Ha, I know what you’re thinking – duh, of course an omelette is gluten free! Why are you calling something that never had gluten to begin with a gluten free recipe?  Well, there’s a reason and a story to go with this one, I promise.

It all started with a discussion on the merit of naturally gluten free recipes – by naturally gluten free, I mean recipes that never required any alterations in the first place for a GF person to be able to enjoy them.  Take, for an example, the recipes I link to in my naturally gluten free roundup posts.  But do GF people actually find such recipes valuable? Do you really want someone giving you “yet another freaking salad” recipe (as my husband so lovingly refers to green salads with little else in them….)? What about other dishes that are naturally gluten free?

It may seem like a simple question but it is not – after a bit of a side tangent discussion on Dianne Jacob’s recent post about recipe adaptions, I decided that this topic needed a bit more attention.  Flo made a comment about recipe originality in respect to gluten free recipe development – how she has seen people take something that never had gluten in it to begin with, such as an omelette, and claim it as a grand new GF invention.  And from there people got talking about what exactly is the place of naturally gluten free recipes? Do they belong on blogs? What about in cookbooks? If you are GF do you actually want to see and read such recipes to be shown easy and practical ways to live a GF lifestyle, or do you consider them trivial and a waste of space?

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Read the rest of A Gluten Free French Omelette

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It’s amazing how I can go visit my family for two weeks and come back to find that there has been an abrupt yet complete transformation into Winter.  No snow here yet, but that nip is in the air and the wind blows with a chill that makes anyone want to bundle themselves up in a hat and scarf, maybe thinking twice before venturing outside.

Most would consider this the official season for warm Wintery comfort foods – baked potatoes, fondue, stews, and the like.  However while it may not be so pleasant outside, inside our apartment is a sweltering sauna – we have yet to ever activate our heating, and most of the time often crack a window to help relieve us a bit – maybe our neighbors love the warmth too much and so their heat finds its way to our place? I don’t know – but when home, the last thing I want to eat is a thick hot meal.

So instead I have been stocking up our kitchen with my favorite fruits – mangoes, clementines, pomegranates, avocados, whatever looks refreshing when we go shopping.  Dinners have been salads – something light to enjoy the fun tropical flavors that come out in Winter, that aren’t going to heat up our apartment so much (well more than it already is).  On top of that, most salads that my husband and I make are naturally gluten free – that is, we don’t add in croutons or complicated dressings that require substitutions, we simply prepare fresh ingredients and dress with simple dressings for something easy that doesn’t require much thought.

This mango avocado salad is one such salad, and after making it more than a few times in the past month alone we have yet to tire of it:)

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Today I am empty.

I am completely empty of words for you today. So, instead of my usual ramblings I present to you images.   Little details, big details, things that have made me happy and filled with joy lately.

Like this soup.  This omg amazing flavorful rich bright colorful well you just have to make it and taste it for yourself soup.

Sometimes it’s the little experiences in life that bring so much pleasure.

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Read the rest of Butternut & Red Pepper Soup

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What defines a photographic style? Is it the light one uses, the props, the angle, the composition, the settings? I kind of think all of the above.  It’s part of what makes style so hard to describe.  How does one look at a photograph and see the signature of the photographer within the image?  All of my favorite photographers have a distinct style, and I can look at any single image and instantly recognize it as theirs.  But as an amateur who is still learning, it’s hard to find a voice.  How do you figure out how to represent your vision to the world in a way that speaks only from you?  And determining of what that style comprises can become quite the soul searching process.

For me, I have always been in love with color.  Bright vibrant color.  Ha I remember when I was 5 I had this pair of shorts I loved, bright pink with bright green fishies (yeah I was stylin in the 80s, ha).  My mother for better or worse always let me choose my own clothes as a kid, and I was always a fan of bright colors – turquoise, pinks, greens, ha even my prom dress was a hot pink satin ball gown (and I totally rocked it lol).  So while I may not be the most fashion forward person, it doesn’t surprise me that as I’ve involved myself more and more into photography that I would still be in love with bright vibrant color.  Maybe too much.  I’ve been trying to tone myself down a bit (and even done some black & whites oh my!), but the truth is, I will always be a sucker for color and contrast.  And I think that’s definitely part of my style.  I also like to be close.  Really close.  I want to put you right there in front of the plate ready to dive in (well, that’s my goal!). I think I just see the world close up in technicolor, and so that’s how I express my vision of it.

