The Absurd Food Photography of Brittney Meyer

You may remember our recent profile with food photographer Max Kelly.  Kelly's work is what you might refer to as "higher brow."

Today, we bring you something decidedly, how do we say this, "less higher brow": As in, the absurdist food photography of Brittney Meyer. Some images can be a bit stomach-churning (molding cheese and decomposing pasta) but most are synonymous with a night at the disco, assuming shiny dance floors, colorful strobe lights and deliberately bad backdrops are your thing.

No, Meyers' isn't the most mindblowingly moving work we've ever seen, but it's not supposed to be. There's no denying that choco-pops soaring through the universe bring a warm feeling of ease to our bodies, that maybe all could be right in the world.  

Besides, we never tire of people lampooning  the equally (though unintentionally) terrible food commercials that feature flying shredded cheese, tomatoes being diced midair under a waterfall and char-broiled burgers that seemingly flip themselves. And Meyers' work seems to poke an underhanded jab at that kind of ridiculousness.

Most of Meyer's images--like her tacos surfing the ocean or her cubes of ground meat enjoying a pink Hawaiian sunset--are begging to be used as backgrounds for your summer party invitation.  And we don't see anything wrong with that.

Head on over to Meyer's site to view more, but first, a few of our faves:

Q&A: 3rd Ward's Max Kelly On The Flavor of Food Photography

All photos by Max Kelly

With 3rd Ward's Culinary Incubator on the horizon, food has been on our minds quite a bit (read: nonstop--someone make us something now.) Anyhow, as we yearn for that mouth-watering future, we've been busy feasting our eyes on the food photography of 3rd Ward member Max Kelly. We caught up with him to find out more about how it all began.

You can check out some of Kelly's delicious shots both below and on his new website--but first, our Q&A:

3rd Ward's John Ruscher: So how did you get into food photography?

Max Kelly: I've always known that I wanted to work in a field in which I could physically see my accomplishments at the end of a day's work. Before food photography, I worked as a camera operator on commercial film sets, and realized that while I enjoy video, still photography is where my true passion lies.

The thing I love most about photography is that it's a gateway to any other subject matter that you find you're passionate about. I'm fascinated by the mechanics of cameras, the ways in which light can interact differently with a subject, and the effects of composition on a viewer—and it's a privilege to explore my other interests through this lens.

JR: Where's the passion for food come from?

MK: I grew up in Brooklyn, in a very food-minded family that cooked and traveled often—so I had the benefit of being exposed to many different flavors and cultures at an early age. Food is a vast topic, and one which is universally shared. I'm captivated by the fact that there are infinite possibilities and variations for any dish, and that two people from different parts of the world can look at the same ingredient in totally different ways.

JR: Does food photography require a different approach from shooting other subjects?

MK: Still life photography is more focused on creating an environment than other types of photography. Sometimes, this means rearranging or adding props to a real-life location, while in other instances, "locations" are fabricated from scratch. Creating environments and choosing props that impart visual cues about a dish is a large part of food photography.

Beyond that, there is of course the factor of having a small window of time to photograph the food before the ingredients wilt, dry or otherwise lose their fresh appearance. For this reason, communicating well with your team and having a clear vision of the final product before beginning to shoot is essential.

JR: Did anything at 3rd Ward influence your work in particular?

MK: I found 3rd Ward's classes and coworking space to be a great help when I first struck out on my own as a freelancer. The Branding Your Vision class for photographers drove home the point that it's essential that your work have a unique and consistent look. It helped me create a style that was my own, and not rooted in what I thought was "popular" and "marketable". 

The Business of Photography class gave me insight into how publications hire photographers, as well as the most effective ways to get my work into the hands of photo editors and creative directors.

...and now for some of Kelly's gorgeous attempts to make you eat your laptop:

-- John Ruscher

Call For Entries // Make Your Culinary Dreams Come True

Have you crafted the perfect sparkling molasses-kombucha-agave beverage? Think you make the best portable, personal-size pies in town? Or maybe you're just a really good cook. Whatever the case, if you want to make that your business, you best check out The Next BIG Small Brand competition by Rooster Design Group.

The application is pretty simple: Write 500 words about what your culinary concept is and how you plan to execute it--something of a condensed business plan. If it's something that's already in the works, include any relevant links or photos. Formal culinary training or experience is in now way required; however, a great idea for a culinary brand is. Currently the opportunity's being offered to New Yorkers and Bay Area folks exclusively.

