a workshop in france!

Guess what?

In June of 2012, I will be co-teaching a workshop in France! FRANCE!

I will be partnering with Susan Hermann Loomis, an award-winning journalist and cookbook author, for a 3-day cooking and photography class.

Susan lives in a restored 15th-century convent in the small town of Louviers in Normandy, which is where the classes will take place.

As Susan says, "During this three day class you will cook with me and photograph with Clare. You will learn the fine points of both arts, and you will leave equipped to prepare gorgeous meals, take gorgeous photographs, and put them together in your own individual way. Our three days together will include hands-on cooking classes, meals accompanied by small-production wines and artisanally made cheeses, hands-on photography sessions where you will learn techniques, and tips and secrets."

We will cover natural light food photography, including exposure, utilizing available light, composition, and prop styling. We will capture a sense and place and tell a story with photographs as we visit the local market, learn how to choose ingredients, bring them into the kitchen and turn them into gorgeous dishes. We will view and critique our photographs, discussing what we've created, learned, and expect to continue in our photography.

When: June 25-28, 2012

Cost: 1800 euros

If you are interested, go to this page to register.

photo by Stacey Haines

(reminder about) new food photography class

A number of workshop attendees have asked if I could offer a class with more emphasis on food styling. You asked, and I am delivering!

On October 9th, Becky Selengut and I will team up again to teach a class that focuses on food and prop styling, as well as natural light food photography. Students will have lots of time to play with dishes and linens, (have you seen the wall of props in my studio??) and will learn how to make their food look its very best for the camera.

Have you already taken my Natural Light Food Photography workshop? This is a perfect continuation of that class. It's also a great intro to food photography and styling for the student who already feels comfortable with their camera.

Come join us!

We'll eat some tasty food, take some photos, and talk about each other's work. It's a great way to spend a Sunday. :)

To find out all the details, go to my website and click the "workshops" tab.

To register, email me at clare @ clarebarboza dot com.

Below are some shots that Becky and I did together (her food styling, me prop styling & shooting) for The Informed Chef. The dishes featured here are from the upcoming I-pad book, Raghavan's Indian Flavors, by Raghavan Iyer. I can attest that they were all delicious. :)

my handy assistant

Someone decided to accompany me on my shoot today.

wine, antiques, & a honeymoon reunion

Joe and I have spent the past week in one of our all-time favorite places on the planet- the California wine country. It's been absolute heaven-- wine tasting, relaxing, shopping for antiques, (aka: new props!!)

This part of the US boasts the most stunning coastline, huge Redwoods, mild weather, and a food and wine culture that is among the best in the world. While we try to visit as often as possible, this trip was something special-- we stayed at the same hotel where we spent our honeymoon 8 years ago, the incredible Applewood Inn in the Russian River Valley. I cannot recommend that place highly enough. It's wonderful.

There is far too much to share from our trip, so I thought I would make a little list of the wine highlights:

•St Supery in Napa-- one of our long-standing favorites, (we're members of their club)

•Preston Vineyards in Healdsburg-- great wine but I am particularly enthralled with their DELICIOUS olive oil

•Robert Young in the Alexander Valley-- if you like huge red wines, this is the place for you. I am currently OBSESSED with their wines. OMG.

•St. Francis in Sonoma-- their old vine Zinfandels are outstanding. In fact, everything from their Wild Oak vineyard was amazing.

•Amista Vineyards in the Dry Creek Valley-- one of our new finds! Great reds that are earthy, full-bodied and not overly-jammy...just how I like them.

•Acacia Vineyards in Napa-- hands down, my favorite producer of Pinot Noir. Of course, this is all a matter of personal opinion, but I prefer the dark fruit and earthy qualities of Pinots from the Carneros region, rather than the more fruit-forward Pinots from the Russian River Valley.

•ZD Cellars in Napa-- great Chardonnay and Pinot Noir

•Trentadue in the Alexander Valley--another new find for us. They produce a great everyday red, the Old Patch Red, which is a delicious score.

farm store

A little gem attached to the fabulous, Preston Vineyards outside of Healdsburg, California...

one of my favorite places on earth

photo of the day- 09.05.11

photo of the day- 09.02.11

wellness and food, part 3

Here is the last installment of "food my brother made." :)

(It's true, I am a proud big sister.)

In all seriousness, Sean's visit couldn't have come at a better time. For the past 3 weeks, I have been doing the elimination diet, trying to figure out if I have any food allergies or intolerances.

Sean's meals have been a welcome (and delicious) change to the dishes I was preparing day after day.

What I have discovered on this diet so far is that I don't seem to have any major food intolerances (knock on wood) but that my body is particularly sensitive to acidic foods and beverages, and that I feel my very best staying on a primarily alkaline diet. I pretty much already knew that, but it's been interesting to have it re-confirmed during this process. For example, I have cheated on the diet a few times. With my brother's visit and lots of late night talks, I re-introduced wine earlier than I should have. While I felt fine at first, I felt like hell after a couple nights of drinking. Same goes for decaf coffee-- I can tolerate it without a problem if my eating has been really clean and non-acidic, but if I do it every day, my stomach starts burning.

Since I love wine and coffee, I don't plan on eliminating them from my life completely. But I can see how I need to be extra vigilant about the rest of my diet if I want to enjoy them.

I still haven't re-introduced dairy, gluten or sugar which are huge contributors to inflammation and acid in the body, so we'll see how I feel when I eat them again. I have a feeling it's going to be on a very limited basis. I am okay with that, though....there are so many great alternatives!

Oh, before I forget, Sean just started a blog where he'll be sharing some of the recipes I have been talking about. You can see that here.

Anyway, here is what we had last night....

salmon ceviche with avocado

zucchini "pasta" with kalamatas and tomatoes three ways (sundried, roasted & fresh)

coconut milk custard with cardamom

raw corn salad with toasted cashews

photo of the day- 09.01.11

wellness and food, part 2

Just had to share two more dishes that Sean made last night.

The fresh rolls were delicious but the real winner was the marinated zucchini "noodles" with sundried and cherry tomatoes, broccoli, and a hint of truffle oil. YUM.