More Food Photography

Vaughn's raspberry wheat beer.

A little green bowl of lychee fruit.

Wooden platter of fresh carrots.

Beets!

Practicing a little food photography...

Food + Photography

I love photography and I love food. So the natural path to head down would be food photography. There's just one catch. I'm usually photographing food I cook for my meals. I would much rather eat it right away than let it sit around while I snap a few photos!

I need to find a chef who is willing to let me photograph their food. That shouldn't be too hard, right?

Bonjour! Hi!

Restaurant Vallier

In search of dinner, Vaughn and I strayed from online reviews and guidebooks our first night in Montreal. We walked the cobblestone streets of Vieux-Montreal, peered into windows and scoured menus placed outside the door. It didn't take long to stumble upon a resto serving up food with an unpretentious French flair.

After greeted with the usual "Bonjour! Hi!" we were seated quickly at a window table. If it wasn't so drizzly the windows would be open to the street, which would have been lovely. The server returned promptly to take our drink order: Vaughn ordered a Griffon Rousse (red ale) and I ordered a Chaval Blanc white ale served with a slice of lime. Both were delicious.

Vaughn and I were excited by the menu: duck shepard's pie, game meat loaf with porto fois gras, fish of the day with chorizo and sauteed squid. However, we were even more tempted by their burgers. Vaughn ordered the lamb merguez burger (lamb sausage) and I ordered the halibut BLT.

I dove into the fries first. The fries were cut in-house, perfectly fried and piled high in an aluminum measuring cup. I loved that little detail. House-made ketchup and mayo accompanied the tasty fried morsels (Canada seems to love mayo). It wasn't your usual Miracle Whip or Hellman's. This was house-made with garlicky seasoning. Delicious!

To offer a healthy addition, the meal was accompanied by a heaping pile of salad topped with a savory vinaigrette. There were possibly six or seven different kinds of greens with julienned carrots and ruby beets. The only thing I didn't like was the frisée. I just don't like it. So picky.

The burgers were served on a deep golden brioche bun. Buttery, flaky, with beautiful fine crumb. The thick slab of halibut was unbelievably fresh and seasoned very well. A mild white fish like halibut needs a little help to bring out the flavor, and this one wasn't bland at all. The bacon was a delightful smokey addition to each bite without masking the delicate flavor of the halibut. And the toppings, well no on really thinks about the usual burger toppings, but the lettuce and tomato tasted like they were picked that day.

We highly recommend it to anyone visiting the city and trying to find a funky little resto offering simple, mouthwatering food. Vaughn and I will definitely be dining here again when we return to Montreal.

Bon appetit!

Montreal: Coming Soon

I haven't been neglecting this blog...I promise! I have been super busy for the past few weeks. Graduated from college, prepared for my wedding, got married, and the new hubby (Vaughn) and I just got back from our honeymoon in Montreal.

BUT, after the 4th Vaughn and I go back to Athens to pack/clean the apartment then drive all of our stuff to Chicago. So...not a whole lot of time to update until we get settled in Chicago next week or the week after.

Next entry: Dining in Montreal...

Salmon Cakes

I love salmon cakes! Last week Vaughn and I made salt baked salmon and had some left over. Leftovers are wonderful. I served these with a crispy potato flower and lemon caper mayonnaise on a bed of baby kale from my garden.

Salmon Cakes

Yeild: 10 small cakes

Ingredients:
2 cups cooked salmon, flaked
2 eggs, whisked
1 cup panko breadcrumbs
2 tbsp. capers, chopped
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/2 lemon, juiced
salt to taste
1 tbsp. butter
1 tbsp. olive oil

-Combine all ingredients, except butter and oil, in a mixing bowl.
-Shape patties into 2 in rounds, about a 1/2 to 1 inch high.
-Heat oil and butter in a saute pan over medium heat.
-Saute the salmon cakes for 5 minutes on each side until golden brown

Lemon Caper Mayonnaise

Ingredients:
6 tbsp. mayonnaise
2 tsp. capers, chopped
1 tsp. lemon juice
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/8 tsp. paprika
salt to taste

-Combine all ingredients in a small bowl.

