Sugar High Friday August 2011 Round up: Rice Sweets

I was so excited about hosting Sugar High Friday  the sweet blogging event created by the awesome Jennifer, The Domestic Goddess. I had chosen the  theme Rice , since it hadn't been done before on SHF, and had grand plans to try out many South Indian rice based sweet snacks and desserts for the event. But before I even realized it, the deadline was already here and I am filled with regret at all those rice sweets I had planned to make but didn't! Blame it on the farmer's markets and grilling, and picnics, and my mom visiting and the plain fact that its SUMMER ( for only a little longer! ) I hope to make and post those sweets on my to- do list soon.


But for now, I am so happy to present some wonderful rice treats from these awesome people who took the time out to meet this challenging them. Rice as a sweet is not too common outside some communitites, so its great to learn about these. Rice sweets are also usually gluten-free (But not always, please check other ingredients and possibilities of cross contamination) and so a great option for those with allergies. 


Thank you so much for sending these goodies in :) I so wish you could attach a sample along with your entries :)

Sugar High Friday Aug 2011 - Rice Sweets Round up 

 

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It's Sugar High Friday! SHF #76: Rice Sweets

Note: This event is now closed. Round up is posted here 

I have a weakness for dessert (just in case you had missed all this talk of cakes and cookies and cream puff swans ) and one of the blog events I eagerly check out is Sugar High Friday created by the awesome Jennifer, The Domestic Goddess. SHF is often described as an “international sweet tooth blogging extravaganza” with a different theme ever month, and each one dessert! Aaaand guess who is the giddy excited host this month? Me!! Yes, I get to open my inbox and hopefully get a sugar rush of toothsome posts from around the blogspohere all month long! Sweet! 

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The Kerala Kitchen July 2011 is open for entries!

The Kerala Kitchen June 2011 event round up is up! Click here to check out all the awesome entries we received.  Apologies for my chronic procrastination :( Do submit your entries to take part this month as we continue to celebrate Kerala cuisine here at Magpie's Recipes. Look forward to seeing all your delicious dishes! Do check out the Kerala Kitchen blog and rules ( they are pretty simple!) if you are participating for the first time. 

From Aug to Dec 2011 Ria and I would like to invite you to be hosts since we will both be travelling. If you are interested, do indicate which month you would like to host and either leave a comment with your email id or mail me at magpiemails AT gmail DOT com

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The Kerala Kitchen on your blog!

Update: Only one more slot is available to host year, so hurry!

Calling for hosts for our monthly cooking club featuring Kerala cuisine The Kerala Kitchen in the coming months! Ria will be travelling and I too plan on making a trip to India towards the end of the year, and we would love to have you host the event in the coming months from August to December 2011.
As host you would basically post an event announcement on your blog calling for entries to that month's event. Participants will email you their entries by the end of the month and you will need to post a round up on your blog by the beginning of the next month.
If you are interested and quite sure that you will be able to host, then do send me a mail to magpiemails AT gmail DOT com or leave a comment here with your email id so that I can get in touch and mail you the details.

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Food Photography tips from the Judges of DMBLGIT ( Does My Blog look Good in This)

I am very often left speechless by the beauty of pictures taken by so many talented and inspirational bloggers out there. Hosting the prestigious food photography event DMBLGIT (Does My Blog Look Good In This) I thought would be a good way to have some of their talent rub off on me :) One can hope right? 

I am so grateful to have some of those bloggers who inspire me the most with their gorgeous pictures as much as their awesome collection of recipes, and wonderful warm personalities, agree to be the judges as I host this month. I also requested them to share their insights into what makes a picture look good enough to eat and here it is, in their own words! 



Zoe Francois is an extraordinary pastry chef and cookbook author of  the revolutionary Bread in 5 series which helped thousands ( including me) around the world to get over our intimidation of yeast and bake bread at home, with about 5 mins of active effort! Her new cook book Artisan Pizza and Flatbread in Five Minutes a Day is very eagerly expected soon and is already available for pre-order.
 She blogs at Zoe Bakes and also writes for  Cooking Channel’s blog, where she creates unique recipes and photographs them for their readers.

Zoe's Photo Courtesy Susan Powers 

Here are Zoe's favourite food photography tips:

"One of the keys to great photography is lighting. I shoot all of my photos in natural light. This means I bring all of my food to a bank of windows in my kitchen, to be sure there is sufficient light to shoot.

