WTM: Vegie Bar

Looking for a top notch vegetarian restaurant,  but don't want to pay through the roof? Head on down to Fitzroy, and keep your eyes peeled for Vegie Bar.

Vegie Bar has been running for over 20 years, and offers a delicious selection of contemporary vegetarian food. They also offer vegan, gluten free, and raw food. Everything is cooked fresh to order, to the highest quality. 

Alex and I went in for a very late dinner, one Friday night. We were greeted by very happy smiley staff, and served delicious food!

Alex had melt in your mouth tomato and cheese gnocchi, and I had scrumptious caramelised onion and paneer pizza. 

If you want more information, head over to Vegie Bar. 

They're located at 380 Brunswick Street Fitzroy VIC 3065. Tram route 112- Stop 17 is right outside their door!

They're open:

Breakfast

Available 9am – 11:30am Saturday & Sunday


Lunch & Dinner 
Available from 11:00am Monday – Sunday

They do get pretty busy, so I would suggest giving them a call to make sure there is a table free 9417 6935

Even if you think meat belongs in every meal, go check them out, you won't be disappointed!

Much love,

J xx

Look At Me Learning!

With my self set challenge at hand, I wanted a way to make what I was going to be posting about, interesting and pleasing to the eye. I thought to myself, 'but how?'.

The food, of course!

Everyone loves a good photo of food. From sweets, to soup. Food can be an enticing reason to read a book or post. Looking at all of the delicious photos of food that we see every day, it got me to thinking, 'how do I take good photos of food?'. I went on a search for some information, to help me on my journey of food photos. This is what I've found:

1. Lighting: One of the most important elements in photography! You want to try and use natural light, and avoid your flash at all costs. Using natural light brings out the natural colours in food. Find a sunny spot, but one without direct sunlight. If you can't, use a sheer cloth or paper to help diffuse the light. Try also using black or white foam board to adjust the reflected light (White reflects, black absorbs).
   
2. Props: A bowl of delicious soup, looks all the more delicious, when it's served in a crisp white bowl, a soft white napkin, and a shiny polished soup spoon. Think about not only the arrangement of the food, but how it's displayed. Try not to clutter the photo with a full table setting, instead use one or two simple props, like a spoon, napkin or a glass. Start collecting props you might want to use, you can find some brilliant additions to your collection from op shops, garage sales, flea markets, or online from places like Etsy.
   
3. Timing: Food looses that "I'm delicious, eat me now" look quicker than you think. So make sure you have everything set up and ready to go, before you add your food to the shot. This is especially pertinent with foods that melt, such as ice cream. Some photographers even go so far as to have a mock item to test shoot with, then, when everything is perfect, they switch out the mock item, with the real one.
   
4. Trick Or Treat: Try brushing on a light coat of oil onto food, to help bring out the natural colours and make it appear to be 'glistening'. You can also try the trick of steam, simply soak a cotton ball in water, zap in the microwave, and place behind food. The water starts steaming from the cotton ball, and can make food look freshly cooked and steaming hot.
   
5. Style: Pay attention to the balances in your food. The different shapes, colours and textures can add or detract from a photo. Try shooting in many varied angles, until you find one that helps the food "speak to you". Follow the 'Rule of 3rds' when shooting, as it helps bring the viewers eye into line. Overall, don't be afraid to try new things!
   
6. Staging/Storytelling: Are you trying to get a shot of the finished result, or the process it took to get there? think about the story your photo is trying to tell. If you're baking a cake and want to shoot the bowl of whipped cream, try taking the shot when the cream is still in the bowl, with the whisk. It helps tell the story better than a single bowl of whipped cream.
   
7. Multiples: Don't think you're going to get the perfect shot in only a few frames. Sometimes it may take dozens of shots, and a couple of hours to get that perfect shot. So don't despair, just keep trying new things when you shoot. It's always better to have 100 photos to choose one from, than ten, so think about this.
   
8. Enhance: Don't be afraid to enhance your assets. Just do it sparingly! Programs like Photoshop, iPhoto, Adobe Lightroom etc can be a great tool to use, but remember you want to make the food look 'real'. So avoid changing the colour properties too much. Just think about it this way, if you're shooting a lemon pie, and the pie wasn't actually fluro yellow, then why portray it that way?
   
9. Fresh & Clean: Always make sure you're starting with the best quality ingredients and props. Avoid fruits with bruises, overcooked meats, or vegies that are nearly at their useby. Before you start shooting, make sure you've given the cutlery and glasses a quick polish. You might think a small smudge here or there is fine, but it can simply ruin an otherwise brilliant shot.
   
10. Garnish: Garnishes are the lacy lingerie of the food world. They give people a hunt of what's to come. So dress your dish! even just a small sprinkle of freshly ground pepper can help and otherwise flat dish come to life.
    