Crispy Potato "Flower"

Yeild: 6-8 flowers

Preheat oven to 400F

Ingredients:
2 small Yukon Gold potatoes
2 tbsp. olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

-Slice potatoes into thin, uniform rounds *
-Toss the rounds with olive oil
-Fan out six rounds in a circle
-Sprinkle with salt and pepper
-Arrange rounds on a sheet pan
-Bake until crispy and golden brown

*A mandolin slicer would make slicing the potatoes super easy. I don't have one, so I used a cheese plane! Just flip it over and use the backside so you can rest it on the cutting board (watch your fingers!)

Grab a napkin...you're going to drool

The garden where the ceremony will be

25 days until the wedding!

Vaughn and I are getting married June 27th...and we're so excited! Early on in the planning we decided to share our passion for great food and delicious drinks with our family and friends.

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Karen Gorman and her husband Joe own the farm that we live on. Karen owns a catering company with Heidi Robb and generously offered to cater our cocktail hour in the gardens after our ceremony. Here's what she has planned for us:

Crostini
grilled with roasted asparagus tips, walnut crema and shaved Pecorino Tartufo
(Pecorino with black truffle)

Bruschetta
with sweet corn, ricotta and basil

Fresh Springrolls
with julienne vegetables, lobster and cilantro and mint sauce

Curried Chicken and Coconut Truffle
(she didn't want to call them chicken balls)

Baby Vegetables with Goat Cheese
(she has 3 pygmy goats on the farm. mini milkers!)

Apple Chip with Lentil and Hazelnut Pate
(thin apple slices soaked in simple syrup and baked until glassy)

Sugared Strawberries with Zabaione

Cuban Pork Quesadillas
(fully enclosed so there won't be any messes)

Herb and Lemon Infused White Wine

Strawberry Infused Vodka
may be served with soda on the rocks or as a chilled shot (homemade)

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We scoured the area for a caterer that shared our views and found Marigold Catering. Phil, our event manager, is wonderful and helped us figure out the best foods for the reception. We nixed the plated dinner service (too formal) an opted for a buffet dinner spread. For the dinner reception we've chosen:

Plated Salad

Marigold Salad
Fresh Field Greens, Seasonal Berries, Mandarin Oranges, Almonds, Feta Cheese
Champagne Vinaigrette

Dinner Buffet

Beer Braised Boneless Beef Short Ribs
Chipolte au jus, Onion Wisps

Chicken Florentine
Light Garlic, Lemon Butter, and White Wine with Spinach

Vegetarian Penne
Marinara Sauce, Julienned Vegetables
Side of Shredded Mozzarella

Roasted Vegetable Platter
Balsamic Drizzle

Chilled Orzo Salad
Fresh Basil, Feta Cheese, Olives, Red Onions, Sun Dried Tomatoes

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For drinks during the reception we will have an open bar with liquor and mixers, a selection of wines, beer from Great Lakes Brewery and Goose Island Brewery (my family is from Cleveland and Vaughn's is from Chicago...clever), and we will be highlighting several beers that Vaughn and I brewed including a hard apple cider, an IPA, and my mild brown ale.

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Lastly...dessert!

Vaughn and I aren't very traditional, so we opted out of having a cake. We're having cupcakes instead! We found a great little cupcakery in Hudson, Ohio called Main Street Cupcakes. Their cupcakes are delicious! It took a long time to choose flavors since they have 170+ to choose from! We liked the cupcake approach better because we could choose four to six different flavors to serve to our guests. Our final flavors are:

Wedding Day White
Traditional white cake with a hint of almond covered in vanilla buttercream frosting

Lemon Drop
Traditional white cake made with zests of lemon and smothered in lemon zest buttercream frosting

Day & Night
Dark chocolate cake mixed with white chocolate chips covered in white buttercream frosting and topped with chocolate chips

You Must Be Chipping Me
Classic yellow cake filled with chocolate chips and topped with chocolate buttercream frosting

My mom is making a tower for the cupcakes. At the top will be a little 6 inch cake for Vaughn and me to either cut or save for our anniversary. I'm sure it will be devoured either after the reception or the next day!

I promise to post photos of all the food sometime after the wedding!