I almost always take my pictures with the light source (the sunshine) behind the food I am working with, because it creates more interesting shadows and contrast. This, however, requires that I use "fill cards" to bounce light back onto the food, if the shadows are too strong.I just use white foam core board, nothing fancy.

I usually move my camera around the table until I have found the lighting I like best. This will change as the sun moves. If the sun is particularly strong and shining directly on my food, I hang sheer curtains over the windows to diffuse the light. If it is too contrasty, the food will be very difficult to shoot."

She also shares some wonderful resources to read on food photography:

• Tips from three professional food photographers at The Kitchn
• The Pioneer Woman's 8 Helpful tips
• Vegan Yum Yum's Food Photography for Bloggers
• Helene Dujardin's awesome book: Plate to Pixel: Digital Food Photography & Styling

Shaheen Peerbhai is the smiling face and super talented young woman behind The Purple Foodie, which is one of India's most popular food blogs  and has been featured constantly in the media as well. She recently returned from a food and wine training program for selected food writers organised by the European Union and the Italian Government as part of the European Art of Taste (EAT) Program. 
Shaheen chooses to describe herself as "just another girl madly in love with exploring food. :)"
She has used a point and shoot Canon A570IS Powershot in the past and currently uses a Canon Rebel T1i / 500D

Here are her top tips:

"The most important thing for me is a good source of natural light. I shoot by my window when the sun isn't harsh either in the morning or late afternoon.

I'm from the camp that believes that props tend to steal the focus from the food. I like those type of photos, but I find myself wanting to buy the props instead of wanting to eat the food. That said, I'm a sucker for two things: fabrics and plates. My house is now filled with an assorted range of single plates.

I love my 50 mm/f1.8 lens. It makes food look so good. It makes everything look so good! Of late, I'm enjoying playing with some macro filters I'm not big on editing photos - just minor colour correction in MS Photo Editor. 

I absolutely adore these two sites lately: Minimalista and What Katie Ate "

Ria Mathew really doesn't need an introduction here! She is a certified cake decorator, freelance food writer, stylist and a photographer who blogs at Ria's collection, a definitely awesome collection of gorgeous recipes, each one a winner! She is also of course my gracious co-host for The Kerala Kitchen our monthly cooking event to share and preserve the cuisine of Kerala, and a good friend and a blogger I really admire, and also a previous DMBLGIT winner.
She had these wonderful tips to share about how she takes such beautiful pictures both with her point and shoot and more recently with her Canon Rebel T2i :


"Natural lighting is the best. I've never had luck with a light box hence I don't use artificial lighting.

So basically you will need good natural light & a bouncer (white board) and you are all set to go. If you have a tripod, use it as it will give you images which are much more sharper than a hand held camera.

 Favourite props:  I'm a person who uses whatever is lying around me at that time.No matter how much I plan, I've always noticed, it never works the way I wanted. So I just go with the flow.

I just look around my favourite food blogs for inspiration and stay away from photography dedicated websites. I feel they give out a lot information, which is really good but it just passes above my head.

Many of us feel that we need an expensive camera to get a good photograph, which is so untrue. Equipment does play a vital role but most importantly it's the person behind it. It's how creatively you bring your food in front of the camera and how well you control the light that decides the fate of the photograph in most cases. If you are good with editing softwares, you can even do magic with a dull photograph. 

When I started my blog, all I took were the close up shots of the food I made. But gradually I realised it's one of the terrible ways to go about things. Don't go too close to the food, instead move back, straighten up, feel relaxed and then take the picture.Give some space between you and the food. Walk around the table, click pictures, compare and see which ones are better etc. If you do this (which is what I do) eventually you will find an angle, a place where you think you can shoot the best pictures. 

If you have some favourite food photography sites, observe the way they take pictures and try to understand what makes their pictures special.Try to incorporate that  and see if it works for you. Eventually you will develop your own style of photographing food."

Dario Milano of Food Pixels is a former Chef and a professional Food photographer and stylist based in Sydney. He offers food photography tips and even critiques photos submitted by readers of his awesome photography blog  

Here is what he had to say:

What is your most favourite thing to shoot?

