and brings you specialty crops like heirloom zucchetta to shoot for the food photography class you are teaching together online.Thanks Ron!

I also highly recommend having a client who grows apples, especially one that has you develop and shoot interesting new recipes with 12 different apple varieties.  

I can’t share those recipes with you quite yet, but I do still have an abundance of apples. First, I made apple scones, just mixing in some diced fresh apple to my favorite cream scone recipe. I also made raw applesauce with peach. Apple pop-tarts with my pop tart recipe from my new book, Real Snacks (which I can hopefully share with you soon too!). And, of course, apple fritters. But, I still have a LOT more apples (Want some? Come on over!)

Today, I pulled out my friend Béa’s gorgeous book, La Tartine Gourmande: Recipes for an Inspired Life for further inspiration. This book is truly a joy. Lovely flavor combinations and visual wow are artfully mixed in with Béa’s charming life stories. Over the past several years, I’ve been lucky enough to spend several days with Béa and her family, and her spirit really rings through in this book. I excitedly await our trip next week to teach a food photography and styling class in France. But, with Béa’s book in hand, I did not have to wait to start tasting her delicious dishes again. There were many choices with apples.

Today I chose to make the Upside Down Cranberry Cake recipe, which she notes that apples work very well in place of the cranberries. The cake pairs the complex flavors of gluten free flours (quinoa, brown rice and almond meal) with olive oil, vanilla and saffron – an intriguing and delicious combination that do taste great with lightly sautéed Braeburn apples.

While Béa’s recipe makes a 9-inch cake, I halved the recipe and made tea cakes in a cupcake tin instead. Delicious!

Of course, after reading through Béa’s book, I really couldn’t resist also making a little parfait as well. Simply sautéed apple slices, topped with honey sweetened yogurt, topped with a pistachio, cashew and thyme crumble. Yum!

What are your favorite recipes for apples?

Not so with the books I shoot. I make the hell out of those recipes. It starts because I need to make the recipe for a shot, but inevitably goes beyond that. I often fall in love with those dishes. My husband once accused me of never making the same dish twice; after shooting Dishing Up Washington, that’s about to change. Because now I know how to glaze braised meat.

To be fair, I’ve been braising meat for a while, and I always considered myself pretty successful with it. The meat was delicious and tender. But it never quite had that gorgeous glaze that I’d get in a restaurant. Now I know how, and I’m putting it to pretty amazing use, like with this glazed, braised lamb shank… a little play on Jess’s Beef Bourginon and Glazed Goat Shank recipes from the cookbook. I borrowed a little from one recipe, a little from another, for a dinner that is pretty darn awe inspiring if I do say so myself.

If you are braising, be sure to give yourself plenty of time. It’s not a process you want to rush any part of. You can also do most of the “work” on a lazy Sunday afternoon, and then wrap it all up to finish off just before dinner later in the week, if time is going to be tight.

Start with a really good lamb shank. You aren’t going to get a good braise if your meat isn’t fantastic.

I was lucky enough to be doing a little shoot in New Season’s Market for the Online Food Photography & Styling class that I’m currently teaching, and picked up a hefty shank from Umpqua Valley Lamb Farm in Riddle, Oregon. Umpqua’s lamb is sustainably grown, grass-fed and pasture raised by small farms in oregon. Rumor has it, they even feed their lambs tasty bits like broccoli! This is a farm I’d love to go visit sometime!

Anyway, back to the braising.

Salt and pepper it all over while you get a deep pot heating over medium-high heat with a healthy splash of oil on the stove top. You need a pot, with a lid, that is large enough to allow the shank to lay flat. But you also don’t want a pot that is too big… you need the shank to be submerge in the braising liquid. Trust me on this, find the right sized pot for your braise; it is well worth the trouble.

Once the pot is hot, place the shank in (any side down is fine), and give it a good sear. Leave it in that pot, untouched for a good 2 minutes at least. Then turn it to the next side. Sear all the sides this way. If the meat is still stuck to the pan, give it another minute before trying to turn it. When the meat is braised all over, take it out of the pot, and set it aside on a plate.

Now, you’ll want to add your aromatics & veggies. You can add what you like, but I like the simple combination of onion, garlic, celery and carrot. Pearl onions, leeks or shallots would be good in place of or in addition to the onion. A few sprigs of thyme are a nice addition, or a few stalks of Italian parsley (stems and all). Maybe a bay leaf if you like. It’s not fussy. Just cut some stuff up and toss it in the hot pan that has all the meat drippings (add a bit more oil if there is none on the pan), and turn the heat down to low so all the good stuff slowly cooks and doesn’t burn. Let it go until it’s kind of soft but not mushy. Onions will be translucent and golden rather than brown. Stir often. This will take around 10 minutes.

