I love shooting restaurants and it is always great to be in San Diego. So running around the city shooting 12 restaurants over 3 days pretty much makes this my favorite gig. Here are a few spreads and some shots that didn’t make it in.
Posted on Friday, May 31st, 2013
For my first cookbook, I teamed up with cooking teacher and best-selling cookbook author Lynn Alley for a book that shows cooks and gardeners how to make the most of fresh herbs such as mint, dill, rosemary, and thyme.
The key to cooking with fresh herbs is to keep things simple and let the flavor of the herbs shine, so the recipes are made with only a few readily available ingredients that showcase the vibrancy of each herb.
We shot the cookbook last summer at Lynn’s house in San Diego. Lynn styled the food and Melissa Gardner was the prop stylist. The book’s appealing design came from Julie Barnes at Andrews McMeel. And Lane Butler at Andrews McMeel did a great job of editing and managing the whole project.
I shot all of the book’s photos and had the pleasure of tasting all the dishes. The one I will always remember is the Savory Tomato Sorbet with Oregano: the flavors offered an unexpected and refreshingly delicious surprise.
GARNET YAM RÖSTI WITH INDIAN FLAVORS
2 tbsp ghee or vegetable oil
4 large red or garnet yams, grated
1 tsp salt, Freshly ground black pepper
2 tsp coriander seeds, crushed
2 tsp cumin seeds, crushed. 2 egg whites
½ cup plain yogurt, ½ cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro
½ cup thinly sliced scallions, ½ Serrano chile, chopped finely
Place the ghee in a large skillet over medium heat and allow the skillet to heat thoroughly, 3 to 4 minutes. It’s important not to get the skillet too hot, as the potatoes on the bottom will cook before the insides are done.
Toss the yams with salt, pepper, coriander and cumin seeds, and egg whites. Place the yams in the skillet and press them down with a spatula into an even layer. Cook for about 10 minutes, rotating the skillet a couple of times to avoid hot spots, until the bottom of the rösti is golden brown.
Loosen the rösti on the sides and bottom of the pan with a spatula, slide the rösti out onto a plate, then slide the rösti back into the pan, browned side up. Cook for another 10 minutes, or until the underside of the rösti is also browned.
Gently run a spatula around the sides of and underneath the rösti and slide it onto your serving plate. Top with yogurt, cilantro, scallions, and chile and serve immediately.
Posted on Thursday, May 16th, 2013
I recently had the opportunity to shoot about 50 covers of “The Great Gatsby” at the University of South Carolina’s very impressive special collections library. It was fascinating to see so many prized books at one time – one of the perks of being a photographer. A small sampling was published in T : The New York Times Style Magazine.
Posted on Thursday, May 16th, 2013
We picked the one and only snow day in January to shoot this feature. The city was mostly shut but the light was good and that’s all that mattered. Well, that and the rustic and unusual crackers that the Design Director Ann Harvey – from PACE Communications – baked for the shoot.
Posted on Wednesday, April 10th, 2013
I recently had the pleasure of visiting Garland Truffles in Hillsborough, NC, to shoot a story for THE LOCAL PALATE Magazine out of Charleston, SC. It was fascinating to see how truffles are harvested and listen to Franklin Garland talk about how he got started growing truffles. The best part of the shoot, of course, was the truffle-filled dishes we got to sample all day.
Posted on Thursday, February 28th, 2013
Posted on Tuesday, March 6th, 2012
Posted on Tuesday, March 6th, 2012
20 Restaurants 2 weeks, quite a treat !
Posted on Monday, June 27th, 2011
Dosakai is light green to bright yellow colored cucumber commonly available in various parts of south India. It has a crunchy skin and a tart taste. The inside of the vegetable is a pale yellow with red and yellow seeds. It is used a lot in traditional Andhra cooking and is added to Saambar and Daals, made into chutneys and pickled with oil and spices.
Posted on Monday, March 21st, 2011
Chayote is an edible plant that belongs to the gourd family along with melons, cucumbers and squash. Chayote Con Espinas is dark green in color and is completely covered in thorns. It has a crisp whitish flesh with high water content and subtle flavor.
Chayote is generally lightly cooked to retain the crisp flavor. Raw chayote may be added to salads or salsas, and it is often marinated with lime or lemon. Chayote is a good source of potassium, vitamin C and folic acid.
Posted on Sunday, January 30th, 2011