Meanwhile: The rewards are huge--branding and design by Rooser themselves, PR representation, kitchen equipment from Breville, and retail opportunities at Whole Foods, Bi-Rite, and Brooklyn Flea. Not too bad, right?

Well you've got until February 5 to make it happen. Semifinalists will be announced February 9, and a winner will be chosen March 27. Get to it, foodies.

--Layla Schlack

ESSENTIAL EVENT // Brooklyn Night Bazaar Returns With A Massive Three-Day Extravaganza Starting Thursday

All images © JDS.

Back in October we told you about the first Brooklyn Night Bazaar, which took over the Dekalb Market for a lively Sunday evening. Now the bazaar is returning to Brooklyn for an even bigger blowout. This Thursday, Friday and Saturday the bazaar will take over a 40,000 square foot warehouse along the Williamsburg waterfront to present more than 100 local vendors, art installations, three solid nights of live music and plenty of local beer and wine. And all of this goodness (except the ticketed music space) is free and open to the public.

Check out the long list of vendors that you'll find at the bazaar here. If you still need to grab some gifts following our Handmade Holiday Craft Fair this past weekend, here's your chance! Pick up a Playbutton, some regionally adapted seeds, a killer skateboard and much more. And of course there will be tons of delicious local food as well.

The music program will include a DJ set by LCD Soundsystem's James Murphy on Thursday, an epic rock lineup featuring Fucked Up, DOM, Big Troubles and more on Friday and a double whammy with The Hold Steady and Titus Andronicus on Saturday. Grab tickets for those shows here.

The most exciting part of this edition of the Brooklyn Night Bazaar, though, is where it'll take place. Renowned Danish architecture firm JDS have designed an incredible masterplan for the huge warehouse, drawing inspiration from Lars Von Trier's Dogville. Additionally, the folks behind Greenpoint's Bring To Light: Nuit Blanche festival will be curating an array of video installations and light projections.

Hit the jump to see renderings of JDS' Brooklyn Night Bazaar masterplan.

-- John Ruscher

EAT UP // Cape Cod's East Dennis Oyster Farm Hobnobs in the Big City

In their domain: John and Stephanie Lowell

Much to our enjoyment, the higher-end NYC food & bar scene has spent the last year embracing the oyster, in some restaurants, serving them exclusively. One of the sudden major players has undoubtedly been East Dennis Oyster Farm in Cape Cod, supplying renowned dining spots Marea, Oceana, and Momofoku. Landscaper-cum-oyster farmers John and Stephanie Lowell are the folks behind the award-winning mollusks. As aspiring connoisseurs of endless oyster consumption, we reached out to the Lowells to find out how this all started--and why their product is officially on par with that hoity counterpart over in Wellfleet. 

When John got an aquaculture grant in 2003, he set up the farm: rows upon rows of enclosed pallets on stilts which get doused with saltwater when the tide comes in. Though in an ocean of oyster farmers, Lowell's were initially a tough sell, but once John got people to actually taste the product, they were sold. Local oyster bars began furiously snapping them up--and shortly thereafter, the Lowell's broke into their target market: New York.

"Our oysters aren't cheap," John says with a bit of a laugh. "There's more of a market for that in New York. People are willing to pay a premium for quality." John and Stephanie--who also works as an accountant--treat their business as a boutique provider. They're mission is sell to the discerning oyster fan, people who will taste the difference between bivalves from Wellfleet, East Dennis, and Prince Edward Island. 

So far, this approach has provided some nice perks to the Lowells; "We get treated pretty well when we go to New York, wined and dined," John says. Though on a larger scale, the success of Dennis Oyster Farm has opened the door for oyster farms from other parts of Cape Cod to be seen as purveyors of a luxury product. And that's all perfectly fine by the Lowells. "We have some rivalry, but it's all in fun," John says. He's glad to see his colleagues succeed and for the increased attention to the food's provenance, which Lowell believes will open diners up to new types of oysters. At the end of the day, East Dennis Oyster Farm is a labor of love--it's about a couple working on a beach with their dog--and as self-professed fans of their product, we'll tell you: All of that shines through in a slurp of briny goodness whether you're at Manhattan's finest or at your local Cape Cod beach shack.

--Layla Schlack

FINE WINE // Part 3: Erin Fitzpatrick Takes Wine From The Restaurant To The Airwaves To The Countryside

We're thrilled to return to our ongoing Fine Wine series, which explores local wine culture and its many manifestations. Today we feature Erin Fitzpatrick, co-host of "Unfiltered," a program on the Heritage Radio Network that covers the latest news and developments in the wine industry.