Get your oven preheating to 325F.

Now add your liquid to the pot and turn the heat back up to medium high. I like to start with wine. About 1/2 cup will usually do it. For lamb you can go with either red or white (I used white this time, but I might try with red, or even a nice dry sherry next go around). When that has reduced, it’s time to add the stock. This can be veggie, chicken or beef broth (home made is best, but the store bought stuff is fine too), depending on how rich you want your braise to be. Add enough to your pot that your lamb shank will be mostly submerged, with just the top 1/4 sticking out the top. The size of your pan will determine the amount, but it’s usually between a pint and 1 quart. Still on the stove top, bring the mixture to a very gentle boil. Once simmering, slide in the meat, and any juices that are on the plate, into the liquid and at top the veggies. Cover, and move the whole pot to the hot oven. Your work for now is done… go find something to do for 2 hours (or a little less, perhaps if you have a really small piece of meat).

When you come back, your meat should be done. It will have contracted and pulled itself off of its bone, and then relaxed again into melty goodness. I always thought braising ended here. In the past, I’d just grab the meat, and the braising liquid as is and serve. I did not know all about glazing. And the glazing is the magic.

So, here’s what you do. You take that meat shank (carefully now because it will be very tender), and set it aside on a plate and cover it with foil.

Then, you run the braising liquid through a fine sieve (careful it’s hot), retaining all the yummy juices and discarding the solids. They are just mush at this point anyway. Put the liquid back in the pot and over medium low heat, start to reduce it. You want it to reduce by a lot, until it starts to have this lovely sheen. This will probably take 10 to 15 minutes. Keep a close eye on it because it’s easy for it to suddenly get nice and glossy and then move past that point the moment you walk over to the other side of the house because nothing is happening. Once the glaze is done, you can put the meat back in, give it a turn to coat, and warm it back up over low heat while you finish preparing the rest of your meal.

You can also wrap up the whole thing at this point for dinner another night. When you serve, pour the glaze all over the meat, or place the glaze in a gravy dish and let folks glaze their own. Delicious!

Let us know whether you are interested so that we can confirm this time slot! We’ve had a lot of interest, so we’ll be opening up the official registration soon! Look for an announcement, and don’t delay signing up, as the class will likely sell out quickly.

We cannot wait to meet you there.

A few Wednesdays ago found me somewhere particularly unexpected: on the rooftop of the Fairmont Olympic Hotel with about a million bees. The bees are the project of Chef Gavin Stephenson, who was accidentally inspired after a chance meeting with Corky Luster, Bee Ambassador. I’ve heard that happens. What makes this particularly interesting though is that Stephenson, who shoulders the title beekeeper as well as chef, is allergic to bees, so epi-pens are always close at hand (luckily, he hasn’t had need of them yet).

The bees, I learned, all feast fairly close by, on the maples that are scattered around downtown. The bees all orient themselves by flying straight from the hive in a single direction. So, the best place to get stung is to stand right there. If you stand off to the side, they pretty much ignore you.

They are housing two types of bees at the Fairmont, although for the life of me I couldn’t tell you what kind they were. I was snapping, not taking down notes. The bees naturally segregate themselves into their own hives, and produce very different looking and tasting honey. One type is clear and golden, with citrus notes while the other has a greenish tint and I swear has a hint of freshly mowed sweet grass. Both are delicious.

I’ve been feeling a bit bee-like myself for the past few months. Flitting from project to project, and making the honey. It’s been chaotic and busy and pretty much wonderful. And, now, I finally have some great news to share from a couple of those projects!

First off, the food photography & styling book I began last year is now available for pre-order on Amazon!

I couldn’t be more excited about this book. While there are some great books out there on food photography now, I think this book is a bit different. Sure, there are lots of tips and techniques outlined by me on lighting and exposure as well as food styling basics that don’t require toxic chemicals, but what really makes me excited about this book are the case studies about some of my favorite food photographers and stylists currently working in the field. I had amazing contributions from Colin Cooke, Iain Bagwell, Lara Hata, Sara Remington, Lisa Golden Schroeder, Dennis Becker, Charlotte Tolhurst, David Land, Francine Zaslow, David Clancy, Valery Rizzo, Johan Vanbecelaere, Keiko Oikawa, Diane Cu & Todd Porter, each sharing their personal stories, tips and beautiful work. I know I learned a thing or two from them and I hope that you get as much from their insights as I did!

