Mushrooms from the local farmer’s market. In the end, they were chopped, sauteed in butter with red onions, and served up on toast. Yum.
Posts Tagged ‘recipes’
black and white
Posted in Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, tagged colors, cooking, food, food photography, Inspiration, mushrooms, Photography, recipes, vegetarian meal on July 11, 2016| 1 Comment »
colors and textures
Posted in Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, tagged baby corn, colors, food, food photography, healthy eating, Inspiration, Photography, recipes, salads on April 25, 2016| 4 Comments »
I pulled together the salad based on colors and textures. The gold and soft crunch of the baby corn. The sweet juicy ripeness of the chopped red tomatoes. The cubed creaminess of the Fontina cheese. The crispy bite of the spring green onions. A gentle toss with a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Steve’s challenge was the final addition. Of the fresh herbs available in the kitchen, which one or ones to add that would enhance this salad. In the end, he selected dill, coarsely chopped and sprinkled on top. That’s what I call teamwork. 😉 Have a good Monday, folks.
raspberry black walnut sauce
Posted in Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, tagged black walnuts, cooking, creativity, food, food photography, Inspiration, Photography, raspberries, recipes on December 15, 2015| 1 Comment »
This is what happened when raspberries accidentally got crushed in my house. They’d bounced around a bit too much in their packaging on the way home. Steve took a look at them, rubbed his chin and then with a faraway look in his eyes said, “I have an idea.”
The next morning there was a sweet scent in the air. I made my way into the kitchen, and there on the table next to the plate of hot buttered toast sat a small bowl of warm red sauce. His recipe, more or less: crushed berries cooked with a little butter and brandy, sweetened with a touch of sugar, and flavored with half a teaspoon of crushed black walnuts.
It’s a recipe that will continue to evolve. If we accidentally or on purpose crush anymore raspberries, he’d like to try maple syrup in place of the sugar. And maybe toss in a different nut like crushed hazelnuts. I’ll try any variation on the theme so long as there’s time to photograph the results. Have a good day. 😉
one can of sardines
Posted in Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, tagged fish, food, food photography, Inspiration, Photography, recipes, sardines on September 1, 2015| Leave a Comment »
One can of sardines, drained, placed on a small plate, topped with fresh cut onions and herbs, a drizzle of olive oil, and a sprinkle of black pepper. That’s all. Okay, okay … there was some homemade mayonnaise on the side along with some toasted bread. An impromptu dinner after being too lazy to go to the store. 😉
a winter harvest layered
Posted in Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, tagged colors, food, food photography, fun, indoor gardening, Inspiration, microgreens, Photography, recipes, salads on February 12, 2015| 3 Comments »
nasturtium leaves
upland cress and spicy mix sprouts
one tomato and a little red onion
finish off with a drizzle of olive oil, sprinkle of black pepper and whatever else your heart desires 😉
more food images from the week
Posted in Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, tagged colors, cooking, creativity, flavors, food, food photography, gardening, indoor gardening, Inspiration, Photography, recipes, textures on July 6, 2014| 2 Comments »
An impromptu dinner salad: two tomatoes sliced, topped with chopped red onion and fresh basil leaves, drizzled with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.
Filling for a 3-egg omelet: chopped smoked salmon, gruyere cheese, tiny bit of red onion, and an assortment of chopped herbs (parsley, chervil and whatever else caught the chef’s eyes).
A quick breakfast: a few slices of bread, buttered and then toasted, served with a handful of fresh raspberries. Coffee and cream on the side. Overall, a yummy week, I must say.
p.s. Thanks to all for the potato recipes. In the end, they were cooked with some butter and garlic and sprinkled with herbs. You never know what the future holds, but if I do grow potatoes next year, I have my eyes on a bigger pot. 😉
mustard green dishes
Posted in Kitchen Inspirations, Nature Notes, tagged cooking, family, food, food photography, Inspiration, leafy greens, mustard greens, Photography, recipes, storytelling on March 2, 2014| 3 Comments »
I mostly remember leafy greens on Sunday. My mother, with a few helping hands on occasion, would pick the leaves, rinse them to remove any grit, and then place them in a big pot with some ham. Much water would be added, along with salt and pepper. The pot would simmer for what seemed like hours. Once steaming green leaves were piled on dinner plates, sometimes chopped white onions would be tossed on top for a bit of crunch (that’s what my dad liked) and sometimes apple cider vinegar, depending on the type of green. Of all the greens, kale was my favorite, especially curly kale. After finishing the pot of any type of greens, nothing was better than to drink the remaining flavor-filled pot liquor. Mustard had a peppery bite, the intensity of which I was reintroduced to this past weekend in several interesting dishes that both stirred up these childhood memories and made me reach for my camera.
