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This months Inspired Plate photo challenge is "Snack Food" with a story! My story.. a family reunion to celebrate my mom and dad turning 80!! What a glorious time we all had! The snack.. ahem, "healthy dessert", was a trifle in a jar! Our celebration was held in beautiful Santa Barbara, California, where two of my sisters live. We had a few days of play and scave
This month The Inspired Plate is celebrating our monthly challenge with "Breakfast". I know this looks like a simple breakfast.. with mot too many ingredients, but I so often eat alone in the mornings after the kids have all gone to school and this for me is simple, quick and satisfying. A soft cooked egg, thinly sliced and buttered sourdough toast.. perfect for dipping, an
My favorite way to eat a snack.. :) French bread drizzled with Extra Virgin Olive Oil Freshly Grated Parmesan Cheese Sliced Roma Tomatoes Buffalo Mozzarella Dried Oregano Fresh Cracked Pepper Sea Salt (to taste) Fresh Basil chiffonaud Extra basil to top after broiled I first toast the bread on one side in the broiler at 500 degrees.. for just around 30 seconds to get crisp and
This recipe is for my dad! Last week when I was visiting my parents’, he asked me if I had ever made collard greens. I love greens.. but collards weren’t one of the vegetables we grew up with in our Italian home. My research and investigation begun at the grocery store with my first purchase of this Southern favorite. The texture was hearty and firm with a mild taste. This
Welcome to The Inspired Plate’s February edition of our monthly food photography challenge. Today we are celebrating the “Egg”. This was a last minute photo shoot for me and I needed to make something quick! With the cold weather we have been experiencing ‘Egg Flower Soup’ sounded like the perfect choice! Although.. I really wasn’t pleased with the lack of “egg lustre”. Eggs re
We celebrated our youngest daughter's 9th birthday on Valentines Day. My little sweets request.. my Lusciously Rich Custard Filled Cream Puffs! They really are the best and never disappoint If you want to get the wows and kudos' from your family and friends.. definitely use my DMC recipe here! I hope you had an amazing Valentines Day! xoxo Custard
Through the Bible in Food Photography The idea for this project came to me last year while reading through the gospel of Luke in the Bible. "Jesus our Savior, after being raised from the dead came to His disciples, flesh and blood, and ate". The meal served Him was a fish and a honeycomb. In my mind I couldn't help but think what a beautiful portrayal this was.. what a
Welcome to The Inspired Plate January challenge. This month our theme is "Healthy". Whew!! I have total baking and heavy food fare burnout. It has been so refreshing cooking on the lighter side with a New Years resolution I am trying to commit to. With our cool weather I have still been craving dishes on the warmer side, so using Pinterest as a design tool, I pinned salad
DMC Cooking school - Crepe’s Ingredients 6 eggs 1 ½ cups flour 1/4¼ tsp. salt 1 ½ cups water 2 tablespoons melted butter Butter, for coating the pan Instructions
Celebrate.. The Inspired Plate's theme for the month of December! We all came to this month with different idea's and varying plans, but all of our ideas were novel just the same. I really intended to end this year with a "BANG".. photographically that is. Until December actually came along and that BANG we
Welcome to The Inspired Plate monthly challenge! This month's Inspired Plate Challenge takes you into our personal spaces to see our Holiday Tables. Another busy month for all of us gals.. as you can see, our November post rolled a few days into December as we are all trying to gather ourselves back together after a very eventful Thanksgiving day of feasting and fami
You'll love these sage infused potatoes. One of our families favorites for Thanksgiving.. or any time of year! Sage Roasted Red Potatoes Ingredients2 pounds small red potatoes cut in half3 tablespoons olive oil2 tablespoons fresh sage leaves, choppedSalt and freshly ground pepper2 cloves garlic, *unpeeled, root end removedDirectionsPreheat oven to 400°In a bowl
Who doesn't love chocolate.. and what better, than to make it and give it away as gifts! In my home it's a tradition to start our baking when the kids have Thanksgiving break. This week our youngest was off earlier than usual so here we are, celebrating mom and daughter time and looking forward to the holidays with Peppermint Chocolate Cherry Almond Bark. Th
This is a wonderful and light version of a quiche without the cheese. It's very airy and tender.. both the custard and the pastry shell. I considered adding some Fontina cheese but resisted the urge. :) I was still well pleased with the outcome of this custard, but will try the addition of Fontina next time for a more dense custard. I substituted the herb with fresh rosemary
Today was the first morning I woke up feeling the nip in the air and the urge to make soups, chili and Chai Tea! I know.. your all probably thinking chai tea is one of those amazing teas that should be made all year long! Well, "you're right".. but for some reason it's the smell of spice in the air, stores perfumed with brooms of cinnamon, candles infused with pump
Welcome to this months edition of The Inspired Plate, our "Food Photography & Styling Challenge". This month we focused on shooting food images on a black background. I had a vision folks.. and I set out to replicate the picture in my mind. It wasn't easy.. I had to search high and low for my props and backdrop. But come Saturday.. as in 2 days before I was to publish, I finally