And that’s really what style is about, isn’t it? How one expresses their vision of the world?  I remember a couple years ago while I was still floundering and guessing as to how to create an image, desperately seeking out my style.  But really, a style is something that evolves and happens naturally.  And it wasn’t until I got a better grasp on the technicals of what I was doing that I was able to sit back a bit and watch mine evolve.  I love experimenting with different ideas and techniques and finding out what is or isn’t me.  I’m not quite sure where I am headed but I see it developing and forming, and hopefully turning into a unique way to present the world with a vision of food and nature.

One thing I love about photographic styles is how individual they are.   No style is defined by a single aspect – it’s not about the angle of the camera, the color of the background, the softness of the light, the editing on the computer.  It’s about all the aspects of photography all combined together.  And that’s why a style is so personal – every style reveals a bit about the photographer’s soul, because it is part of how they perceive the world around them.  And it’s why at first I was hesitant to participate in this new photo challenge.

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Read the rest of Amateur’s Food Photography XIII: White Bean and Ricotta Salad

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Back in May at Plate to Page in Weimar, Germany I met an amazing food blogger from Cape Town  – Ishay of Food and the Fabulous.  We had a lot of fun creating a picnic photoshoot together, and her infectious enthusiasm shined through the entire weekend.  Her passion is truly inspirational, and when she suggested that we Plate to Page attendees do a little something for the project We Feed Back, I was more than happy to participate.

I have never known hunger.  I was lucky enough to grow up in a small town in the rural countryside of New England and while money didn’t exactly grow on trees for us, in the grand scheme of things we lived a fairly comfortable lifestyle.  But there are millions who do know hunger, and know it every day.  In the midst of all the craziness of our own lives, it is so easy to caught get up in our day to day concerns – what to buy at the market? should we go out with friends for dinner and drinks this evening? where shall we go hiking this weekend? and we don’t stop to think about the preciousness of the fortunes that we do have, not even giving basic needs like hunger a second thought.  But for nearly one in seven around the globe, that is not the case.  So what if when we went out to enjoy food at a restaurant or have dinner with friends we could give back some of our pleasures to help those in need?

We Feed Back is an initiative of the UN’s World Food Program in which users utilize social networking tools in order to raise awareness and fund raise in order to fight hunger around the world.  Through We Feed Back, one can in essence give back any food or meal that was enjoyed by going to the calculator, entering the dish you ate and its cost per serving, and then donate the number of servings that you wish.  All the revenue goes towards WFP’s school feeding programs to help give meals to hungry children.

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I’ve always dreamed of having a garden.  When I was very little, my mom used to have a vegetable garden in the backyard – I remember sunkissed days with tomatoes coming out our ears, along with peas, lots of peppers, even once we tried growing corn (that didn’t work so well)…  But one of the sacrifices of apartment life is giving up the chance for a garden.  A meager balcony with all the wrong sunshine is not an ideal setup for an urban oasis of greenery.

So instead of being outside amongst the bounty of nature taking care of the plants and growing our own dinner, we venture up to the trails, to see the mountains and landscapes before us.  We eagerly set off to get away from all the concrete.

And ironically, there is my husband, admiring the beauty of nature standing next to a large wall, ha!

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What inspires you?

It seems I like to find inspiration in everything I see – whether it be vast expanses of natural scenery, fresh tastes in my kitchen, travels to experience new sights and sounds, little details of beauty or simply a stroll through my RSS reader to see what my favorite food photographers, writers, and blogging friends have been up to.  Sometimes I remember an emotion, and want to create a dish that evokes similar feelings and memories – or I see a photo that moves me so much I am compelled to cook something that emulates how I felt about that image.  Or sometimes, I just love the simplicity of nature and try to bring freshness and vibrance to my table.

I think inspiration can be everywhere – anywhere, really.   And that our perception of the world is based on the culmination and amalgamation of each of our own unique life experiences.  That every event leading up to this point has helped shaped me into who I am and each new experience, sight, sound, and the part I played in it becomes incorporated into my overall approach and outlook on life.

But sometimes in this fast paced competitive world, it seems like we all need to achieve certain things, have certain items, possess certain traits in order to be “successful” (what does that word mean anyways? and is your definition the same as mine?), and find ourselves with certain pressures of conformity – and it’s no different in the blogging world either. We should post this many times per week – these colors work best – promote yourself on social media without being too annoying about it – use diffused light, never use a flash on photos (I vow to break this one, in fact there’s flash in most of the pics in this post), make sure you’ve got your recipes in the stringent requirements of hrecipe formatting to please the Google gods…the list goes on.

