7 Simple Tips to Elevate Your Food Photography

(And yes, your smart phone is perfectly fine!)

An illustration of a window-lit shot, with soft natural light. Photos by Linda Wang.

By Linda Wang, special to Edible DC

As you scroll through your Instagram feed, you can’t help but drool over all the food photos (ok, food porn) that looks perfectly lit, perfectly styled and amazingly appetizing.

Then you flip back to your own feed. Cringe. Remembering your recent meals as being delicious and beautiful affairs, but your own photos are only meh. You think to yourself, “How in the world do other people make their food look so good?” As you close your Instagram account, you reach for a doughnut (they are really popular on Instagram!) and stuff your sorrows.

Sound familiar? The good news is that you can take food photos that make your followers drool. And you don’t even need a fancy camera and studio lighting to get that perfect shot. Your smart phone plus natural light are your two main ingredients for success.

After that, lots of practice needed. Here are a few simple tips to help get you started:

Look for the light. One of the biggest mistakes budding food photographers make in shooting food is that they see the food, but they don’t see the light. Train your eye to see how light and shadows shape the food and give it texture. I recommend you always try to shoot next to a window, because you will get soft directional light.

Look for interesting patterns. There’s something about a pattern that’s particularly pleasing. Even more visually gripping is when you interrupt a pattern’s continuity. Look for interesting food patterns wherever you are, from the farmer’s market, to catered events, to what’s on your plate, and capture the continuity (or discontinuity). If you love the image you’ve created, chances are good that your followers will, too.   

Seek out colors that pop. Nothing draws the eye like a splash of color. Take advantage of food’s natural beauty, look for colors that stand out and will make your followers stop scrolling and indulge their senses. This is also where you can showcase fancy food styling from great restaurant plating, including use of unusual garnishes.

Simplify your photos; make an impact. Less is more, and that’s often the case in food photography. If you find some beautiful produce or bake a glorious cake, let it stand on its own. Your audience shouldn’t have to guess what you’re photographing. Give them a taste, let them savor the moment, and leave the rest up to their imagination.

Start a collection of props and backgrounds. In food photography, props and backgrounds can be your best friends. Look for interesting props at antique shops, discount stores like HomeGoods and TJ Maxx, souvenir shops where you’re vacationing, and other places and start building your collection. Also look for backgrounds that fit your aesthetic. Stores like Home Depot and Lowes sell large floor tiles that can make for great backgrounds. You can even get vinyl floor tiles, which are light and easy to carry around. And if you’re feeling really ambitious, you can get a wooden board and paint it yourself.   

Get creative. Rules are made to be broken. Try something different, take a chance, and post a photo you think might be too avante garde, and see what happens. You just might be pleasantly surprised at the reaction you get from your audience. And be prepared if they want more. 

Before Editing…

…And after. notice how much better the second picture looks. brighter, colors more intense - a more appealing shot overall.

Edit your photos. Editing your photos can make a world of difference when it comes to food photography. And I’m not talking about downloading your photos and importing them into Photoshop. Smart phones have come a long way, and photo editing can be as simple as a few taps. One of my favorite smart phone editing apps is PicTapGo. The app costs $4.99 but is well worth the investment in the filters it offers. You can also crop your photos in the app. Another editing app I often use is Snapseed. I love the healing brush, which allows you to remove any stray objects in your image. 

Now that you’re armed with these tips, we challenge you to practice your food porn and tag your photos with #edibledc. We want to see your work. Make us drool.  

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Linda Wang

Linda Wang is a DC-based magazine editor and professional wedding photographer. Originally from Chicago, Wang moved Washington, D.C., in 2001. Her father is an organic chemist, her mother is an artist, and Wang describes her photography as expressing the blend of her genes, combining creative photojournalism with clean, artistic compositions. You can find out more about her work at www.lindawangphotography.co

Edible Holiday Reads

Gifts to Make Anyone Happy: New Books from Local Chefs & Bakers

Searching for a great gift? You can show off local super-star writers and recipe creators with pride this year. (Plus, books are easy to wrap!) These engaging reads will earn a place on any food lover’s shelf. Written by masters of their craft, any of these will make you proud that this talented group calls the DMV home.