I have the pleasure of sharing with you today a recipe for a luxurious olive oil cake made with a beautiful aromatic olive oil from O&Co. This fruity oil is made of whole clementines & green lemons crushed together with the olives to release their natural essential oils that blend harmoniously with the subtle flavors of the olive oil. The result is a perfect
Welcome to The Inspired Plate's weekly Facebook Photo Challenge Monday October 8th ~ “Orange” This will be a once a week challenge that will run Monday through Friday. Each week there will be a new "Food Photography" related theme. Please upload your submission to our F B wall with the title “Inspire Me Weekly”. You can take a new image or share with us images from “your” photo fil
What do you do when you have a whole carton of coconut milk in the fridge that you don't want to go to waste.. bake with it! I don't particularly love the flavor alone.. I tried it on granola.. but I just can't get used to it as a beverage. But seeing how my husband bought this for his "heart health" and he is still craving foods that aren't "heart healthy" per se.. I have been cutti
Hey Friends!! I'm excited to announce that The Inspired Plate on Facebook is having a weekly food photography challenge. It's all about Fun and Participation, no matter what your photography level is! I want to invite you all to come "Like" our page and join in the fun. :) This weeks challenge reads like this; :) Welcome to “Inspire Me Weekly”! This will be a o
I am always thrilled for this time of the month when my photography group “The Inspired Plate” shares our monthly challenges. Each month we dare to stretch ourselves with a theme, topic or technique that is widely used in the field of photography, but may not be a regular in our own genre or style. This month we introduce to you Texture Overlays in Food Photography.
Jono and Kat.. my oldest kids setting up the giraffe Worthy of a blog post.. my son Jono's amazing art work! I am so proud of this boy. He has been working for our cities planning and events department as a team co-ordinator and one of his duties is to paint murals for their special events. This event.. African Safari Animals. His talent get's better a
This isn't my first post about sugar shapes, in 2008 I also wrote about these wonderful sugar creations that are SO easy and quick to make. I actually have to give the credit for this batch to my 8 year old daughter who was so excited about playing in the color stained water and filling the candy molds. I was happy to have her help.. because at this point I was more interested in
September is Hunger Action Month. Mom's and Blogger's across the nation "go orange" in an attempt to fight hunger. No kid should EVER be hungry. One out of five children in America face food insecurity.. meaning, they don’t know where their next meal is coming from. I'm honored to participate in this month's challenge with some amazing woman who have made it their goal to suppor
I'm always trying to figure out how to post a fabulous recipe without taking an hour to write it all out. Unfortunately.. I have a r-e-a-l-l-y hard time just putting up the ingredient list and directions without a short recap. And then there's the recipe reviews.. of about 3 to be exact for this weeks Bavarian Soft Pretzel recipe. Yes.. I wa
We love comfort food in all shapes and sizes.. but for me a true comfort food has to be warm and include something creamy. It wasn't till I first met my husband that I had ever had the pleasure of enjoying an apple dumpling. We used to go to this wonderful little bakery in Belmont Shore, Long Beach and indulge in the most wonderful sweet treats. This is where I first had my dumpling.
My love affair with meringue continues with these adorable AND delicious Espresso Meringue Cookie Kisses. Meringue cookies are so easy to make and satisfy a sugar craving without all the fat. Definitely make these little dainties.. they also make a delightful addition to a table display at an afternoon tea. To see more of my delicious meringue cookies, click here to see m
I have this feeling of anticipation.. it's kinda like I know something is coming, I'm excited, but I don't know for what. Maybe it's because September is almost upon us and October after that.. my favorite time of year. Fall. The warm weather starts to fade, the brite pinks and purples turn to bronzy red's and oranges. Apple season is almost upon us ripe for picking and I can imagine hea
Happy 100th Birthday Julia! I'm thrilled to have made the deadline to participate today, August 15th, to honor everyones favorite cooking show host and French recipe creator Julia Child. I intended on making more than just one of her favorite dishes.. sad to say, time snuck past me with a whirlwind schedule. But.. Summer and her Salade Nicoise make the
The original Italian Amaretti cookie calls for bitter almonds, which are unlawful for sale here in the United States. They have a bitter taste and are absolutely fine for digesting “when cooked”, but are known to be lethal and poisonous when uncooked. (so, beware if you smell a strong almond flavoring in your cup of tea :) ) The bitter almond, though, is what is
Our 7th month issue of The Inspired Plate's food, photography and styling challenge came with excitement and anticipation for this being a joint team effort. I was so pleased to be able to meet up with three other members of our group who reside in Southern California. Allison from Allison Jacobs Photography, Valeria from Zen Mind Photography and Kim Kelly from Li
There are so many recipes out there for candied nuts, and probably one of the easier ways is to just toss them in a skillet with brown sugar. But.. I have been using this recipe for years and I love it.. and it never fails me. Just don't over roast your almonds. :) Hope you enjoy! Laurie
