Mrs. D eats a house plant
Our quick trip to Portland last week meant we could gather a few more items to add to our Belly-Timber toolbox. Nothing too fancy or large, since we’re still dealing with the World’s Smallest KitchenTM up here, but we did manage to snag a box of plates (special Goodwill As-Is variety set!), Chopper’s pasta roller, and some much-needed illumination for food photography.
Not that we always use the much-needed illumination even when it’s much-needed, but it is nice to have it on hand in case I actually have time to set up a decent shot.
Which, mind you, isn’t often. Cooking around here typically goes like this:
“When’s dinner going to be ready?”
“Soon.”
“How soon is soon?”
“Soon enough.”
“Can you be more specific?”
“Um. Real soon.”
Then, fifteen minutes to two hours later:
“Okay, who wants the first plate?”
“Wait, let me grab my camera!”
“But, I’m hungry!”
“Just let me get one picture.”
“Just one…”
(snap)
“Wait! I’m not done yet! I need some more light!”
“We don’t have time for light. Just take the picture already. I’m starving!”
And, the results end up something like that hideously out of focus shot of fried chicken from my previous post. (Eventually, I will prevail and force my aesthetic quest upon this tiny kitchen.)
But enough of that.
This:
Is far more interesting.
It’s Cuban Oregano. Cuttings of it, to be exact, off of this big old rangy house plant I’ve been growing for the past two years. I finally cut it back, re-potted it, and packed up the clippings for our trip back north.
I first found Cuban Oregano at the Portland Nursery, and though I’d not heard of it and I’d no idea how it was used (or even if it was used at all for culinary purposes), I bought it simply because the aroma was amazing. It’s more like an intense, spicy cross between sage and marjoram than common oregano. Oddly, I’ve since seen commentary online that likens the smell to turpentine, but then I’ve also seen forum posts by gardeners and nursery owners who say they are certain Cuban Oregano is not edible, stating that it would be “odd” to eat a succulent. (Um, cactus, anyone? Aloe vera?) Apparently, they also forgot to do research into popular culinary herbs of the Caribbean.
(Then there’s the furry thing. Ew! The leaves are furry — I can’t eat that! Well, that’s never stopped anyone from eating anchovies. Actually, I take that back. It’s stopped me from eating anchovies, but that’s beside the point.)
Now, we own a Caribbean cookbook, and had we been just a wee bit more on the ball when we packed the car, we would have brought it with us from Portland. But, no dice. So, this time out, Chopper Dave opted for scampi and sauteéed vegetables, with just a little bit of Cuban Oregano added to the mix of lemon, capers, basil, and diced Roma tomato.
Yum! The herb added a zing to the dish and blended exceptionally well with the lemon. My only complaint is: next time use more!
It’s possible that Chopper Dave was being conservative, under the assumption that we’d soon run out of cuttings. Not to worry, though. These guys have been in a cup of water for a week now and not only do they look great, they’ve sprouted roots. Looks like it’s potting soil time!
April 20th, 2005 at 5:59 pm
Miz D,
I ran across Cuban oregano at a nursery today, but it didn’t look like oregano and wasn’t with the herbs so I pretty much ignored it as something misnamed. Back to the nursery.
What kind of lighting do you use when Chopper gives you time to use it? What camera are you using? What are your typical settings (if any) for food photography? Why is the sky blue? Wait, scratch that last question.
April 21st, 2005 at 8:37 am
Hey,
Waitaminit, I was sure I had the world’s smallest kitchen ?!? How many square feet you gots?
Since someone asked the author here about lighting, I can’t keep my trap shut. I use a geezer 250 watt uv balanced clamp-on flood light, a 500 watt smith/victor (old as well) spot and a handle-mount flash unit, a metz 45 CL-4. Plus a handful of reflectors to bounce light off this and that. No diffusers, yet. NO ROOM.
Biggles
April 21st, 2005 at 5:31 pm
Thanks, Doc.
April 22nd, 2005 at 5:05 pm
Kevin: If the nursery misnamed the plant and it’s actually toxic… um… I live in New York and my name is actually Bobby, yeah, that’s the ticket…
Lighting: Three par sixteens, and a coli can (which takes a standard flood light lamp). All of these are leftovers from my theater lighting days, so they aren’t really meant for photo shoots. This means the color balance sucks, and I need to do a ton of futzing in Photoshop. I’m hoping to track down some better lights sometime soon. I don’t have reflectors or anything at the moment. Our indoor set-up involves me putting the food on the table and Dave holding the lights in the air until they get too hot to hold.
Generally though, I much prefer sunlight for my lighting source and I move the food outside whenever I get the chance.
Camera: Minolta Dimage S404. (With a busted lens cap — grumble!) I use the macro almost all the time for food shots, and generally set it to multiple exposures so I can press down the shutter, click a whole bunch, and hope that one of them (at one 15th of a second) isn’t blurry. ::g:: At least that’s what I do when I’m not using the stage lights, because lemme tell you this camera sucks in low light situations!
Biggles: Ooo, I feel a challenge coming on! Though the kitchen here is in a house, it’s more like the sort of kitchen one would find in a studio apartment. It’s an alcove, only separated from the dining area by the counter that includes food storage and the stove. The actual amount of floor space within this alcove? About 4 feet by 5 feet. Put two people in there working, then bring in a third to open the fridge door and all hell breaks loose! :-)
April 23rd, 2005 at 7:07 am
Miz D,
> Lighting:
Thanks.
> This means the color balance sucks, and I need to do a ton of futzing in Photoshop.
Me too.
>I use the macro almost all the time for food shots
That really does make a huge difference. I need to check into that white setting thing next.
Kevin
April 26th, 2005 at 3:00 pm
Mrs. D,
Dang, I think you got me beat by only a few feet. Not enough room for 2 people to do any real cooking. Although I do have two prep stations set up, it could work.
Any chance of setting your own white balance in your camera using an 18% grey card with those fancy theatre lighting rigs? It might help.
15th/sec? Yeah, that’s getting down there. I can hand hold my film rig with the motor drive down to that. Even a bit slower. But I don’t bother, the tripod makes it so much easier to get things done.
I only do a few things in Photoshop, resizing being the main one. Jack the contrast, maybe a little levels, then a touch of red. I used to do a lot more, but spent many hours with my flippen manual, online forums and playing with the settings. Still, the toughest part is White Balance. Getting those white plates white can be a battle.
Biggles
April 27th, 2005 at 8:32 pm
Hey Biggles,
Yeah, I should look into a card for white balance. My photographic training (such as it is) is all in 35mm & 16mm film, and is mostly in B&W, so I’m not nearly as savvy dealing with video & digital. I don’t know if I can find any more gear around these parts, but perhaps I’ll take a trip to Camera World next time I’m in Portland.
A working tripod would be a good thing too. Mine’s been non-functional for years, and, well, my hands aren’t that steady!
Meantime though… All hail sunny days and the mighty daylight savings time! Outdoor food photos till 9pm. That works for me.