That is by no means the only role that Fitzpatrick plays in the wine world. She is accredited by the American Sommelier Association  and has worked at acclaimed restaurants such as Boston's Radius and Manhattan's Waverly Inn.

She also runs her own consulting company, Esse Consulting, helping launch NYC restaurants such as Bar Carrera and Bobo and serving as a wine consultant for Hong Kong's Lily/Bloom and Manhattan's Fat Radish. Most recently Fitzpatrick has opened Fork & Anchor, a general store in Long Island's North Fork.

Hit the jump now for our full interview.

Fitzpatrick's interest in wine was first piqued while she was in school. "I studied abroad in Paris when I was a junior in college and it wasn't until then that my affection for wine took hold," she says. "I was on a mission to see as much as I could, which often led me to countrysides peppered with vineyards, and I was intrigued." And while most of her work has been based in New York, she has remained connected with Europe, working on marketing relations for emerging French wine regions such as Cahors and Jura.

With everything that New York offers, Fitzpatrick says developing a relationship with wine is primarily a matter of taking advantage of the plentiful opportunities. "The range of event offerings, classes, wine bars to frequent is vast, and like anything else, it simply is a decision to immerse one's self in the dedication to learning about it," she says. "I am constantly reading about wine, tasting, traveling to new vineyards and learning new things; the journey is endless, and that is something I really value in what I do."

It's not necessarily about experiencing as much as possible, but more about savoring and paying close attention to those experiences and developing your own personal tastes. "Taking notes on what wines you've tasted and enjoyed so that you can remember them and experience them again is a good way to discover what wines suit your palate," Fitzpatrick says. "Taking a pause to smell herbs, fruit, and tobacco, for example, and recount the aromas and qualities that surface in the wines you drink will help make you a better taster. Grape varieties have prevailing characteristics regardless of where they are planted in the world and when you familiarise yourself with these characteristics it becomes easier to define the grapes and the style of wine you like."

Fitzpatrick sees the philosophy that has driven her career as one that holds true for anyone pursuing their passion. "Live and breathe it and be open to the opportunities that exist to further expand your knowledge," she says. "Be mindful of the ways in which you can serve others who are interested in your same field and determine your own way of effectively and generously sharing the information. Don't be afraid to form your own opinions. Have a sense of conviction about what you like while keeping an open mind to explore new things and keep current."

With Fork & Anchor, which has been featured in Vogue, Fitzpatrick has followed her passions to their source. "A happy place for me is amidst vineyards and the sea and this part of the country offers both," she says. "The North Fork has inspiring energy and an evolving community of people who are as passionate as we are about supporting the local food system." With business partner Lucy Muellner she is renovating a barn near the store to start a CSA with a network of local farmers. "We have formed wonderful relationships with fantastic growers, dairy and chicken farmers, vineyards and even brewers and it will be a meeting place for locals and visitors on a year-round basis," she says.

Keep up with Fitzpatrick by listening to "Unfiltered" and following her blog, Bohedonist.

-- John Ruscher

CHEF'S CORNER // Beata Zatorska's Cookbook Puts a Familial Spotlight on Polish Cuisine

It's no secret that we're A) always hungry and B) consistently on the prowl for new dishes and recipes. So as part of an ongoing series, we'll be profiling innovators in the field of our primary lifeforce: food.

Today, we talk to the author of a gorgeous new cookbook, Beata Zatorska.

Starting with the name, Rose Petal Jam: Recipes & Stories from a Summer in Poland, Zatorska's cookbook has a charmingly whimsical feel. But hidden among photos of the Polish countryside and recipes for pierogi, pickles, and doughnuts are miniature history and anthropology lessons.

This book was a labor of love for Zatorska, who moved to Australia from Poland in 1981. She went on to become a family physician, but always looked back on her early childhood with her grandmother, a chef who also created herbal rememdies, as a force in shaping her life. So after a vacation to Poland, she decided to spend a summer in her native country and reclaim family recipes, including the namesake rose petal jam, and do a sort of culinary tour of her country.

We caught up with her to learn more about the recipes, Polish cooking, and a woman whose summers in the kitchen with her grandma shaped her entire life.

3W: What made you decide to do a cookbook? Was there a specific event that inspired it?

Beata Zatorska: It was returning to Poland after 20 years away that started it all--I visited my cousins who were still living in the old farmhouse where I spent the first years of my life with my grandmother. Though my grandma passed away long ago, my uncle still had many of her original recipes. Touching those old recipes in my grandmother's spidery handwriting felt like touching her hands again. I felt a strong connection to my past and had to write a story about the place I came from. 

