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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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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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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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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I take a rather utilitarian attitude towards many things in life – I don’t keep mementos and souvenirs, and generally (there are a few particular exceptions like a family heirloom quilt my great grandmother made for example) only keep something around if it serves a purpose or has a defined use.  I really don’t like clutter, and it’s enough to constantly battle the inner pack rat tendencies of my husband, who until he met me kept with him even high school math exercise sheets from algebra class!  Not sure if he was trying to preserve a memory or afraid being around all this science and math in our lives if he would end up forgetting algebra, but I did eventually convince him that we no longer needed to keep high school math exercises around

That being said, as much as I pride myself on my “zen” attitude & philosophy of being rather anti-stuff and clutter, I do preserve moments and memories, just in a different way.  I take photos to remember those times where I saw in a magic instant how beautiful the world is.  In fact, it’s one of my favorite activities, going out and trying to capture the world in the camera as I see it through my eyes.

It’s the main reason I love to go hiking – because I love walking around outside amidst nature and being reminded of this place we live in – that the world is not just about work and deadlines and finances and stress – puffy clouds and ancient mountains gazing at their reflections don’t care about those things – they just exist – nothing more, nothing less – and in certain moments of clarity, I can sometimes see and understand.

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My husband Ryan is doing a guest post today! He made an awesome brunch a couple weeks ago and wanted to tell y’all about it, along with share a bit of his perspective as the member of this household who actually has to be gluten free.

Hi again!  Since I became gluten free, my restaurant experiences have been rather hit or miss.  Sometimes, I find myself in a conversation for 15 minutes with the waitress explaining that no, croutons are not OK because they are bread and bread is not ok.  In more than one instance, I’ve gotten rolled eyes from wait staff  at various restaurants who are “inconvenienced” by my limitations, or they have thought I’m just making it up because I don’t like something and then don’t take it seriously.  I find myself weighing if it’s worth being “glutened” because I am the hassle for wanting to eat out, or if I should just go hungry watching my friends around me eat, or stick up for myself to try to be accommodated.  And I only have one food issue. So many have multiple dietary restrictions.

Sometimes, following a gluten free diet can feel a little claustrophobic.  You feel like you are stuck in a cage and unable to break out and try new foods/places to eat.  A constant omnipresent fear is always in your head stopping you from trying that new restaurant or making your own bread or eating anything not made from scratch.  I had this fear for a long time (before I met Jenn, of course).  Rice, meat and potatoes were the staples in my diet and I dared not stray from this regime or I would react and feel awful for the next week or so (at least this is what I thought in my head).  This constant fear plagued me for a very long time, and as a result most of the time when I went out to eat with friends and family, I would only get a grilled steak with a plain baked potato.

Now I love a good steak, don’t get me wrong. But sometimes, it would be nice to feel comfortable eating something else.  And that is why I get so excited about enterprises that DO accommodate the gluten free crowd, and have options that are exciting.  Not just serving a hamburger without a bun, but a real entrée that I can enjoy to its full capacity.  Such places with their dedication to understanding what it is like with dietary restrictions have really helped change my perspective on eating gluten free, and have let me feel like a newly released convict from my food prison.

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I haven’t lived in the same place for more than 2 years ever since I went off to college.  I’m starting to think that I’m secretly addicted to moving.  After all, it’s a great way to purge extra stuff that you’ve accumulated over time, like a forced motivator to do all that Spring cleaning that was supposed to happen oh, 4 months ago.  I always had a really good reason (not an excuse, a reason! reasons are forgivable and rationalizable) to put it off another week…

We, as fortune would have it, are moving to a new apt.  How could we turn it down?  The opportunity presented itself, we applied, and we actually got it! New place is bigger, newer, nicer, cheaper, and closer to everything we do.  It has four burners on the stove, counterspace, a real oven and get this – a dishwasher!  I am beyond excited.  Sometimes my husband and I think about all the food we have made in our current apartment, and we are both amazed how we pulled it off with so little space.  Well, I know how we did it.  It’s called our food processor and toaster oven.  Lifesavers, they are.  Moving now means crazy things like, we can now cook and store enough food to take lunches to work.  I can now go buy muffin tins and bake things.  Gluten free brioche? That’s something I’ve been longing to try.  Or doughnuts?  mmmmm.  My list of things to make just got a long longer really quickly!

But we’re not quite moved yet, even though all our pots and pans are packed up.  Food processor is packed, and so is the toaster oven.  Cooking this week is a pretty minimal word.  And in the case of this post, non-existent.  Lately, we’ve done lots of salads because prep work and lack of cooking work makes them really easy.  This is one that we just kinda threw together in our heads the other day coming home from work.  Beyond simple, quick, satisfying, and no cooking required.  Took a max of 10 minutes to make (when you count chopping all the veggies), 5 minutes to photograph (don’t you just love the tablecloth? ha), and then a few more minutes to devour!

I call this an app, because that’s how most people would eat it I think. We had it for dinner.  To each their own, these rules about food aren’t so fastly set in stone.  In fact, I encourage breaking some food rules every now and then.  It’s good for that adventurous spirit, even if it’s something small like eating an appetizer for dinner

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For the two of us, this summer has been all about fresh fruit.  Of course we all know my love affair with strawberries, but now that the season has passed, I’ve branched out to enjoy the other tasty sweets nature has to give us along with the bright summer sun.  Whether it be sharing a fresh carton of blackberries while walking home from work, picking raspberries on a path out on an evening walk, or waking up in the morning with yogurt, granola, and slices of apricots that aim to be as sweet as the ripest of peaches, we certainly have been enjoying our fruits!  And then there are figs.  I like to wait til they are super soft, so delicate a firm grip would end them in a fit of a sticky disaster oozing everywhere.

Not every fruit needs to be sweet to be enjoyed.  Currants are a tart little explosive burst of flavor when they enter your mouth.  At first I was a bit skeptical of my potential love for this fruit because of that, but they have really become a staple in our kitchen the past few weeks.  I enjoy their tartness, especially paired with something sweet.  They are perfect for balancing sweetness, and are exactly why they are such an integral part of this salad.

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I tend to lose my appetite easily when it is grossly hot outside like it has been this week, tending towards fresh fruits and greens over carbs & meats.  There’s just one problem with desiring such lighter fare day after day – I don’t consume enough calories and then I am hungry.  So how to eat something more substantial when I don’t feel like anything heavy?  Why of course, a chilled flavorful pasta salad!

Unfortunately, pasta salads for me often invoke images of mayonnaise laden macaroni concoctions at a sweltering hot picnic brunch that leave my stomach in that “sunken” feeling after eating, like a giant boulder decided to take up residence in my tummy.  It’s usually not an awesome experience.  However, thanks to my friend Stacy over at Little Blue Hen, her Greek pasta with colorful visions of artichoke hearts and olives was exactly the inspiration I needed.  A light olive oil and vinegar dressing and some great bright flavors sounded perfect to me.

Most everything I had already in my pantry too, which means I didn’t have to go back out in the heat to the store to buy things.  Not that going to the store is an issue, but climbing the freaking hill back up to our apartment is.  Did I ever tell you that I am a complete wimp in the heat (especially if there is no A/C to be had)?  There’s a reason why most of my work & travels have been to cooler regions, or why my husband and I chose the chilly windy New England shore in the Autumn rather than a tropical Caribbean island for our honeymoon.  A beach all to myself on a day where the high is 50ºF with 30 knot winds?  Now that’s my kinda vacation:

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