The Red Truck Bakery Cookbook by Brian Noyes and Nevin Martell ($25)

This cookbook has been a long time coming for the devoted fans of this popular Virginia bakery loved by locals and the elite (think President Obama and Andrew Zimmern). This gorgeously produced book will make any baker you know happy. Noyes and Martell present 85 recipes that include “secrets of biscuit-making,” sweet and savory pies, cakes, breads and condiments. And President Obama’s favorite sweet potato pecan pie with bourbon. An even better idea? Go to one of Red Truck’s bakeries in Warrenton or Marshall, pick up a signed copy of the book and get some of Noyes’ deservedly famous granola while you’re there.

Buttermilk Graffiti by Edward Lee, $27.50

A chef who was a literature major (and magna cum laude no less) bring chops to his kitchens in DC (Succotash) and in Louisville and, once again, to the page. This book is a reflection of Chef Eddie’s deep dive into immigrant communities and explores how the inhabitants, some new to the U.S. and others here for decades, cook and use food to tell their stories and remain connected to their home culture. It’s a great romp of a read with humor, poignancy and—for people who love food—a page turner as you find yourself wanting more and thinking about the characters you meet in Houston, Lowell, Montgomery and Brighton Beach. This may not be a cookbook per se, but each chapter ends with recipes that were part of the story he weaves.

Pie Squared, Irresistibly Easy Sweet & Savory Slab Pies by Cathy Barrow, $28

This book by blogger Cathy Barrow (that’s Mrs. Wheelbarrow to you) is a guaranteed gift win for a home cook. How many times do you wonder what to bring to a potluck dinner with family and friends? Wonder no more. Now you will be on your A game, whether you make a dessert or a main course. The fabulous Mrs. Wheelbarrow has you covered with 75 recipes ranging from Spinach, Gorgonzola and Walnut Slab Pie and Curried Chicken Slab Pie to Sour Cream Peach Melba Slab Pie and Grande Mocha Cappuccino Slab Pie. All made in a sheet pan and designed to serve a crowd. Hungry? We thought so. You’ll probably need more than one copy: one for you, one to give. Get in early on the slab pie trend, you’ll be glad you did.

The New Chesapeake Kitchen by John Shields, $26.95

Like us, you may already be a fan of John Shields, celebrated chef, restaurateur, PBS cooking show talent and all-around nice guy in Baltimore, one of the original champions of Chesapeake Bay regional cuisine. If not, now is the time to pick up his latest book, The New Chesapeake Kitchen, the perfect gift for lovers of all things Chesapeake. John Shields takes a 21st century look at what grows, swims or grazes in the Chesapeake Bay’s watershed, with recipes that take local produce and proteins and instruct how to prepare it all simply and memorably. The approach here is “Bay- and body-friendly food” with a focus on encouraging a plant-forward and sustainable diet, one that takes into account how the food choices you make affect your health and the environment. Find innovative takes on Chesapeake classics, as well as many vegan and vegetarian options: from Aunt Bessie’s Crab Pudding to “I Can’t Believe It’s Not Crab” Cakes—even recipes for a locavore cocktail party. Added plus: It’s gorgeous, with beautiful photography from David W. Harp.

Caroline's Contribution: Tomato Soup Cake

By AJ Dronkers

This recipe for tomato soup cake is a testament to the resilience of Depression-era Americans, and makes a delicious dessert to boot.

One of my life’s great fortunes was that I knew my great-grandmother, Caroline. She was a part of my life until I was 12 years old, and in my earliest recollections I remember sharing a real connection with her instantly. She performed and sang live on radio back in the early days. When I knew her as young boy, she lived in a house with an overflowing teddy bear collection, lugging around an oxygen machine through rooms that, of course, smelled of cigarette smoke.

So even though she grappled with the setbacks of age and bad health, Caroline was incredibly upbeat. We sat side-by-side on the piano bench while she played and sang, breathless by the end. She would make drinks with her vintage stirrers (I was obsessed!) from Vegas, offer me treats from her ceramic cookie jar and make delicious spaghetti dinners. I felt incredibly special when she made ice cream cones, taking particular care to stuff the ice cream all the way to the base of the cone so every last bite was just perfect.

Caroline lived through the Great Depression and knew how to make a little go a long way. She also passed down a recipe to my grandmother and my mother for Tomato Soup Cake. Disclaimer: I usually don’t tell people the name when I serve it so they keep an open mind. This Depression-era recipe essentially tastes like a delicious spice cake with the benefit of only needing a little butter. Lacking other hard-to-find ingredients like eggs and milk that were often short in supply back then, tomato soup offers the moisture this cake needs. There have been many iterations of this recipe over the years and, at one point, cream cheese frosting was introduced as a topper, which is how I like to serve it.

