• The Olympics were on.
• It’s a short month so I didn’t eat much.
• The dog ate my homework.

I was starting to get a little nervous that the first quarter of the year is almost over (this is the “corporate” in me talking) and I haven’t made any progress on my 10 in 2010. And I thought the easiest thing on my list would be to blog a recipe every month!  I will make up February at some point – I’m thinking the summer will be chock full o’ new recipes with all the fresh veggies and stuff, so I’ll double up one month. Also, my mind was put at ease tonight when I reviewed my 10 in 2010 list and found that I am making progress on more than HALF my list already, but just haven’t officially checked anything off yet. Whew! Was starting to think I was slacking. Stay tuned.

I invited my mom over to share in my March recipe of stuffed peppers!  These were SO easy to make and delicious, not to mention SUPER DUPER healthy…bell peppers are loaded with vitamin C and I don’t think there is one ingredient in this dish that isn’t good for you.  Here’s the recipe, courtesy of Epicurious, as well as some pics of my masterpiece! A couple of things to note: If you make this straight from the recipe you will have enough leftover stuffing for about 2 more peppers (or you can just eat it leftover as a cold salad, which is what I will do). Also, I had some quinoa on hand and made 2 peppers with that and the other 2 with couscous, both tasted about the same but quinoa is way more nutritious and loaded with protein! Enjoy!

Ingredients:

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°F F. Coat a small baking dish with cooking spray. Bring the broth to a boil in a saucepan, add the couscous, cover the pan and remove it from the heat. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cut the stems and top half inch off the bell peppers and scoop out the seeds and membranes. Boil trimmed peppers for 5 minutes, then drain them upside down. Heat oil in a nonstick skillet. Add onion, zucchini, yellow squash, fennel seeds, oregano, and salt. Cook, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes or until vegetables are softened. Remove from heat and stir in the tomatoes and chickpeas. Using a fork, scrape the couscous into the skillet and toss with the vegetables. Stir in the crumbled feta. Place peppers upright in the baking dish and fill them with couscous. Bake 15 minutes. Serve immediately.

We met up in Medford Lakes this past weekend for their shoot. I immediately connected with these two – they are super sweet, crazy in love, and just really fun to be around. Mike’s daughter Meredith came along too, the three of them together might have been almost too much for my camera to handle…oh the beauty! I think Meredith needs to get to a modeling agency asap, how gorgeous is she? And she is only 12! Got me thinking back to when I was twelve…with my two-toned hair from too much Sun-In, clear plastic rimmed glasses, and stirrup pants…boy, was I a vision.

Here are some photos for you to enjoy, I included a few more than usual but I just had a really hard time picking my favorites!

Because I don’t quite trust my skiing skills enough to lug my SLR onto the mountain, these were all taken with my Canon point-and-shoot. Be sure to check out the video I took from the lift at Copper, just love the HD video on this camera!

When the clouds finally cleared, this is what we saw. For the last 2 pictures, let’s play “Can you spot the difference?”  I think it’s pretty obvious…oh the things one can do with Photoshop!  If any of you are interested in how I did it, send me an email!

I did take a break from the Olympics this weekend for Rachel and Michael’s engagement shoot. I was SO excited when Michael suggested that we do the shoot at Villanova University (he’s an alum). Can I tell you how much I love college campuses? The buildings just have so much character, and there are just so many indoor and outdoor options for shooting, especially when you are with someone who knows the campus!  You should have seen my eyes light up when we walked into the gym…my creative juices were flowing so fast I couldn’t keep up, I just love the way these pictures turned out!

We had so much fun on our shoot. I just think these 2 are great and I can’t wait for the wedding in May!

Make sure you check out the video! I tried a little something different this time and would love to know what you all think – leave comments below!

It seems like the last few posts have all started out with some sort of weather report…I’m not sure if the bad weather follows me around the country or maybe this global warming thing has just gone awry. Philadelphia just got its 3^rd snowstorm of the season, and the second within a week. This is our snowiest winter on record, and so far, we have gotten more snow than Portland, ME and Buffalo, NY! Hey Vancouver, you need some snow? We’ve got plenty! And according to Punxsutawny Phil, we still have about 6 weeks of winter left!   

Enough with the weather report, today’s post is Alex and Dan’s wedding back in November at the Waterworks Restaurant. My role in this wedding was as a second shooter for Kathleen Ferry of Firefly Photography.  For anyone who doesn’t know, the job of the second shooter at a wedding is to serve as a back-up to the primary shooter (who is really focusing on the bride/groom and other VIPs), and then take pictures of everything else going on, take some artistic shots, etc. This was my first experience second shooting and I loved it! It was so great to work with another photographer and see how they manage the day.  

