Learning and Yearning {food!}

Shortly after I decided to dabble in food photography, I was contacted by Susan V, of Learning and Yearning.  (Some of you may recognize her as my gardening mentor!)  She wanted to chat about, of all things... a food photo that she had taken. 

Woah!  I thought.  This is certainly a God-coordinated thing!



Not long after, I found myself in her cozy home, with the two of us laughing and winging our way through my first food photoshoot.  (Yes... first.  I'm just a wee bit behind, with posting the photos!!)

Food photography is quite a departure from my normal genre (people!) and I'm not sure that I could do it full time.  But it's been an interesting and sometimes challenging exploration, these last few months, to say the least!

Thank you to Susan and the other generous foodies who have given me the chance to play!  It's been a blast!!

Cloe N Company!

Conversations struck up with the lovely Donna, from Cloe N Company, in Clarks Summit, lead to some fun, with food photography!

Granola gets fancy.

 

Chunk O Chocolate & Real Vanilla with Nuts Granola.  Yes, please!!

Organic Chocolate Chip Cookies! (Made with cacao chips.)

 

I am excited to tell you that they TASTE GOOD!!

Barn Chicks Brand Granola "Fruits N Berries" Limited Edition.  Get it while you can!

This one was extra fun.  Donna trusted me to bake something with her bread flour.  (No pressure!!)

Phew! It turned out well!

Recipe can be found in "The Weekend Homesteader A Twelve-Month Guide to Self-Sufficiency"

Tough job, this food photography thing. "Must take a bite, to make it look authentic!"

If you're in the Clarks Summit area, be sure to stop in at Cloe N Company- "A tiny brick and mortar shoppe located in a quaint little town ... An ecclectic place where you will come upon a beautiful selection of American made & locally handcrafted items ... A place where you may enjoy a cup of hand blended tea ... and perhaps meet your favorite local artist .... Come on in and sit a spell !!"

*410 S State Street, Clarks Summit, Pa 18411

And a special "Thank you!" to Donna, for letting me play with her yummlies!!

13 Letters About One Thing. {ialsolovechocolate}

Long before Cman's 13th birthday, a like-minded cousin told me about a scrapbook that she had seen, in her Creative Memories circles.

The book was a birthday present, made for a boy, that contained personal letters to him, written from the nine men whom he respected most.  (The number of letters corresponded with the age of the boy.)

How much did I love this idea?! 

Sometimes, my kiddo seems to listens to the words that come forth from my chocolate scented mouth.  But how much MORE wisdom could he gain, with a book of letters, from the 13 men whom he respected most??

Now to get the list from him!

Thankfully, a few months before his birthday, we began taking some interesting walks together.  Somehow or other, they became- "Ask me anything" walks.  I was given permission to ask anything that I wanted to (???) which gave me the perfect opportunity to ask "Who are the 13 men you respect the most...?"

It took him a little while, but by the end of the walk, he had finalized his list and named the 13+ WOMEN whom he respected most, as well!

Yessssss.

I contacted the men on the list and asked if they would be willing to contribute to the book.  

I left the topics and format open ended, but suggested that they write encouraging, inspiring, words of wisdom, that Cman would be reading, for years to come.

100% of the men said "yes".  

The variety of letters was fantastic.

Some wrote advice and special Bible verses.

Some were vulnerable and wrote of their difficult pasts.

One wrote a poem.

And many made the letters personal, commenting on Cman's  strengths and weaknesses.

It was a beautiful collaboration.

Cman is now approaching 14.

Any guesses what he'll be getting?

A real time blog. {Happening now}

I'm about to make me some raw brownies.

Click here, to see the recipe and photo.

I won't be putting coconut in mine because frankly, the texture of it makes me want to hurl.  {graphic, but true}

Aaaand I haven't found any cacao, locally.  So I'll be using bad-for-me-refined-cocoa.  tsk tsk, I know.

On a scale of 1-10, how good do we think these will be? 

1 = commence hurling, even without the coconut

10 = Raw foods can rock!!!

**I'm REALLY hoping for a solid 8 or higher!!!**

I'll be back with my rating!  Meanwhile, what's your guess!?

Bovines in Brume

Once upon a mid-morning, while attempting to visit an adorable vintage store whose hours seemed to be the direct opposite of my own, I drove by these magnificent creatures, shrouded in a cloud of brume. 

{Brume: -n. poetic heavy fog or mist}

Compelled by the contrast of their burly strength and the wispy fog, I parked my vehicle in a field (it's desired place of rest), and commenced with the "Hi Babies!" and picture taking. 

Clearly.  They were as excited as I, with this unexpected augmentation to their day.

After acquiring an ample amount of photos, I resumed my journey to the vintage store.  Glory be, they were open!

I perused and chatted, then went on my way.

As I passed the bovines again, my eye caught the tiniest, sweetest face in the herd.  Where had he come from?!

*sighs*

Needing to make my long trek north, I continued on. 


But the face beckoned me back and with a swift u-turn, I found myself field-parked, once again.

Soon enough, he was invisible again.  Playing in the brume, I suspect.

What the FORK Truck!

Shortly after I decided to dabble in food photography for the season, I discovered "What the FORK Truck" (thank you, Facebook!).

 

 

 

Having met Mario, when I photographed his sister Marisa's wedding, I knew he was a good guy and had a hankering that the food & feel of the truck would be pretty fantastic too. Boy, was I right!! 

 

 

Once again... I am cursing the limitations of the internet and wishing that I could give you all a taste of the yummly. 

 

 

To track down the truck's daily where-abouts & unique menu, be sure to "like" their page. Then, think of me, as you gobble up some Truffle Fries... Cajun Lobster Mac N' Cheese... Grain Fed Beef Sliders w/Pepper Jack & Baconjam... mmm... 

 

 

My only complaint is that they don't have a stop in Lancaster County. Yet. ;) 

 

http://www.facebook.com/WTForktruck?fref=ts

 

To view more What the FORK Truck photos, visit here!

 

*Did you know?  What the FORK Truck uses grass fed beef and recycled/biodegradable containers?*