I like shooting any food ( and drinks ) and I enjoy the challenge to capture different foods with different lighting, lenses and angles; some ingredients are highly reflective, others have a more interesting texture; some are really colourful others have a more intriguing shape - the possibilities are almost endless when shooting food.

What camera would you recommend to a new and aspiring food photographer?

Any basic DSLR would be a good starting point; no need to spend too much for 2-3 thousand extra megapixels ( at least at this stage ). Just get a solid camera and learn how to use it in Manual (M) mode.

What is your favourite piece of camera equipment/ photography aid?

Without talking of the camera itself or the lenses, I'd say probably my favourite piece of equipment are my 6 Pocket Wizards : 6 wireless radio transreceivers ( transmitters / receivers ) that allow me to fire my flash units and trigger the shutter of my camera remotely.

What are your top tips for shooting food?

Find good natural light in your home/ studio

Learn how to use a flash off camera

Pay attention to props 

Don't overdo the food and in general keep things looking as natural as possible

Invest in a good, sturdy tripod

Read my blog  ( eh, eh ) 

Helene Dujardin has graciously agreed to pick the host's award of the picture that received high scores from the other judges but was not amongst the winning list. 
She is a former pastry chef, incredible food photographer and stylist who has shot for magazines and cook books and 
Helene's breath taking blog My Tartlette helped me (and many others I'm sure) achieve macaron success and her stunning pictures are always an inspiration. 


Tips from her would cover an entire book (or several bookshelves), so isn't it great that she has just come out with one? In just a few days since it's release it is already on the digital photography bestseller list! Go grab your copy, if you haven't already!


Plate to Pixel: Digital Food Photography & Styling
Book Description:
Food photography is on the rise, with the millions of food enthusiasts who document their meal as well food bloggers around the world interested in improving their photography and food styling, and this book should serve as your first course in food photography. You’ll get a taste of the visual know-how that is required to translate the perceptions of taste, aroma, and appeal into a stunning, lavish finished photograph.
• Learn how to work with your camera modes and settings
• Discover how to use natural light to capture stunning images
• Learn how to compose the most appetizing photo
• See how food stylists exercise unique techniques to make the food look attractive in the finished product
• Develop an after-capture workflow process to improve your food photos
Check out this awesome video of Helene as she talks about her book.


These people I have admired from afar for their awesome work, also amazed me by their warmth and friendliness. I am so glad that they agreed to share their tips and precious time in the midst of so much amazing stuff they are into. I am so glad to have them to judge amongst 43 gorgeous entries, each one a stunner- a tough job indeed! 


The winners will be announced shortly. Meanwhile here is a slideshow of all the entries that were received this month. Feel free to visit the gallery, drool a little  if you must :) and do leave comments on the ones you liked, I'm sure the photographers would love to hear from you.

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Kerala Kitchen for the month of March is now open!

Kerala Kitchen warmly welcomes you to another month of cooking, Kerala style! So grab those uralis and get cooking, making sure you mail in our Kerala inspired  (either by the cuisine or common Kerala ingredients and flavors) delicacies to me by the 30th of March 2011 to magpiemails AT gmail DOT com with the subject line Kerala Kitchen, and with your name, link to the post as well as a picture ( preferably a thumbnail, no wider than 300 pixels) 

• Make sure to add a link to this post as well as the main event page of  Kerala Kitchen to the posts you are submitting! 
• You can submit older posts too- simply add a link to this post as well as the main event page Kerala Kitchen and mail me the links to your posts. Due to popular demand, you no longer need to re-post older posts
• For more info and guidelines and for the event logos check out the main event page here
• CHALLENGE RECIPE: Also this month, in addition to any Kerala inspired dishes you are cooking,  I thought I would invite you to join me in a challenge, and try out something that not many may have tried before, making the Malabar Chatti Pathiri from Riascollection. I urge you all, in case you haven't already, to go to her beautiful blog and check out the awesome recipe and stunning pics here 

When I first saw this layered and filled "Malyali Lasagna" as she calls it, on her blog, I immediately fell in love with it, but was somewhat intimidated to try it. So why not try it out together this month? We can share tips and maybe even come up with inspired versions of this awesome dish! I am excited by a common challenge that we can all tackle together this month. Would welcome suggestions for challenging and unique dishes (inspired by Kerala of course) for us all to try together in the future. Do leave your thoughts and comments on this.