11. Tripods: If you can, try and use a tripod when shooting. It will minimise/remove camera shake, and allow you to take long exposure shots. Especially helpful when shooting in low light situations, like restaurants.

So there you go, I've gone and done all the hard research for you! If you have any additional tips or tricks you want to share, post them in the comments section below!

Now if I can just practise what I preach....

Wish me luck!

Love

J xx

References for the above information:

http://digital-photography-school.com/food-photography-an-introduction

http://cookieandkate.com/food-photography-tips-for-food-bloggers/

http://www.foodista.com/blog/2011/06/10/15-essential-food-photography-tips-from-andrew-scrivani-part-1#

http://digital-photography-school.com/10-tips-to-improve-your-food-photography-styling

http://vkreesphotography.com/food-photography-tips/

Preserving At Home

So, I've been thinking for a long time that I would like to make my own goods and preserve them. But I've never really been game enough to try, until today! I made salsa for Justin a couple of weeks ago, and he ate it like it was going out of fashion, and today I made a double batch, specifically so I could can some. 

(Apologies in advance, I forgot to take photos as I went along, there were a few issues with chillies and milk, but we'll talk about that later).

First, we start with some delicious food (in this case salsa). While it's cooking we boil our jars and lids (for 10 mins or more), then bake them at 110c for 15 mins. 

Once our jars have been sterilised, we can fill then with our goodies. Now be extra careful here, the jars have just come out of the oven, so they will be hot. You're best off using oven mitts, or a folded over tea-towel. Make sure you screw the lids on super tight.

Once everything is canned, we need to process the jars with a boiling water bath.

My 3 jars of salsa processing!

The water bath creates pressure within the jar, which when cooled, creates a vacuum, sealing our goodies in :) As long as the seal is clear, ie there's no chips in the jar, or food on the rim of the jar, then it should seal perfectly fine. Just make sure the jars don't sit on the bottom of the pot. It's recommended that you put a short cooling rack on the bottom of the pan to stop it touching the jars, but I didn't have one, so I used a tea towel. 

Guess we'll just see how it goes from here! I'll make sure I take photos next time so you guys actually know what I'm talking about. 

Which me luck!

Jayde xx

Entertaining: Food For Thought

So, following on from my post the other day about entertaining guests, just thought I would show you guys what I was talking about.

Pretty much, we turned my dining room table into a buffet table!

 With treats for guests of all ages!

 A little bit of this

 A little bit of that

 Some chips...

 Some dips...

 Can't forget the cutlery or crockery...

 Or condiments and glasses!

We also had a few different hot foods, like aranchini balls, spring rolls, spinach & feta triangles, and mini hot dogs. The kids were catered for with fresh fruit cut into bite size bits and fresh home made choc chip cookies.

All in all, a great day, filled with fantastic food (even if i do say so myself) and even better company.

So I hope this helps give you guys some ideas for food to serve :)

Happy celebrating!

Love

Jayde xx

Entertaining Guests

I absolutely adore entertaining people, whether its a small gathering or a large party. You see, it's not about the party its self, it's more about having the opportunity to see my friends. 

One of the upsides of entertaining, is being able to supply my friends with food, and plenty of it! 

So Justin and I are having people over on Tuesday for Cup Day drinks and nibbles. We don't follow horse racing (I personally find it rather horrendous and barbaric, but each to their own), it's just a really good excuse to do something. Plus, here in Australia we have a public holiday for it :)

Anyway, I digress, apologies. I originally wanted this post to be an instructional post of sorts, like, 'I want to entertain some friends, but I have no idea where to start', so I suppose I should probably get on with it!

Okay, so you want to have some friends over on the weekend, but where do you start?

Well, the first question you need to ask yourself is: How much effort do I want to put in? Only a little because I am really struggling budget & time wise, or a lot of effort, because I have all the time and money in the world? Pick your position between the two, and there you have it.

Once you have worked that out, everything else comes pretty easily. Just make sure you know how many people are coming, and if there is a reason to have people over. For example, for us, we're loosely basing it on cup day, so we're doing slightly fancier food than normal. Instead of pizza, we're having gourmet mini hot dogs, instead of coca-cola, we're having soda stream. You get the picture.

Make sure you always over cater, instead of under cater, there is nothing worse than being in the middle of a great party, and having to leave to go get food because the starving masses are started to get restless. That being said, if you aren't going to provide food (and don't panic, not everyone does), try to plan your event around the normal meal times. Don't ask people to come over at lunch time, and expect them to be okay when you don't provide them lunch...

Do any of your guests have kids? Yes, well make sure you plan for them too. It will make a big difference to the parents, when they realise you have catered for their precious little one. Because really, who wants a screaming child ruining your day, because you only have caviar and salmon, when all they want is a hot dog?

