Cooking with the Sassy Mama | OKC Food Photographer

 Last year I had the opportunity to shoot the food photography for a cookbook. This has always been on my list of things to aspire for, but I had no idea I would get to accomplish it so soon. I’m very blessed to have talented people in my life who like to make me look good! One of those people being Caryn Ross. If you haven’t heard her name before, just wait. It’s only a matter of time. Her intuition when it comes to food combined with her sassy personality make a beautiful combination. Here are a few of my favorite shots from the book. If you’d like to order a copy, check out Caryn’s blog here. The cookbooks are also available at Tulips Home and Gifts, Mels Kloset, The Painted Door, Best of Books, Wright’s Family Market,  and Hastings. Enjoy!

 

Chocolate Quick Fix | OKC Food Photographer | Recipes

Whether you find yourself getting caught in traffic, spilling something all over a new shirt or forgetting your phone at home.. Some days just call for chocolate. Not that we’d need an excuse for that. Every once in a while (everyday), I get a chocolate craving that just won’t go away. A craving that not just any chocolate could take care of. Something warm and gooey could only do the trick. But who has time to make a warm gooey cake at a moments notice?  During one of my said cravings, I was desperately rifling through recipes and found this one for cake in a cup. I doubted that a cake made in the microwave could actually taste good, but much to my surprise it was unexpectedly delicious. One recipe makes two servings. Three if you just need a sampling. Or one…if you’ve had a rough day.

 

Cup Cake

1/4 cup flour

1/4 cup sugar

2 tablespoons cocoa

1 egg

3 tablespoons milk

3 tablespoons oil

Splash of vanilla

3 tablespoons chocolate chips (optional)

Put dry ingredients in a mug and mix well. Add egg, milk, oil, vanilla, and chips. Mix with fork. Put in microwave for three minutes. Allow to cool and enjoy.

* This recipe would be great made with peanut butter, coconut, cinnamon, or banana etc. Make it your own!

Chipotle Steak Tacos with Fire Roasted Corn Salsa | Cinco de Mayo Recipes

While living in Massachusetts I learned many things, but mainly: 1. Pretty winter snow is overrated. 2. There is no such thing as real Mexican food that far north. Now that I’m back in Oklahoma I appreciate Mexican cuisine even more. So for me, Cinco de Mayo is a great excuse to eat anything that involves a tortilla.

Chipotle Tacos with Fire Roasted Corn Salsa

Ingredients

• 1 can chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
• Juice of 2 limes, divided
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire
• 1 1/2 teaspoons Mexican oregano
• 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1 1/2 to 2 pounds flank or skirt steak, 1 inch thick (ask the butcher to tenderize it twice)
•  kosher salt and coarse black pepper
• 16 soft taco-size corn or flour tortillas, charred. I like the La Abuela brand because they come ready to cook and taste homemade.

Toppings for tacos

• grilled sweet corn, scraped from the cob
• pico de gallo (make your own or use pre-made) mix with grilled corn
• Crumbled Queso Fresco
• black beans
• sour cream or plain yogurt
• lime juice

Preparation

Seed chipotle peppers then purée with adobo sauce into a smooth paste. Add 4 tablespoons to a large plastic food storage bag. Place remainder in a small freezer bag with the date for future use. To the large food storage bag, add the lime juice, honey, Worcestershire, oregano, garlic and vegetable oil. Mash up the bag with your hands to combine.

Season steak with salt and lots of black pepper. Drop it in the bag and press out most of the air as you seal up the bag. Maneuver the marinade evenly around the meat and marinate in the fridge for several hours.

Bring the beef to room temperature. Pre-heat the broiler and set an oven rack one notch up from the center. Shake off excess marinade, place beef on a broiler pan and broil 5 minutes on each side for rare, 12 minutes total for pink center or medium.

Let meat rest 5-10 minutes then thinly slice against the grain. Serve with charred hot tortillas and toppings above or of your choice. Serves 4-6

• Feel free to use chicken as well as steak. Grilling the meat also works well if you prefer not to use a broiler.

Quinoa Cookies | OKC Food Photographer | Recipes

Growing up, I was extremely picky. Nothing too colorful, flavorful, and definitely nothing out of the ordinary. Then quite suddenly, my taste buds completely transformed. No longer was I skipping salads before meals and writing off foods that looked unusual. Like most kids, I was obsessed with McDonald’s. But now even the thought of eating there grosses me out. (Not to mention that I’ve seen the documentary Super Size Me.) That being said, even though I like to eat healthy, I love desserts. I am always up for a ‘healthier’ version of something if there is one, so I was very pleased to find this recipe for peanut butter cookies. Some of you may be hesitant if you aren’t familiar with quinoa, but I promise there is nothing to fear here. So if you find yourself like I used to be, give these a try. I bet even my former self would have approved.

Peanut Butter Quinoa Cookies

• 1/2 cup honey
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/2 cup peanut butter (I’m obsessed with Teddie’s. I have it shipped to my house..)
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 cup rice flour
• 3/4 cup Quinoa Flakes
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt (optional)
• 1/2 cup nuts (optional)

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Beat honey, brown sugar, butter, margarine, peanut butter, and vanilla in a medium bowl until creamy. Combine rice flour, quinoa flakes, baking soda and salt in a small bowl. Add to mixture and beat until well blended. If desired add nuts. Drop by rounded teaspoons about 2 inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 12 to 15 minutes or until light golden brown. Yields about 3 dozen cookies. Or around 2 dozen if you like larger cookies, like me.