Some of the photos from this wedding were published in Brides Philadelphia magazine! If you happen to see it on a newsstand, pick it up and flip to the article on TableArt’s floral arrangements (page 262). To see more photos from the wedding, check out Firefly Photography’s blog.

Taking pictures of animals is a whole new challenge for me. I can’t bribe a dog with a lollipop or ask a cat to sing her favorite song for me. So what did we use to keep our models happy? Cheese for Lily (the white Jack Russell Terrier ) and Shadow (the black Terrier), and a bathrobe belt for Jasmine (aka Jazz the kitty).

Karine fosters for Animal Care and Control (ACCT) which is part of the Pennsylvania SPCA. Both ACCT and the SPCA are at capacity right now, which means that they have no space to take in any new animals and they have to euthanize dogs and cats every day, so they desperately need more foster parents and people to adopt doggies and kitties. Visit this link to learn how you can help give these animals a loving home by fostering, adopting, or just helping out at the shelter!

Lily is Karine’s dog, and Shadow has already been adopted, but sweet little Jazz will be available for adoption very soon (it’s impossible to resist those eyes!). If you or anyone you know is interested, please contact me!

Part of the reason for doing the monthly recipe is to learn how to make things that I typically order in a restaurant. That’s right, restaurant quality food in the comfort of my own home…by doing the work myself…and having no one serve me…or clean up…why did I decide to do this again?

This month’s recipe is a roasted beet salad. This was my first experience roasting beets, and I quickly learned the following:
a) Beets stain everything. My kitchen looked like a crime scene afterwards.
b) They look like the mandrake plants from the Harry Potter movies.
c) Beets scream when you cut into them (see point b).

This recipe is delish, the freshly roasted beets turned out firm, sweet and oh-so-tasty, and really, adding goat cheese to anything just kicks it up a notch. I would totally make it again, even just beets, cheese and dressing for a quick fix. And beets are super high in antioxidants – bonus! Here is the recipe (courtesy of Epicurean) followed by some photos of my beet masterpiece. YUM!

Ingredients:

(makes 6-8 servings)

1/2 cup walnut halves
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
6 medium beets, trimmed and washed
1/3 cup thinly sliced red onions

6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon sugar
fresh ground black pepper

1/2 lb fresh spinach leaves, de-stemmed and washed
3 ounces fresh goat cheese, crumbled

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 F.
2. Combine the walnuts with the olive oil, salt and pepper, mixing well to coat the nuts.
3. Spread on a baking sheet and bake until toasted, about 7-10 minutes.
4. Set aside to cool.
5. Wrap the beets individually in foil and place on a rimmed baking sheet.
6. Bake at 350 degrees until tender, about 1 1/2 hours.
7. Let cool for 20 minutes, then peel the beets by holding them under cold running water and rubbing off the skins.
8. Cut into 1/2-inch wedges, and place in a large mixing bowl with the walnuts and onion.
9. Combine all the dressing ingredients, taste and adjust the seasonings.
10. Pour over the beets and toss well.
11. Let sit at room temperature at least 1 hour.
12. Just before serving, arrange the spinach leaves in individual bowls or on a large platter.
13. Arrange the beets on top and crumble the goat cheese over.

Here are some pictures of 1-month-old baby Jake and 2 1/2-year-old Victoria. Victoria looks so grown-up next to Jake, she could pass for a 1st grader. Ah, the chaos of having 2 children under the age of 3, it was quite entertaining to watch Dina juggle it all, but she is handling it like a champ. Joey is lucky.  Speaking of chaos, Victoria spent the majority of the time running around, playing, and well, being a toddler…but man, she got right into character when I bribed her with a lollipop! That bag of Dum Dum Pops is the best $2 I’ve ever spent!

I am not just saying this because they are family, but boy are they CUTE! If you want to see a little more of Victoria and Jake (you can catch a glimpse of Dina and my mom too!), take a look at the slideshow here.

I bring to you another warm weather shoot (yes, I am a bit behind on blogging some of my fall shoots!). You may remember Anna & Bence from our photos back in the spring.  They were just as fun and photogenic this time! I really do love this family, we just hang out, play around and I can capture everyone just being themselves.  Here are some pictures from the shoot, if you want to see more, check out the slideshow here.

In the meantime, I’ll be on the lookout for some California sunshine…

Fleurish Florist is a floral design studio featuring eco-friendly, super creative designs. Owners (and sisters!) Jane and Susan only use sustainable, fair trade, and organic flowers. And they are quite crafty - can you spot the cabbage and acorns used in the arrangements below?  So cool!  If you are looking for a florist for your wedding or any other special event, these are your gals. And they were just featured in Philadelphia Magazine! 

Little side note, Jane and I were introduced through mutual friends, but after talking for a bit we realized we worked for the same architectural firm at the same time a little over a decade ago but never knew each other.  Small world. I am really looking forward to working with her this time around!