Chips for the kids, French Twists for the adults

Pretty much the only other thing you need to know about food, is people's dietary requirements. We have a couple of vegetarian friends, and we like to make sure there is a decent selection for them to choose from. Like Missy Higgins said "we have taste buds too" (https://www.facebook.com/missyhiggins October 17th, or http://www.smh.com.au/travel/travel-news/missy-higgins-rants-against-qantas-inflight-meals-20131018-2vrag.html). So we include a few different dips and chips, as well as a 'main snack' so to speak. Something that isn't chips and dips, but isn't a roast dinner. Our favourite is arancini balls, which Justin is a pro at making. Please check if any of your other guests have any food allergies, because there is (almost) nothing worse than sending a guest to hospital, because you fed them satay shrimp and they're allergic to peanuts and seafood. Talk about awkward...

We also try to give people a choice of foods, so we include something snacky & salty, like chips, (think of it as the entree of snacks), then something filling, like the aranchi balls (the main course), then something sweet, like home made run balls (dessert).

Biscuits/cookies make a great sweet snack for both kids & adults

Now, onto actual entertainment. We all like to think that our company is the best entertainment, but don't kid yourself, you're not as interesting as you think you are. So, have a back up plan! Pick some 'sick tunes' for the day, to play in the background, this will help with the atmosphere and stop those awkward silences from taking over. Try to make a playlist, so you can know that your music will take care of it's self, and you're not going to have 'Smack My Bitch Up" suddenly start playing. If you have iTunes, use Genius, you just pick a song, and it will make a 20ish song playlist for you, based on your selected song. Pretty handy!

Next, decide if you're going to have some sort of visual entertainment (remember, we already have audio). You could have a movie playing, a tv show, a special event (Melbourne Cup Day). Pretty much anything your heart desires! Just try to make sure it's relevant to what you're doing on the day. 

So, we've covered food, audio and vision entertainment, now onto drinks! Though I suppose I should have covered that after food, but oh well!

Drinks can be a tricky and expensive venture for anyone. You need to decide if you are going to provide alcohol, or just 'soft' drinks. After you've decided that, it makes it a lot easier! Plus a lot safer for you and your guests. Generally, unless it's a birthday/Halloween/new years party, we don't have any alcohol, and if we do, we advise our guests they will need to provide it themselves. 

Soft drinks sound a little boring I know, but you can always spice them up! A mocktail is a great way to add a little non-alcoholic splash to a party, you can garnish them with slices of fresh fruit, or those cute little paper umbrellas. I've put the links to my favourite 3 mocktails. By the way, limeade is just lemonade but it's make with limes instead of lemons. We made limeade with our soda stream, but you might be able to find it in your local shops.

We're almost done! Last but not least, is decorations! I do love a well decorated event. But sometimes doing it at home on a budget, can seem like an impossible dream. Don't despair, not all is lost! You just need to make smart decisions. Firstly, do you want to go all out, and make this the party of the year, or is this just a small gathering that you want to host every month/year etc? Working out this, will help you decide how you want to decorate. For example, if you're hosting a big end of year party, then yes, hiring the jumping castle is a brilliant idea. If you're hosting a simple afternoon tea, then try investing in some nice candles, cloth napkins and napkin rings. Why not invest in some new wine glasses, and each afternoon (say one weekend a month) a different person brings wine for everyone to try? 

I know what you're all thinking now, 'that's all well and good Jayde, but how do I cut costs?'.

I'm glad you asked!

The main two ways you're going to be able to cut costs:

1) Shop Around:
There is nothing worse than buyers remorse. Going all guns a blazing, and buying everything you see, then the next day, seeing all of those things on sale at various stores. It pays to shop around. I know it's pain in the ass, but if you want to be able to buy everything, you need to be money savvy. I personally love Aldi, I can buy almost everything I need, for a fraction of the cost. 
(You can read my blog about shopping smart here: http://adayinthelifeofjayde.blogspot.com.au/2013/09/beating-big-two-end-rant.html)

2) DIY:
Yes, you read right, do-it-yourself. This means, where you can, get your hands dirty and put yourself to work. When you think about it, would you rather pay $10 for a decorated mason jar, or would you rather pay $2 for the jar, 50c for the decorations, and 50c for the glue? Exactly! It's the same principle with food, if you can spend 30 minutes of your time, and spend only $5 to make dessert, wouldn't you rather do that then spend $10 on the same (less delicious) thing?

Justin making home made rum balls.

Action shot!

Alrighty folks, I think I've told you the basics on entertaining guests. So my job here is done!

Here are the links for a few of the thing's I've mentioned:
Rum Balls Recipe:
https://plus.google.com/115579508519657853131/posts/cL3VwbQhz2s

Mocktail Recipes:
https://plus.google.com/115579508519657853131/posts/hQ94BHWw9LL


Thanks for reading, and if you have any ideas or stories, please share them in the comment's section below!

Thanks, 

Jayde xx