Portrait of a Morning Bun

There are gargantuan numbers of folks doing food photography these days. Now that I am actually lucky enough to have a chance to turn my focus back to photography, I'm faced with a dilemma. How do I differentiate my work from the rest of the pack? It's a really good question.

Maybe I'll start with this... I'm thinking of doing a series of food "portraits" after the Old Masters. Perhaps another trip to Amsterdam is in order. I get so inspired by the light there. And the art. And the pancakes.

Baked Lasagna

And here's the "after" photo of the amazing baked lasagna. And it was amazing! The key ingredient is layer upon layer of ever so thin pasta sheets piled high with a spicy and flavorful sauce. And some very fresh mozzarella to boot.

Lasagna, Unbaked

Lasagna, Unbaked
Originally uploaded by pixelish
Another "before" picture! Today it's lasagna before baking, as I prepare for my upcoming trip to Italy.

Cranberry Bread Pudding - Tartine

Cranberry Bread Pudding - Tartine
Originally uploaded by pixelish
Utterly delicious bread pudding with cranberries from Tartine Bakery, San Francisco. http://www.tartinebakery.com/

Baked Pumpkin Soup in a Pumpkin Shell

This creamy and flavorful baked soup is one of my very favorite recipes to cook in Autumn.

Ingredients
 
1 medium sized pumpkin
5 slices of toasted sourdough bread
1.5 cups grated gruyere cheese
16 oz chicken stock
8 oz heavy cream
1/2 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper

Directions

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Using a sharp and sturdy knife, cut out a lid from the pumpkin top and set aside. Scoop out the pumpkin guts and seeds, but leave the walls of the pumpkin thick and intact. Now place the pumpkin in a deep round casserole dish.

Toast the sourdough bread to a golden brown color. Rip the toast into bite-size pieces and place a layer inside the pumpkin. Cover the toast with a layer of the grated gruyere. Repeat the layering until you have used up all the toast and cheese. Sprinkle the mixture with the salt and pepper. Now pour in the heavy cream, followed by the chicken stock. Place the lid back on the pumpkin.

Bake for 1 hour at 350 degrees, then remove the lid from the pumpkin and bake for another 30 minutes or so, until golden brown. Enjoy!

Raisin Pastries Paris

Raisin Pastries Paris
Originally uploaded by pixelish
These raisin pastries are similar to cinnamon buns, but with a delicious twist. They use a flaky French pastry for the dough to make them ultra light and uber yummy.

I think I may try to reverse engineer the recipe for these delicate morsels... they were just too good!

Tilting towards yumminess

A wise man once told me a food photography secret... Never underestimate the power of a good tilt! Sometimes, just having a nice little tilt when shooting your food subject can make the difference between an ordinary photo and a extraordinary one. Mangia!

Cranberry Claufoutis copy

Cranberry Claufoutis copy
Originally uploaded by pixelish

Claufoutis day today! Used a modified version of Martha Stewart's recipe. ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS!!! Just saying.

0811TomatoPieP1000277 copy

0811TomatoPieP1000277 copy
Originally uploaded by pixelish

Friday, Friday, tomato pie day! Found some lovely summer tomatoes and dragged out my James Beard cookbook for the piecrust. After I rolled the dough out, I spread a little pesto sauce on the dough. Then spread a few basil leaves and topped with a bunch of the mixed tomatoes. Sprinkled with salt and pepper and baked. Absolutely delicious!