Mix the ingredients and use a 9- by 13-inch pan for a sheet cake, or use 2 (8-inch) rounds and stack them.

Tomato Soup Cake

• 2 cups sugar

• 2 tablespoons butter, softened

• 2 (10½-ounce) cans of 10.5 Campbell’s Condensed Tomato Soup

• 3 cups all-purpose flour

• 2 teaspoons baking soda

• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

• 2 teaspoons ground nutmeg

• 2 pinches cloves

• 1 cup raisins

• 1 cup walnuts, chopped

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Prepare baking pan(s) with butter and flour, or spray with nonstick product.

Mix together sugar and butter first then add soup until butter is dissolved; set aside. Mix together all dry ingredients: flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves. Add the raisins and walnuts.

Add the soup mixture to the flour mixture, stirring by hand till everything is mixed together. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan.

Depending on the size of the pan, bake for 40 minutes to an hour, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.

Cream Cheese Frosting

• 8 ounces cream cheese, softened

• 1 tablespoon whole milk, and more as needed

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

• 16 ounces confectioners’ sugar

Beat the cream cheese with the milk and extract in a medium bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed until creamy. Slowly beat in the confectioners’ sugar until the frosting has the desired consistency. The icing needs to be stiff, so my tip is to only use 1 tablespoon of milk to start and then add more as needed.

Sweden's Ambassador of Cuisine

By Susan Able, Photography by Nicole Crowder

Chef Frida Johansson, the Executive Chef to the Ambassador of Sweden to the U.S., makes holiday saffron buns.

The life of an embassy chef is a busy one. Just ask Chef Frida Johansson, the Executive Chef to the Ambassador of Sweden to the United States. We meet Frida where she spends her working hours: the kitchen in the residence of Ambassador Karin Olofsdotter, Sweden’s first female ambassador to the United States.

As I arrive, Chef Frida is prepping dessert, a white chocolate cheesecake with cloudberry sorbet. On the stove is the main course, a Swedish crawfish soup, where stock made with crawfish shells that have been roasted and torched with cognac is bubbling away; cream and crawfish meat will be added in before serving. Just another dinner at the Residence, that night for 16. She cooks for parties for two to 500; it varies week to week, and with big events it totals over 7,000 people a year. She laughs as she tells me, “You gotta remember that I’m only one person.”

Even in mid-October, Frida was already well underway with plans for her biggest party of the year, the St. Lucia’s Day celebration held at House of Sweden in Georgetown. And since Chef Frida has raised the bar on herself for this already popular event, she is committed to making each year even more magical and exciting than the ones before.

The 32-year-old culinary powerhouse tells me she is from a “super super small place in western Sweden, about 70 kilometers outside Gothenburg,” and decided to go to culinary school after thinking about fashion design. Her creative expressions are as strong as her chops in the kitchen and she tells me, “What is important to me is putting my signature on every dish from Sweden, taking something traditional and making it modern, or giving it something unexpected.”

Equally unexpected was her journey to the Embassy and the United States. Frida worked abroad after graduation, including a stint cooking in New Zealand. She returned home to Sweden for a month, only to be involved in a near-fatal car accident which required extensive recovery, waylaying other plans.

Frida laughs, “It was the right place at the right time. Because of the accident, I ended up staying in Sweden, cooking for a very well-known chef who was good friends with an even better-known chef, Leif Mannerström. The Ambassador [then-Ambassador Jonas Hafström] was friends with Chef Leif, and he recommended me from knowing my work. They trusted his opinion and hired me. I came to the U.S. in 2010 to spend what I thought would be one exciting year. As you see, it is now eight and a half years later.”

“I’ve stayed because I love my job. It is up to me to be creative, to come up with new ideas and try them. Obviously, I also like living in DC; this is such an interesting multicultural city. I take very seriously that I have a great opportunity to represent Sweden and Swedish cuisine. People think Swedish food and think ‘meatballs at IKEA,’ that is all that we have. But it is not. Our day-to-day food culture is so fabulous and healthy—the Nordic diet is just a healthy way of eating. Vegetables and lean protein, the way you should be eating. Sustainability is big for us and eating seasonally is just something we do. The winter for me means root vegetables and game, winter seafood.”