Right now, I’m just putting the finishing touches on the manuscript of my next cookbook! I’ve kept kind of quiet on this one, mostly because the publishing process is so long and I know that tempting you with something you can’t get for over a year is kind of crazy. But, the time has come to share a little and ask for some help. You might ask yourself what cookbook could possibly follow up one on Doughnuts. More doughnuts? Nope. But, definitely snack food!

But not just any snack food. After doughnuts, I started playing around with more whole grains and better sugars, and my next book is all about that: Real Snacks: Sweet & Salty Treats Made WIthout All the Junk. Think Twinkies, made with whole grains and no high fructose corn syrup. Or Doritos, with no MSG or Red #5. These are snacks that taste great, have the flavors we all crave, but made from real food so you don’t have to worry about consuming all those “ates” and “ites.” For those of you (or those with kids) with allergies, there are all sorts of suggestions for how to make version that are safe to eat, including nut free, gluten free and vegan options. There’s also a whole appendix on DIY pantry staples like powdered sugar, yogurt coating (for pretzels and the like), garlic & onion powder, vanilla extract, evaporated milk and chocolate syrup!

The book isn’t out until next fall (see, publishing takes a long time!), but I am looking for a few recipe testers to help me put the finishing touches on the recipes. If you are interested, send me mail with your favorite junk food and any dietary restrictions and I’ll send you a recipe or two to try.

There’s much more to come, including a little tour of my new food photo studio down here in Portland, and several other great cookbooks I’ve shot over the last couple of months, but now I have to fly!

So for Mikey and Jennie, here is my pie. I hope it brings some comfort.

You might have noticed, I said Northwest, and not Seattle. There are changes coming along my way, and one of them is a move. As much as Cam & I love Seattle, and our house and our friends, change happens. We are moving to Portland! Cam has started a new job at a fantastic new company, The Clymb, which does very cool flash sales of some of the best outdoor equipment available… if you ski, run, paddle or camp, check it out! Right now, they are having a great sale on Jacob Bromwell camping cookware… it’s not too late to get a great camping skillet and s’more skewers!

Did I mention how much we love our friends? Earlier this summer, our good friend & neighbor Marci graduated from nursing school. To celebrate we had a big block party complete with a pig roast. I should clarify, a whole pig roast. After procuring a whole pig from Rainshadow Meats, Cam borrowed a Caja China from another friend, and I spent an afternoon peeling garlic (10 heads!) and squeezing citrus (ever try to juice a kumquat?) to create this mojo recipe.

If you follow me on Twitter, you’ll have seen some of that chaos. We marinated the pig in a large plastic bag in the bathtub. The pig is then slow roasted in the caja china box, with no-peaking for about 4 hours. A quick flip and a stoking of the coals on top crisps up the skin perfectly. I have to admit, I was completely skeptical of the whole idea of the pig roast from the beginning, but I was converted. We ended up with about 30 pounds of the most amazing roast pork I’ve ever tasted.

Here are some shots from the day… warning, the early shots are pretty graphic.

Four hours later, it’s time to flip the pig…

It’s been a crazy summer, and I have much, much more news… but off to another photo shoot now!

The United Berries of Cobbler

I had fun making this two berry cobbler look like a flag, but there really is no need to separate the berries in this dish. The juices all run together anyway and the flavors meld beautifully. And, speaking of juices, this is a very juicy cobbler. If you like yours a bit thicker, feel free to increase the thickener a bit. But as it is the berry juices have a lovely velvety mouthfeel even though they run all over the plate.

This recipe comes in two parts. The first is the biscuit, which I swapped out with my favorite scone recipe instead. Scones topped cobbler? Yes please. The added bonus here is that I mixed in a few more blueberries into the scone batter for a beautiful look as well as added flavor. Anyway, make the scone batter up until the point that you are going to roll it out, and then set aside while you prep the berries.

Take clean and de-stemmed berries and place them into your baking dish so that it mostly fills it up. Then, take the berries back out of the pan, and stir in a couple of tablespoons of sugar, a pinch of salt, and about 2 teaspoons of the thickener of your choice (I used cornstarch). You’ll need to use your judgement on the amounts here, since your pan and berry size may vary. I used about 1 1/2 pints of smallish strawberries and about a pint of blueberries with those quantities. If you like, splash in some vanilla.