Welcome to June's edition of The Inspired Plate! I loved this month's challenge.. it forced my hand at not just styling a fish photo, but it was the first time I purchased a whole trout to cook without the help of my mom.. and fisherman dad. The hunt for a whole fish came easier than I expected. My first stop was at one of our favorite restaurants, Fish House Vera Cr
Magic Muffins.. I'v been seeing this recipe on my Malt-O-Meal boxes for years.. literally since I was a young girl. Never even thought twice about baking them. My mom always had this creamy whole wheat grain in a bowl for us with butter, milk and a sprinkling of sugar.. or as I liked it with a dollop of jam on top. Now that school is out, and my kids
Buon Giorno Friends!! I am soo excited about these little dessert cups.. I've been seeing jars filled with delectable goodies all over Pinterest since the first day I joined. Just coming from two weeks of baking and graduation preps, I had a few ingredients leftover in my fridge that I wanted to use up. In my pantry I had these canning jars that I bought at t
This broccoli preparation is simple and tasty! I don't know when.. or how it happened, but broccoli is the vegetable of choice for all of my kids. To my younger ones they look forward to a meal with the "tree's". My teens actually crave broccoli in it's many different preparations or simply steamed with a splash of lemon. Today'
I love creating recipes, I have to tell you.. I very rarely purchase cookbooks. I do have a grand selection of cooking magazines, but that is mainly because I love reading the articles and finding out "what's current" in the food industry for the season and year. And for the photo's.. I LOVE the photo's! But cookbooks.. I probably have 4-5 that are mainstay's
Welcome to the May 2012 Edition of "The Inspired Plate's" Food Photography and Photo Challenges. I am so excited to introduce you to The Inspired Plate. This is the first time I am posting my challenge here on DMC. I usually post all of my photo challenges on my photography blog, A Favored Life, but I am so thrilled about these challenges and the woman I share in them with, that I really thou
Yummy Scones for your weekend.. or for any day of the week for that matter. My kids love having something quick to grab in the mornings before they head out to school. And this recipe, with very little sugar, and some naturally added Vitamin C from the cranberries and orange zest makes me feel comfortable that I'm not feeding into a junk food
Welcome to "The Inspired Plate". We are a collective gathering of 14 food enthusiast photographers. Each month we post final photographic images of a styled dish that we have been working on throughout the month. Some of us.. like me, procrastinate the actual styling and photography and shoot at the last minute.. on the last day.. before posting! Come on gals.. I know I'm not the only one! :)
If there’s ever a dish that I dream about, constantly, it would have to be risotto. As I sit here typing I’m thinking to myself, “Oh how I would love a hot steamy dish of rich and creamy risotto”, my dilemma, how can I possibly live off of risotto without it going to my hips. That’s it! The ONLY reason I don’t eat risotto for every meal. Those darn Italians.. Have THEE MOST AMAZING&nb
Welcome to our March Edition of the "Food Photography and Styling Challenge"! Who are we you ask? We are "The Inspired Plate". A group of gals who come together each month to share a styled photograph of a food related theme. Each month the subject seems to get a little harder and sometimes intense. This month's theme was, "Splash". I LOVED this month! It actually was easier not havin
There's nothing like a Sunday with my family gathered around the table sharing in fresh baked waffles. Always a favorite with my husband and children.. but this new recipe utilizes whole wheat flour to give it a nuttier more satisfying bite.. as well as a healthier one too! I love flavored butters and the addition of lavender essence was fun and fanci
Welcome to the February edition of the Food Photography and Styling challenge. We are a group of 14 woman who meet on the 20th of each month to share our styled food photo’s. Each month we have a specified theme. This month our challenge comes in the way of "Vegetables". Our presentation photo has to be a “diptych”. Two photo’s side by side, raw and cooked. Wow.. Another challenge t
I'd love to call this my "Peter Rabbit Pasta Dish".. because as I was grabbing vegetables from my refrigerator yesterday it occurred to me that if I had a household of bunnies they would be very happy crowd. It was for my son that this recipe came about. He is a vegetarian who also is borderline diabetic. So yesterday when he came home early from school, looking faint and pale-ish I gr
I'm so excited about this new monthly project I'm taking part in with 13 other fabulous photographers. "We're food enthusiasts.. with camera's!" Most of us met on the Bloom Forum, and most of us take part in other challenges prompted by some amazing artist's there. For this Food Photography and Styling Challenge, we will come together on the 20th of each month to share a
There is a bakery in the San Diego area that sells the tastiest breakfast breads ever! They're filled with yummy goodness like lots of cinnamon sugar doused with butter, nuts and fruits.. and the dressing on top just drips with a sticky rich sugary glaze that is definitely finger licking good. But getting to San Diego on a weekly basis is pretty much out of the question for me
The lure of rolled meats is in the stuffing. It’s like a beautifully wrapped package just waiting to be revealed. The contents of which are breadcrumbs soaked in wine, cheese, herbs, eggs, pancetta, and mushrooms. A variety of ingredients encapsulated by thin pieces of meat, wrapped in twine, seared and braised in tomato, cream, or a wine sauce. It is one of the most decorated dishes among It