3W: Was cooking a big part of your life in Australia before you started working on this book?

BZ: I live with my husband [and co-author], Simon, and three teenage sons. I work full-time, so we share the cooking--often a matter of feeding a hungry family fast: pasta, salad, risotto, etc. My mother, Lidia, lives nearby and makes pierogi for the boys. They can easily go through 120 in one meal. Such traditional food is more time-consuming to make and sometimes involves the whole family lending a hand, rolling up cabbage leaves or cutting pastry into circles.

3W:Describe your ultimate comfort food, the meal that brings you right back to your childhood.

BZ: It would have to be Silesian dumplings (kluski slaski in Polish). They are chewy dumplings made with potato flour, like giant gnocchi, served with a goulash or pureed beetroot. When I first went back to Poland, all my friends and family kindly cooked these for me (in fact, we were once served them three times on the same day, which was a test of our tact).

But the scent of wild rose petals is certainly the strongest reminder of my childhood. It was my job when I was five to collect these petals each morning in summer for my grandmother to make rose petal jam. I only have to smell rose petals to be back in my grandmother's garden.

3W: Your grandmother also gathered herbs to make remedies, and I know that's part of what inspired you to become a doctor. Do you think food is a form of healing? 

BZ: My grandmother made wild peppermint tea to settle a stomach and valerin drops for colds. She even made her own cosmetics from plants she found in the forests. Any doctor will tell you healthy food leads to a healthy body, but I think food has emotional power too. Recipes that bring back memories of a happy childhood are certainly good for your wellbeing. The smells coming from my grandmother's kitchen (mushrooms or poppyseeds drying, yeasty cakes puffing up) filled our house and provided aromatherapy for the whole family.

3W: What are you hoping will be the legacy of this book?

I love the thought that somebody might find the time to gather wild rose petals and blend them with sugar into a simple jam like my grandmother did. Though I grew up in 1960s and '70s Communist Poland, when food was scarce, we never seemed to go without, thanks to my grandmother's imaginative recipes. I like to think not everything we eat today needs to come readymade from the supermarket.

Rose Petal Jam is the first installment of four seasonal cookbooks. The next one Sugar Orange Peel: Recipes and Stories from a Winter in Poland will be out in May 2012. We'll just be over here devouring pierogi until then.

--Layla Schlack

BEST OF // Our Top 5 Etsy How-Tuesdays

It's no secret that our friends at Etsy know good crafts and DIY projects when they see them. And now they're spreading the love. Every Tuesday, the Etsy blog posts How-Tuesday projects, so you can learn a new skill without ever leaving your computer, as it should be. We've formed something of an addiction to the feature and we thought we'd share 5 How-Tuesdays we think are tops (presented in no particular order of course).

Via Etsy1. Sew a Skirt in One Hour: For those of us who are not quite whizzes on the sewing machine, the title of Brett Bara's book is, in itself, awe-inspiring. The How to Sew In a Straight Line author stopped by Etsy studios to show us how to sew in enought straight lines to create a wearable garment--in five easy steps.

Yarrow, pre-tea2. Urban Herbalist: Ok, it's no secret that 3rd Ward likes urban farming. But what we like even more than farming is learning what to do with those plants that grow wild all over (sometimes called weeds). Irina from Phoenix Botanicals gave us the scoop on plantain bandages, yarrow tea, mugwort pillows, and more. It's a great intro to her Foraging Herbal Medicine class at 3rd Ward.

Hit the jump now for three more amazing ideas.

3. Build Your Own Seltzer Maker: You know who doesn't like seltzer? Nobody, that's who. But no one likes piles of plastic bottles or the accompanying environmental effects. So your options are to buy a fancy seltzer-maker, or McGyver your own with a trip to the hardware store and a handy tutorial by painter Randy Stoltzfus.

4. Spread the Word for an Event: This feels like one of those things that you're just supposed to know. You think that if you tell friends, they'll tell friends, and bam, packed house. But there's method and skill to tailoring your invite to your event and getting people in the door who aren't already in your circle (if you're into that sort of thing). Danya Cheskis-Gold of Skillshare shows us the way.

5. Mustard: It turns out making your own mustard is easy enough that it might be worth doing even if you don't like the stuff (at the very least, just for bragging rights.) We also love projects like this where we can make a big batch and give everyone we know a homemade gift. And once you've learned how to pack your event, you could even have a mustard party (trust us, they happen.) Michelle Fuerst, formerly of Chez Panisse, gives us the recipe and walks us through it with a video.

