Feeding the eyes

This weekend I had the pleasure of spending an entire afternoon with a dear friend at the Denver Art Museum. I had only been once and it was a quick stop during a "Night at the Museums" tour, which took a group of us around to many museums in the city (which there is a plethora of in this brilliant city, I must say). The Denver Art Museum was just one.

We met at noon. I'll admit, I thought we'd roam around, chat and catch up, and be in and out in a couple of hours. When it was time to say our goodbyes, it had been four hours. Lovely. Just lovely. It was my friend, Harriet's, first time to the museum, so we were both up for exploring every nook and cranny. Beginning with fashion inspiration and moving on to sculpture, modern design, global works from Africa to Asia to Europe and America, we were in awe with admiration.

One of the last floors we viewed was the photography gallery. The museum is currently running an exhibit called "Women are beautiful" by photograph Garry Winogrand. The exhibit consists of a myriad of images of women living their every day lives. Quite nice.

I was also looking forward to this particular gallery as I've been thinking a lot about photography lately. More specifically, food photography. Photography has always been an art form that I've admired very much. I never thought I would be one to have the patience to learn it, however. But I keep talking about it. And admiring it. And so it is now very high on my list of skills to possess.

Great food photography is something that I've always believed is missing from this blog. Well done photos of food and drink always catch my attention, and time can quickly pass me by when I find a site or a photographer who captures food so beautifully. Remember TasteSpotting? Pages and pages (over 5,000!) of great photos. And now Pinterest. It can get addicting.

But it's so essential, I believe, as part of sharing the love of food that we food-obsessed do. The majority of the time, it begins with the image. The one that feeds the eyes with the flavors, textures and aromas that are to come.

Below are a few I've come across on Pinterest lately that I've looked at more than once. It is such an art, and I hope to join the ranks of those who capture the culinary world so well. I've never considered myself a very creative person. As Harriet and I left the art museum on Saturday, we both agreed that food is definitely an art and a form of creativity. It's absolutely where I can get creative when I focus on it. And now I look forward to learning the tips and tricks of capturing it.

Some food photos that have caught my eye as of late:

from blissfulbblog.com

from mylittlefabric.com

from BS' In the Kitchen

Come on. I don't care how anyone feels about beets. This sandwich looks divine, darling.

Cheers,
~JF

Super Simple Shredded Chicken

Chicken is, by far, a regular for me when it comes to getting in some protein. It can get a bit boring, though, yes? At times I can be lazy–do a quick and dirty salt, pepper, grill action and be done with it. I can cut it up for a salad in a flash and I'm usually good to go.

Recently I've been craving a little variety and I'm pretty certain I've found what my mouth's been searching for. Instead of the grill I've opted for the oven. And though I've always thought baked chicken is nothing to twirl around in the kitchen about, baking then shredding it up, and tossing in a bit of spice for kick can yield something different that can be used in multiple ways.

When it comes to spices, my current favorites are garlic sea salt, ground chipotle pepper, and curry. Of course you can use whichever spice is your go-to in you repertoire, but below is a basic recipe to get you going. I'm loving using this shredded chicken a few ways:

• For homemade shredded chicken tacos with corn tortillas, avocado, and pico de gallo
• A south-of-the-border-style Benedict: corn tortilla, shredded chicken, sliced avocado or a dollop of guac, sliced roasted bell peppers, hot sauce, and a poached egg
• Tossed in a salad, or served along skinned and chopped cucumber for a light and refreshing dinner (which I did tonight)

Whichever you decide, I hope this gives you a little variety in your standard weeknight chicken dinners. Enjoy, and be sure to let me know how you're savoring yours. 

Simple Shredded Chicken

Ingredients:
4-5 ea. thinly sliced chicken breasts
1 teaspoon ground chipotle peppers
1 teaspoon ground curry
1/2 teaspoon garlic sea salt
Olive oil spray

Prepare:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Lay chicken breasts on plate and coat each on each side with the spices as desired.

Either line a baking sheet with foil, or spray lightly with the olive oil spray. Place the chicken on the baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes (This is for "thinly sliced" chicken breasts. For whole chicken breasts, 22 minutes should do).

 
When the chicken is finished baking, remove from the oven and let it cool slightly. With two forks, or a fork and your clean hands, shred the chicken lengthwise. Place in a bowl, and if you want to spice up the insides of the breasts, add more spice to the shredded pieces as desired.

Really...how simple is that? Enjoy.

Cheers,
~JF