Lemonade with a Twist | OKC Food Photographer | Recipes

As the temperatures increase, so does my readiness for all things summer. Although it has only been Spring a few days, I find myself dreaming of having a tan already. I guess I may be jumping the gun just a bit. But can you blame me after living through a Massachusetts winter last year? This warm weather sparked my craving for homemade lemonade. This wasn’t one of those, “oh-that-sounds-good” cravings…it was more like the can’t-concentrate-or-be-productive kind of cravings. Nothing from a can, bottle, or powder was going to do the trick. So what started out as an innocent craving turned into a photo shoot. What can I say? I had some very photogenic lemons.

But you see, problems arise with these types of cravings when you only have four lemons on hand. The thing is, sometimes when we run into problems the result becomes better than what we had intended in the first place. Since the amount of lemon juice squeezed was minimal, I needed something else. I had a tangelo in the fridge, so I went ahead and squeezed that too. The result was even better than what I had originally planned. Seems like lemons are always teaching us life lessons.

Homemade Lemonade 

• Mix 3 cups water
• 1 cup lemon juice (or in my case, add other citrus juices with the lemon. Tangelo, orange, lime ect.)
• 1/2 cup sugar

*optional – I didn’t have any on hand, but I thought a few sprigs of mint would be prefect.

*I also used Meyer lemons, which have a stronger citrus flavor and are less bitter.

Carli Wentworth | OKC Food Photographer | Chocolate Espresso Soufflé

Valentine’s Day is an opinionated holiday. Some people love it, other people aren’t so fond of it. Whether you are spending your holiday with the one you love, or trying to ignore the isle at Wal-Mart with the massive amounts of frilly hearts and outrageously large teddy bears, one thing is for certain; Valentine’s is a wonderful excuse to eat chocolate! I like this recipe because it’s simple and fairly quick to make, yet it’s a fancier alternative to your average cupcake or cookie. Enjoy!

Chocolate Espresso Soufflé

• Butter to coat baking dish
• 1/2 cup sugar divided
• 3 Tbs. espresso or strongly brewed coffee
• 5 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped
• 4 egg yolks
• 6 egg whites

1. Preheat oven to 400˚F. Thoroughly butter a 2 quart souffle dish or 6 (8oz.) ramekins and sprinkle with 1/4 cup sugar.
2. Combine espresso and chocolate in a glass bowl. Microwave about one minute; stir until chocolate melts.
3. Beat egg yolks into chocolate mixture.
4. Beat egg whites in a separate bowl with a mixer until frothy. Gradually add remaining 1/4 cup of sugar, beating until soft peaks form.
5. Stir about 1 cup egg white mixture into chocolate mixture. Fold remaining egg white mixture into chocolate mixture.
6. Spoon into the prepared dish. Place on baking sheet 30-40 minutes (souffle dish) or 20-25 minutes (ramekins), until soufflé rises. Serve immediately. Serves 6.

Cold Weather Comfort | Carli Wentworth OKC Food Photographer | Recipes

Everyone has certain foods that they associate memories with. Growing up, I have many memories associated with this soup. It’s an original recipe by my Grandma Wentworth. When my mom asked for a copy, my grandma had to really think about the exact amount of the ingredients she put in it. She had never written it down before. Years later, my mom’s copy has been crumpled, stained, torn, and dripped upon. I guess you could say this soup is a winter staple for our family. Whenever my mom would have to go out-of-town she would make this soup before she left. (That way my dad wouldn’t have to try to figure out what to cook.) It’s a soup that get’s better a few nights after it’s made, when all the flavors get a chance to seep into each other. Give this recipe a try, I promise it’s not your typical vegetable soup. And it’s perfect for those chilly winter evenings!

Vegetable Soup

3-4 lb. rump roast (cut into small pieces)       two bay leaves (remove later)

14 oz. can of diced tomatoes                         1/8 teaspoon ground oregano

1 cup ketchup                                                Pinches of basil, thyme, and pepper, and garlic powder

1 teaspoon Worcestershire                            1 Tablespoon chili powder

2 Tablespoons chicken bouillon                   1 can mushrooms-optional

• Cook meat in a large pan until meat turns gray. Sprinkle a little garlic powder over meat. Cook slowly on medium to low heat until meat is tender. About an hour

2 cups sliced celery (about 6 stalks)                 2 cups sliced carrots (about 5 carrots)

2 cups chopped onion (about 1 onions)           3 cups chopped cabbage

6 cups diced potatoes (about 6 large)              1/4 cup chopped green pepper

1/2 cup frozen peas 1/2 cup frozen corn         2 Tablespoons butter (add last 30 min. of cooking)

Add vegetables to meat mixture and simmer several hours until vegetables are tender. Fill pot with desired amount of water to cover vegetables. Add the frozen corn, peas, and butter the last 30 minutes. Makes 8 quarts.

Carli Wentworth | OKC Food Photographer

I made these scones this morning and I couldn’t resist taking some pictures. I highly recommend making some for yourself! 

Blueberry-Pecan Scones 

1/2 cup milk

1/4 cup sugar

2 tsp. grated lemon rind

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 large egg

2 cups flour

1 Tbs. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

3 Tbs. chilled butter

1 cup fresh blueberries

1/4 cup finely chopped pecans

1 large egg white, lightly beaten

2 Tbs. sugar

-Preheat oven to 375.

-Combine the first 5 ingredients, stirring with a whisk. Weigh flour into dry measuring cups and level with a knife. Combine flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Cut in butter with a pastry blender until coarse. Gently fold in blueberries and pecans. Add until moist. (dough will be sticky.)

-Turn dough out onto floured surface; pat dough into a 8-inch circle. Cut dough into 8 wedges, and place the dough wedges onto a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Brush egg white over the dough wedges; sprinkle with 2 Tbs. sugar. Bake scones at 375 for 18 minutes or until golden brown.

Happy Baking!