Honestly, we could've made this list 300 ideas long, but then we may have broken the internet. So do yourself a favor and get How-Tuesdays bookmarked for your weekly project inspiration.

--Layla Schlack

BROOKLYN LOCAL // City Harvest Fundraiser Feeds Foodies by the Hundreds

We were a little surprised City Harvest's Brooklyn Local didn't get more press.  75 local food vendors at a benefit for an organization that rescues unused eats from restaurants and stores to give to the hungry? Seems like a no-brainer. Still, hundreds of people showed up at the old Tobacco Warehouse in Brooklyn Bridge Park to eat standbys like Jacque Torres Chocolates, McClure's Pickles, and Ample Hills ice cream, washed down with some tasty Sixpoint. 

In the tasting tent, $75 bought hearty taste tests from Al di La, Asiadog, Benchmark Restaurant (the hilariously named Hot Beef Sundae, made with brisket, mashed potatoes and creme fraiche), Char No. 4, Dressler, Hibino, Mile End, No. 7, Pies 'N' Thighs, Roberta's Bread and Best Pizza (a simple sandwich on soft sesame bread that was, indeed, best), Seersucker, Tanoreen, The Good Fork and Van Leeuwen roasted banana ice cream. A crowd actually lined up for Dr. Pepper ribs from The Brooklyn Star, but even those who skipped the line were able to piece together sizeable meals from the other booths.

In the market area, possibly the most interesting offering was Switzel, a soda made with blackstrap molasses by City 'Lasses. It was spicy, soothing, and bubbly all at once. We also kept going back for more housemade marshmallows from JoMart Chocolates and thought the Meat Hook's sandwich by the inch was ingenious (sometimes an inch of hero is all you need.)

Easily though, the best part of the day--if we can be serious for a second--was seeing how much fantastic, ethically-produced, artisanally-crafted food comes out of our borough and how many relative newcomers are able to succeed based on word-of-mouth (See: One Girl Cookies, another local vendor present.)

We anticipate next year's Local crowd being much larger, so here's to getting you in on the ground floor now.

--Layla Schlack

AUTUMNAL PRESERVATION SOCIETY // How To Can Your Own Fruits + Vegetables

All of a suddend, we've found ourselves teetering on fall's doorstep, which means...harvest time for farmers -- urban or otherwise. So what to do with all that homegrown, handpicked deliciousness? A.) Gorge yourself. Spend the next three days doing nothing but eating tomatoes, beets, cukes, etc. B.) Just gorge yourself a little bit and preserve the rest. This is easier than you think, folks. But you will need a solid day. Keep in mind, the method we're sharing with you is not intended for things with meat--that needs a deeper level of preservation. But to get you officially prepped for the coming season, we decided to bring you a quick and dirty preservation how-to:

• Assuming you've already stocked up on mason jars (and why wouldn't you have?) step 1 is to wash them. Wash them in very hot water and stash them somewhere they'll stay relatively warm.
• Fill the biggest pot you own with water high enough to be about one inch above jars standing upright. Set it to simmer.
• Prepare what your preserving: To make tomato sauce or any kind of jam, you're just going to mash up your tomatoes/fruits/berries and stew them. For tomato sauce, add your various and sundry herbs and seasoning. For jam, you can really just add sugar and lemon juice. If you like it a little more jelly-like, use pectin, too. 
  To make pickles, just make a brine that's 3/4 cup vinegar and about 4 tbsp. salt per cup of water. You're going to put whatever veggies you're pickling (Beets! Green beans! Brussels sprouts even! Cucumbers are actually the trickiest) into the jars, along with dill and garlic and any other spices you see fit.
• Pour your sauce/jam into jars, or pour your brine over pickling ingredients. Fill them up to 1/4-1/2 inch below the rim of the jar, making sure to give a little shake in the process. This will get rid of air pockets that could lead to grossness.
• Put lids on jars. Use tongs to gently place jars in the big pot of simmering water. Note: Fancy jar racks exist, so if you're fancy, pick one up when you get your jars and lids. If you're not (we're not!), tongs work fine.  
• Put lid on pot and raise stove heat so water comes to a boil. Let it boil for five minutes.
• Remove jars and let them sit for about a day. The lid shouldn't flex. For pickles, give them a few days to reach full pickledom. 

And wah-la: You've successfully canned your first harvest. 

--Layla Schlack