Gourmet Meals For Less

Lessons I have learned in food photography...

Okay here are the three lessons I have learned this past month while photographing food...

 

Natural Light

Natural Light

Natural Light...did I mention??

Natural Light??

 

The problem is that this time of year, it's already dark out when dinner time rolls around.  Pictures of food just do not look good under kitchen lights. 


And in our little corner of the great state of Kentucky, it has felt more like winter in Seattle this month; with the gray clouds and darkened skies (and l can say this with authority since it's our former residence.  But in defense of Seattle it's gorgeous in the summer but shhh...don't tell anyone Seattleites like to keep it a secret).  This cloudy weather has made photographing my dishes very difficult, especially since I really wanted to start submitting some of them to various food sites. 


Then on Sunday, we had a long awaited visitor peak over the back fence.  I was so blinded by my visitor's beauty it took me a minute to realize who my guest was and then it dawned on me (pun intended) that it was...gasp...the SUN!!  I felt compelled to take a picture of this glorious moment

 

and then proceeded to re-make this recipe:


Cheese Tortellini with Shrimp in Tomato Cream Sauce

 

so I could take some new pictures, like this one..

and this one...

 and submit it to Foodista for their annual Best of Food Blogs Cookbook.

So if you feel these new pictures are cookbook quality and if you are really my friend and love me would like to see my entry considered for publication, than please take a moment to follow the link on the sidebar and vote for my recipe, and while you're at it I'd love it if you'd take a second to vote for my White Bean and Kale Soup as well. Each button links to a different recipe. Thanks!

Oh and tomorrow come back and pay me a visit, I'll be posting my Four Layer Lasagna...yum!

Cookbook Junkie and Cabbage Rolls....

 

I have a confession, I am a cookbook junkie...I'm completely addicted.  I have dozens..so many that the shelf they all sit on is slowly dipping in the middle from all of the weight.  But,  I can't bear to part with any of them.  You just never know when you might need to pull one out for inspiration; or need that special recipe you cook once a year out of Southern Sideboards lovingly inherited from your husband's Mamaw. 

Deluxe Turkey Burgers, Baked Carrot Fries and a Guest Blogger...

Today I have invited a guest blogger to join me, she is a wonderful cook and a joy to have in the kitchen...she is my daughter and and she is an incredible gourmet.  She has asked to cook one meal a week for our family and has agreed to the $10 challenge.  Now you are probably impressed with this offspring of mine, but you'll be even more amazed when you find out she's just shy of 10 years old!

It makes my heart warm to know I have a daughter who loves to cook, and sew, and is an all around homemaker.  No matter what she decides to do in life (and we're currently leaning towards veterinarian) she will have the skills to be a wonderful helpmate and mother and that means more to me than anything else.  So without further ado...our guest blogger

 

Hey blogger world,

One day a week I get to make my family a meal! And this week I made, deluxe turkey burgers with oven-baked carrot fries (yumm…mm).

So my mom invited me to be her guest blogger this week how exciting! My mom and I love to cook together (because even someone like me needs help sometimes…lol). I think the best part is shaping the burgers it's so fun, especially for littler kids. This recipe is very fun very easy and most importantly under 10 dollars. I also like the carrot fries crunchy on the outside gooey on the inside. The only thing tricky about them is, you can’t leave them in the oven too long and you can’t leave them in not long enough.
I certainly hope you enjoy this recipe my family surely did!

 

Deluxe Turkey Burgers with
Oven-Baked Carrot Fries

Oven- Baked Carrot Fries-William-Sonoma the Kid's Cookbook
4 Servings

1 1/2 lb carrots (approx 10 medium) $1.48
2 Tbs olive oil (PI)
2 tsp. finely chopped fresh rosemary .50
1 tsp. sugar (PI)
1/2 tsp salt (PI)
pinch of pepper (PI)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425°.  Line jelly-roll (cookie sheet) with aluminum foil.  Remove rosemary from stems and finely chop.

 
Peel all carrots. Using a sharp knife cut away the tim and end of each carrot.  Place 1 carrot on the board and cut in half crosswise.  Next, cut each half in half lengthwise.  Finally, cut each half in half lengthwise again.  You will end up with 8 sticks from a carrot. 

Repeat with all carrots.

 

In the mixing bowl, combine the carrot sticks, olive oil, rosemary, sugar, salt and pepper.  Stir with spatula until the carrot sticks are evenly coated with all the other ingredients.  They will look like this:

Dumping the carrots onto the foil-lined jelly-roll pan, scraping out any herbs clinging to the sides of the bowl.  Spread the sticks out as much as possible.  Bake until the carrots are tender and well browned, about 20 minutes.  Using the oven mitts, remove the pan from oven.  Serve carrot fries hot or at room temperature.

 

Deluxe Turkey Burgers

Ingredients:

1/2 cup seasoned dried bread crumbs .25
1/3 cup milk .04
1 egg .08
3 Tbs. ketchup .15
1/2 tsp salt (PI)
1/4 tsp. pepper (PI)
1 lb ground turkey $2.99
2 Tbs. vegetable oil (PI)
4 large buns (we like sesame-seed) 1/2 package .80 (freeze the other 4 for a later meal)
ketchup, mustard, pickles, thin slices of tomato, lettuce and cheese (optional) $1.25

Directions:

In a medium mixing bowl, combine the bread crumbs and milk.  Stir with table fork until blended. 

 

Add the ketchup, egg, salt and pepper.  Stir until well blended.  Add the ground turkey.  Using the table fork, gently mix the ingredients together until just blended.  Don't overwork the mixture or your burgers will be tough.
Divide the mixture into 4 equal mounds.  Lightly wet your hands with water and shape each mound into a flat circle about 4 inches in diameter and place each burger. Place the burgers on a plate. 

 

Add the vegetable oil to a frying pan heated to medium heat.  Heat one minute and then tilt the pan to coat the bottom evenly with the oil.  Using a spatula place the burgers in the pan.  Cook the burgers untill the bottoms are browned about 5 minutes.  Flip the burgers and continue to cook until the burgers are cooked through, about 5-7 minutes longer. 

 

Total Cost for Family of 4: $7.54

Our guest blogger has proven you can have a healthy dinner for under $10! Watch for further entries in the future from our guest...I think we'll keep her on the payroll!

 

Enjoy!