They say the road to hell is paved with good intentions....

It's been two years, almost, since my last update. Two years since I took the plunge, and then seemed to plunge right off the edge of the world. I had forgotten about Murphy's Law, and how when there is an opportunity for something to go wrong, it will go wrong. I am ever an optimist, and I guess I just assumed the best and forgot to prepare for the worst. In this case "the worst" turned out to be that both of my computers, and all of their sacred data, died a spectacular death shortly after our move. I am still without a computer, but have been able to temporarily cobble together an eyefi card for my camera, along with a tablet with a copy of Photoshop Touch for editing. It's a lit more pared down than what I'm used to working with, but I have been able to make it work. In fact, I even got hired on by a new Nashville magazine called Main Course, where I have written a few articles and made photos for a column of my very own. Other happenings over the last couple of years include:

Contemplating Ophelia's Roux



Attending the rodeo, twice!



Watching the coldest winter of my life invade North America



Learning to let go of stress





Playing in the kitchen



Finding a new pool to call home



Watching my daughter continue to grow into an amazing girl



And... here we are again; Autumn.



I've struggled a lot these past couple of years with my own personal journey. I moved to the Nashville area with every intention of hitting the pavement and getting both feet in the door to the career that I want. Having no computer has meant that I have been cut off from any real means of making that happen. And it has also made me question a lot of big things, too; like...what do I actually hope to accomplish with my work, anyway? It's something I'm still mulling over. As the lyrics go, "you can't always get what you want, but you might find you get what you need."

In the meantime, I have several personal projects that I intend to finally make time for. It's way past time to crawl out of survival mode; peel myself out of my comfy hermit crab shell, and get back to work by whatever means necessary. I look forward to seeing where it takes me, and I hope I see you along the way!

Mr. Frog's Soul & Creole Kitchen in Asheville, NC

I had the honor of photographing award winning Chef Vijay Shastri of Mr. Frog's Soul & Creole Kitchen in Asheville, NC. Vijay is also not only one of North Carolina's four certified sommeliers, but a fantastic story teller. I had a great time photographing him as we chatted away about the food industry and about his life. He sent me home with some lox that my 10 year old daughter became almost immediately addicted to! Thanks so much, Vijay!

Early Girl Eatery in Asheville, NC

I photographed John and Julie, owners and operators of Early Girl Eatery in Asheville, NC as part of the book assignment that I am working on. Early Girl has always been one of my favorite restaurants just based on the outside of the restaurant alone, but they also have a fantastic menu and food philosophy in working with our local area farms to get the best and most fresh ingredients. Definitely well worth a visit if you love great food and a friendly atmosphere!

From the Kitchen

Some photos of the delicious things that have been going on in my kitchen lately!

Steeplechase Old English Toffee

Last week I was honored to be one of the few that have been invited to catch a glimpse of the inner workings of Steeplechase Olde English Toffee in downtown Waynesville, NC. I spent two days photographing the process of the toffee being crafted, and then photographing the finished deliciousness, all the while cloaked in the heady scent of chocolate, butter, sugar, and other fine ingredients. The thick slabs of toffee stacked on plates on the second day were a spectacular sight to behold, begging to be devoured! If you haven't yet visited Steeplechase Olde English Toffee, run, don't walk. I am told that on mornings when the fog is hanging low and toffee is being made, the scent of this time honored family recipe fills the air in the valley and it becomes an involuntary action of passersby to stop in their tracks and file in. Who could resist? The shop is located at 235 Pigeon Street, and you may find them on facebook here: http://www.facebook.com/pages/SteeplechaseToffeecom/153525426515.

Click to see more photographs from my time at Steeplechase Old English Toffee:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/externalfocus/sets/72157629735065003/

What's Cooking?

Here are some of the things that have been going on in my kitchen lately!

Next week I'll be photographing all things toffee with Steeplechase Toffee in downtown Waynesville, NC, and am very much looking forward to it! Barb and Michelle have graciously allowed me the opportunity to not only photograph their wonderful products, but to get some behind the scenes in the kitchen, as well! Fair warning, though: you won't be getting any insider recipe secrets from me - you'll have to go straight to the source and taste for yourself!

Double Cherry Walnut Brownie

Yum. I mean, seriously: yum. I made these brownies last week, deciding to spruce up a box mix I had laying around. I really enjoy taking food that anyone can get their hands on at a fair price, and making it into something really special. I added in chopped walnuts, dehydrated cherries, and then topped it off with cherry pie filling, which sent it so over the top that my teeth hurt just look at it. Ohboy was it good. I think a lot of people see food as some sort of chore that they have to "get through," or worse, opting to pick up something from a burger joint [if those things even really qualify as burgers] because they don't want to make the time to cook, and it doesn't have to be that way! Your food is only as special as you make it, and you should have confidence in yourself that you can do a good job. Hey, sometimes it doesn't go well; I recall attempting to make a peanut chicken that came out so horribly that I made jokes about it for weeks. It was not edible, and we ended up ordering pizza or something. It happens! But don't give up.

I started getting involved with food at a really young age; I remember baking cookies from scratch when I was maybe 7 or 8 and home alone, and my mom coming home and absolutely freaking out that I could have burnt the house down or wounded myself. For about 5 minutes I don't think she believed I'd actually made perfect Russian Tea Cakes right out of the gate, but I showed her the recipe and the utensils I'd used, and of course the smell of fresh baked cookies was pretty undeniable. It was a simple recipe, and as easy as following the directions. Anyway, the point is, I have always approached food in a very fearless spirit of experimenting and adapting recipes to suit my own tastes and according to what I happen to have on hand. I am never going to be a chef, and that's okay too; you don't have to be one to enjoy cooking and playing in the kitchen. I think a lot of people don't see it in that way, and therefore it becomes the mundane same-menu-every-week kind of affair that would bore anyone.

This year I have also decided that I am going to be trying a lot of foods that I don't have experience with. I began with conquering a childhood aversion to brussels sprouts which have become my new favorite vegetable, I steamed and attempted to eat my first artichoke even though it didn't go very well at all, I have some fennel in the fridge which is going to make a lovely fennel and blood orange salad, and then I am going to try mint in a non-dessert food. After that, who knows? I have raised my children in this same spirit and they are wonderfully open to trying whatever is put in front of them. My 9 year old daughter's favorite tv station is Food Network, so perhaps she will become the chef of our family!

Play with your food!

Leftovers!

One of my very favorite things about cooking a big meal is ... leftovers! It's probably not coincidental that some food just tastes better the second day, because not only do the flavors really get to meld together, but there's very little work involved! I decided on Reubens for our leftovers, and throw my own little twists into it. I like mine with smoked gouda, a leaf of red cabbage, a layer of sauerkraut, the ever necessary corned beef, and a bit of Dijon or course brown mustard. Throw it all together on some rye and pumpernickel and either grill it on a panini press, or have it cold. I had mine as a late lunch and decided to have the leftover brussels sprouts, baked potato salad, and par-boiled carrots, celery, and onion. I'm all set for lunch *and* dinner, and ready to go hang out with a glass of wine and a good movie!