Mustard Greens
Steve bought one small bunch of mustard greens and began to experiment immediately. The first dish involved adding a small portion of chopped fresh mustard greens to a vegetable stir fry of broccoli, kale and red peppers. The second mustard-infused dish was a homemade hamburger made of finely chopped steak, hen of the woods mushrooms, parmesan cheese, mustard greens and one egg. The tiny hamburgers were formed, fried and served up on toasted bread with sliced tomatoes and red onions on the side.
Hamburger with Cheese, Mushroom and Mustard Greens
The third dish was inspired by a particular Japanese method of layering thin slices of seared tuna, white rice, wasabi and shiso. A spicy mouthful to say the least. This particular variation on a theme involved cooking white rice and mixing it with fresh chopped green onion and mustard greens. The rice was served with thin slices of tuna on top and wasabi and soy sauce on the side. While the tuna is now gone, there is still rice remaining. I’ve encouraged the chef to turn these leftovers into golden fried cakes. We’ll see what the new week holds.;)
White Rice with Mustard Green and Green Onions
steve’s cheese bread, revisited
Posted in Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, tagged baking, bread, cheese, cheese bread, cooking, food, food photography, Inspiration, Photography, recipes on December 26, 2013| 4 Comments »
I’ve written about this bread before (please see here). This time I managed to photograph the end result before consuming all the crumbs.
I’ve been asked for his recipe. He says that he simply plays with the basic Cheese Bread recipe found on page 749 of The Joy of Cooking (1997 ed.). He never uses the same selection of cheese or herbs twice. Mostly it all depends on what’s in the refrigerator or around the kitchen on a given day. This particular holiday loaf had a lot of Parmesan, black pepper and rosemary. Maybe some Cheddar and Gruyere? Well, at least, he keeps track of his culinary revisions on an increasingly smudgy index card.
dinner and the parts that made up the whole
Posted in Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, tagged colors, dinner, food, food photography, fun, healthy food, Inspiration, light, Photography, recipes, vegetables on May 28, 2013| Leave a Comment »
The Menu
First Course – Smoked Salmon Salad
A bed of fresh spinach greens topped with sliced cherry tomatoes and radishes, chopped red onions and smoked salmon. Liberally season with black pepper and a bit of garlic powder and salt. Drizzle with olive oil.
Second Course – Sauteed Vegetable Medley
Pour olive oil into frying pan. Turn heat down low. Coarsely chop red onions, oyster mushrooms, garlic clove. Toss into frying pan with a bunch of broccoli florets. Add a little chicken broth. Consider adding bacon (but I decided I’ve been eating too much bacon lately). Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve with some toasted bread.
End the night with an orange. Consider chocolate … 😉
an everlasting spring in the magazine Celebrate Home
Posted in Inspiration, Nature Notes, tagged Celebrity Home, childhood, Contributing Writer, family, fathers, home, imagery, magazines, nature, Photography, recipes, seeds on May 22, 2013| 5 Comments »
It was a delight to receive an email from graphic design artist and photographer Cindy Dyer earlier this year. I had “liked” a post on her beautiful blog and she had visited mine in response. She liked enough of what she saw to invite me to include my essay, Seeds, in the Spring 2013 issue of her digital magazine, Celebrate Home. The issue is on newsstands now, so to speak, free to download and print issues can be purchased. Seeds can be found on page 95 but I encourage to check out all of the writing, imagery, and recipes to found in this lovely publication. And you can check out Cindy’s blogs via the following links: http://www.cindydyer.wordpress.com/ and http://www.gardenmuse.wordpress.com/
Words + Images 