Place the berries in the baking dish, and then sprinkle with another tablespoon of sugar and the zest of 1 lemon. Then, drop on the scone batter. You can form them into small scones if you want and place them, or simply drop rough dollops, about 1/4 cup each.

Brush with melted butter, and bake for about 30 minutes at 375F until the scones are lightly brown and the fruit is fiercely bubbling. Let cool slightly before serving.

Happy Independence Day folks!

Not that doughnuts aren’t worth celebrating on their own right, but as it turns out, there’s a little more to this holiday than that. The first US National Doughnut Day was celebrated in 1938, by the Salvation Army, as a way to honor the women who served doughnuts to soldiers and to raise money to help those in dire circumstances at home during the Great Depression. According to Wikipedia (and, of course if it is on a wiki, it must be true… right, right?):

“About 250 Salvation Army volunteers went to France. Because of the difficulties of providing freshly baked goods from huts established in abandoned buildings near to the front lines, two Salvation Army volunteers (Ensign Margaret Sheldon and Adjutant Helen Purvian) came up with the idea of providing doughnuts. These are reported to have been an “instant hit”, and “soon many soldiers were visiting Salvation Army huts”. Margaret Sheldon wrote of one busy day “Today I made 22 pies, 300 doughnuts, 700 cups of coffee.”

Well, that seems worth celebrating. How about some Fresh Cherry Cake Drop Doughnuts?

To make your own, simply follow a basic cake doughnut recipe (like the Basic Cake doughnut recipe in Doughnuts), and mix about 10 pitted and chopped fresh cherries into the dry flour mixture before adding the butter, the proceed as normal with the rest of the recipe. For the light pink glaze, I simply squeezed some juice from a handful of cherries and used it in place of the liquid in the standard glaze recipe. A teensy pinch of salt will help bring out the cherry flavor in the glaze.

So, for lunch today, a little spring take on a salad nicoise… no tuna, but plenty of potatoes, an egg, pea vines, and some fresh spring peas with the simplest vinaigrette.

If your pea vines are a little tough, you could lightly blanch them first; I just used mine raw.

When I was writing Doughnuts and developing my baked cake doughnut recipe, there was one little thing that I never quite got. The baked doughnuts bake up in a doughnut pan, that is doughnut shaped. No holes. Now, if you were a kid growing up with Dunkin Donuts Munchkins, you know that the holes are the very best part. I tried mini muffin pans. They were almost right. The taste was fine, but they weren’t round.

Last week, while looking for popsicle molds*, I stumbled across these little silicone half spheres. Genius! The perfect baked doughnut hole pan! The tops would puff up to a nice round, and the bottoms would be round too. I one-clicked away.

Today, I gave my brilliant find a shot, with strawberry baked doughnut batter. And they worked. Almost. See, the thing about cake doughnuts is you want them to be just the right amount of dense. Too light and fluffy, and you just have a cupcake. So, they puffed, but not to the perfect sphere I had imagines. No, really, they didn’t puff up much at all. I got lovely little half spheres. Perhaps a little tweak to the recipe will get a better puff, but they were really delicious as they were. Just not quite the right shape, once again.

But then I had another thought. I have a tray full of perfect little 1/2 spheres. Why not fill them and make them a whole! So, a little strawberry “kreme” later, and a little fun with sticks (because everything is more fun On a Stick! Cheers for Matt and his beautiful book!), and I have almost baked doughnut holes once again.

To make the strawberry baked doughnuts, just follow the standard baked doughnut recipe but toss in chopped strawberries into the flour/butter mixture before you add the wet ingredients. Use about 1 strawberry for every 3 doughnut holes.

Strawberry Doughnut Kreme

There is no cream in Kreme… leave out the strawberry and you have a pretty good approximation of Oreo “stuff” with this recipe…

You can make your own Strawberry syrup (strawberries, sugar, heat, time), but I used Schuh Farm’s Strawberry Syrup which is mighty fine.

1 cup powdered sugar
2 tablespoons butter or softened coconut oil
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 to 5 teaspoons Strawberry syrup, to desired thickness

Mix the powdered sugar, butter and vanilla until smooth. Drizzle in the strawberry syrup, a little at a time, until you get the flavor/consistency and color you want.

*If anyone knows where to find aluminum kulfi molds online, let me know! They are perfect for an upcoming shoot, but I haven’t been able to find any online anywhere that would ship to the US.