Sometimes amongst all these preconceived requirements for success, it’s hard not to feel like another pea squished amidst all the others in the pod – and then where does that inspiration go?

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Until recently, I didn’t know anyone did anything with a watermelon besides just cut it up and eat it.  I mean, it’s already completely sweet, juicy, the pure essence of Summer, why mess with perfection embodied in this pink fruit?  Even the mere sight of a ripe watermelon evokes memories of childhoods past. For me personally, I see weeks at girl scout camp, running around outside, carefree, swimming in the lake, making new friends, riding horses… you get the idea.

But why not play, and see just where the flavor of this fruit can go?  Have you ever thought about the flavors in our favorite Summertime snack and how they would meld with other foods? I certainly hadn’t until Meeta challenged us Plate to Page alumni to photograph watermelon as a fun photography assignment – two photos – one raw, and one in a dish – a dish? who puts watermelon in things?  Ha – maybe it was time to change my perspective a bit and open my eyes to the possibilities one could cook up

Perspective is a funny thing.  Sometimes our first impressions have such a profound effect on us that we forget to look for the other possibilities right in front of us.  I think that’s why I like to go for walks and hikes – because all that time away from everything gives my mind space to think and breathe.  And sometimes, I even get to get lost and freak out after sitting at a train station for 30 minutes until I figure out that the train only passes through on weekdays…

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Read the rest of Watermelon and Fennel Salad

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Why do we need a special occasion to eat tasty food?

My husband and I don’t eat fancy food very often.  We hardly ever go out to eat, and most dinners at home are vegetarian, consisting of pasta, rice or bean dishes or salad, rather uncomplicated and reasonably affordable.  But from time to time, my husband and I come up with random occasions to celebrate just because we want a nice dinner.  A sudden craving, we both turn to each other one day and say, “Hmm do you want to cook something nice tonight?” And we go to the market, pick out a nice cut of meat and proceed to plan for ourselves a “fancy” dinner – we’ll get out the good wine glasses, actually set the table, and sit down like we’re celebrating a fancy anniversary.

This time, we decided it was “because it was finally a beautiful warm sunny day in Switzerland.”  The last time I had cooked lamb was for my birthday last year, and I don’t really know what prompted us to want lamb that day, but being a beautiful almost Summer-like day seemed as good a reason as any

Maybe making up a reason for a dinner with a pricey cut of meat (well, pricey for us who still have not fully accustomed ourselves to Swiss meat prices) is just a way of being spontaneous, because an impromptu “date” at home makes us feel young again after many days coming home from work tired and not wanting to do anything other than eat dinner, relax a little and then sleep.  Maybe we’ve just been feeling in a bit of a spontaneous mood lately, like yesterday when we decided to walk the famous vineyard trail through the Lavaux region along the coast of Lake Geneva, conveniently ending in the town of Cully, the location of our favorite gluten free chocolaterie/dessert shop.

After all, with such amazing weather, how could one resist being outside to soak up all that rare sunshine?

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Today marks exactly two years since we Daring Cooks intrepidly revealed our first cooking challenge to the world, and every month since has been an eventful, educational (and sometimes stressful) trip across various techniques and cuisines.  I am sad to say this shrimp & sausage gumbo will be my 20th and last Daring Cooks challenge that I present to you – the past 24 months have been wonderful, but I have to move on – Daring Cooks was an amazing experience, and did wonders to help me grow with my skills in the kitchen, new techniques, and above all creativity (especially when it came to making some of the challenges gluten free!).

This month for my last challenge of Daring Cooks, I made gumbo. I made mine with shrimp and sausage, and about twice as many veggies as were called for. Our May hostess, Denise, of There’s a Newf in My Soup!, challenged The Daring Cooks to make Gumbo! She provided us with all the recipes we’d need, from creole spices, homemade stock, and Louisiana white rice, to Drew’s Chicken & Smoked Sausage Gumbo and Seafood Gumbo from My New Orleans: The Cookbook, by John Besh.

Out of 25 total challenges so far, today marks my 20th.  Twenty new experiences, trials, recipes, fails, photos and successes. Rather than reminisce about each one, I thought it might be more fun to show the dishes in picture form (each photo links to its post) – it’s funny to think about how scary making those gnocchi were that first time, and how far along I’ve come, even to host a challenge and help others.  Thanks Daring Kitchen, for some great memories and helping me to become an overall better cook.  So here they are, starting from the beginning:

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Read the rest of Daring Cooks Make Gumbo

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