint and pineapple mint plants. The boon for me is twofold in planting all this greenery. One, of course, they make great photographic subjects. And, two, Steve loves to cook for family and friends.
Lemon thyme plus olive oil, two egg yolks, a hot pepper, and a little mustard were transformed into this delicious lemon thyme aioli. Nasturtium blossoms and leaves are tossed on top of green salads. Fresh basil is layered between mozzarella and fresh tomatoes and then drizzled with olive oil. Toasted bread is rubbed with garlic before being piled high with chopped tomatoes, sage and marjoram. And then … I think you get the idea! 😉
Words + Images 