Updated: Since a few people asked for suggestions to make a veggie version of this, Ria suggests replacing the chicken with cooked veggies like peas, carrots, potato, mushroom etc. and also chopped paneer and soy nuggets.

Shabs recommends using a Simmer Plate in case you have problems with the bottoms burning ( haha that sentence just made me laugh!) This gadget is useful in even heat distribution and protecting your pans and food from burning during prolonged cooking- like when making dum biriyani. Or you can just keep an aluminium or steel plate or flat lid ( without a knob) under the saucepan. Or just make sure you use a heavy bottom saucepan and very gentle heat.

As usual badges will be awarded to:

• Top Dish
• Best Pic
• Top Contributor : Most number of entries
• Member: All participants will get Kerala Kitchen member badges

So get your game on!

The round up for the March Kerala Kitchen should be up by the 1st of  April (will try not to play any pranks :) The round up for last month will be posted soon on a brand new blog for Kerala Kitchen that we are working on, so watch out for it soon! 

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The first ever Kerala Kitchen roundup!

Thank you to all you wonderful people who sent in their amazing dishes to the first ever Kerala Kitchen, our monthly blogging event featuring dishes inspired by Kerala, that was created as a way to celebrate Kerala and connect with others who shared a similar passion for Kerala cuisine and ingredients.

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UPDATED: Introducing my cooking group- KERALA KITCHEN

UPDATE: Kerala Kitchen round up for January 2011, the very first has been posted here

Check the Kerala Kitchen main page for the host and event details for this month

Welcome to Kerala Kitchen - a cooking club for those who are in love with  Kerala!  I started this group with fellow mallu and talented blogger Ria of Ria's collection as a way to meet  foodies who share a similar passion for cooking. 

This is a food blogging event where we will meet every month to share the dishes we have cooked that are inspired by the flavors of Kerala. Be it by the cuisine itself, that features dishes as varied and delectable as those of the Onam Sadhya to the Malabar parotta or Syrian Christian "ishtoo" or inspired by the flavours of unmistakably Kerala ingredients like the blazing heat of aromatic spices, the sweetness of jaggery and creamy coconut milk, the tang of tamarind or the myriad tastes, smells, textures and sights that remind you of this little state proudly called "God's own country".


Edited to add: To introduce some friendly food blogging competition, Kerala Kitchen will be giving badges for the foll categories:

• Top Dish
• Best Pic
• Top Contributor : The one with the most number of entries
• Member: All participants will get Kerala Kitchen member badges

So get your game on!

To be a part of this month's Kerala Kitchen and the very first meet, all you have to do is:

• Cook a dish that is inspired by Kerala. Be it savory or sweet, a traditional Malayali dish like Idiyappam or Kappa and Meen curry, or your unique take on it, even a dish that features a flavour or ingredient that reminds you of Kerala but may not be typical Malayali fare (like coconut macaroons maybe?) and post it on your blog anytime before or on the 30th Jan 2011

If you are looking for ideas check out Ria's Malabar Chatti pathiri- the inspiration behind this event! Ria's Konju varuthatu, My mother-in-law's recipe for Noolappam, My mom's Stew in coconut milk or "ishtoo", and my grand aunt's Mango pudding  


Some of the typical ingredients : Coconut, bananas and plantains, tapioca/ yucca, mango, jackfruit, lentils, cashews, pepper, cardamom, cloves, tamarind, rice and rice flour, ginger, curry leaves, jaggery, buttermilk... 

• Email me your entry to magpiemails@gmail.com with your name, a photograph of your dish and a link to your post before or on 30th Jan 2011. If you don't have a blog, simply email me your entry and photograph if you want me to include it.

• You can also include posts you made earlier by simply re-posting them anytime between today and the 30th Jan 2011 

• In your post please include  a link to my post or the following : 

         http://magpiesrecipes.blogspot.com/p/keralakitchen.html

• See you all at the round up on the 1st Feb 2011 which will be posted on www.magpiesrecipes.blogspot.com

• Feel free to add  these cute badges with a link to http://magpiesrecipes.blogspot.com/p/keralakitchen.html to your blog post or sidebar and spread the word that you are a proud member of Kerala Kitchen!

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