Frida talks about ingredients too. I taste a cloudberry marinating in a spiked punch; it looks like a golden raspberry but tastes so different. She explains, “I use things like produce and meats produced locally here all the time, but there are certain things that are only in Sweden, like cloudberries, tiny North Sea shrimp, sea buckthorn, crawfish, wild Norwegian salmon, and herring. These are things I have to bring over, mainly for the big holidays or in season, because they define our cuisine. For a Swede, what is a party without pickled herring?”

Frida’s saffron buns make for an excellent shareable dessert.

Frida’s Saffron Buns
By Frida Johansson

Your journey to the world’s most delicious saffron buns starts the day before you actually put them in the oven by letting the saffron infuse the milk you will use in the sponge. This is my take on a traditional holiday bun that everybody makes at home and you will love it. Our cuisine has been very influenced by international trade for centuries, so that is why you will see spices from the Silk Road and Asia in our food like saffron, cardamom, ginger, and cinnamon.

Makes 40 buns.

Ingredients

Sponge

2⅛ cups milk
¼ cup fresh yeast
1.2 grams saffron (1 hearty pinch or 1 packet)
520 grams all-purpose flour (3.6 cups)

Dough

10½ tablespoons butter, at room temperature
¾ and 2 tablespoons sugar
2 grams salt (2 hearty pinches)
320 grams all-purpose flour (2.3 cups)

Almond filling

300 grams almond paste
2½ tablespoons sugar
1 vanilla bean OR 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
9 tablespoons butter, at room temperature

Topping

1 egg
1 tablespoon water
1 pinch salt
Sliced almonds
Swedish pearl sugar, available at Whole Foods (or regular sugar)

Instructions

Start with ¼ cup of milk, warming it gently without reaching a simmer. Add the saffron and let it infuse the milk for about 15 minutes. Then add the rest of the milk and put it in the fridge overnight, or for at least 12 hours.

The next day, warm up the milk to body temperature and dissolve the yeast into it. Add the flour and mix. Once it comes together, knead the dough for 5 minutes. Let it rest, covered by a dish towel, for about 15–20 minutes. If you are mixing with a stand mixer, you will want to use the dough hook for this. If you are mixing by hand, consider this recipe to be your cardio for the day!

Once the sponge has rested, add the ingredients listed under the “dough” section: butter, sugar, salt and more flour. Knead or mix until the dough is smooth, glossy and starts to release any hard edges. If you are kneading by hand, just keeping kneading until you can’t do it anymore!

Let the dough rest under a dish towel again for about 20–30 minutes.

While the dough rests, prepare the filling. Mix the almond paste with sugar and vanilla sugar. Add the butter gradually until you have a smooth and fully combined filling. Don’t forget that the butter needs to be room temperature.

Roll out the dough in a large rectangle on a lightly floured surface. It should be about 18  by 27 inches, and about .2 inch thick (half a centimeter). That’s about the size of a full-size sheet pan, for reference. Spread the filling evenly over the dough, all the way to the edges.

Now it’s time to knot your saffron buns. Step one: Looking at the rectangle of dough and filling in front of you, grasp the top edge of the dough and fold it toward you, so that you have a long, skinny rectangle in front of you. Try to fold it as smoothly as you can, with the edges from the top layer of dough matching the edges on the bottom. 

Step two: Cut the folded dough into long skinny strands about 1½ inches wide. You can cut the strips with a knife, a pizza cutter or scissors. 

Step three: Imagine you’re playing rock, paper, scissors. Make the “scissors” with your non-dominant hand, and then wrap a strand of dough around your 2 fingers twice. Then tie the dough into a loose knot by wrapping the dough around the middle of the loops you just created and tucking the middle into a loop. Overall, this action will remind you of wrapping up a pair of headphones.

Wrap the strips of dough around two of your fingers as though they were a pair of headphones.

Repeat with the rest of your dough pieces, placing each knot onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Once you’ve finished making all of your knots, cover the buns with a dish towel and let them rise for about 1–2 hours.  

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Now that your buns have risen, beat the egg with the water and salt to make an egg wash and brush each bun with it. Sprinkle the sliced almonds and pearl sugar over the buns. Bake 13–15 minutes, or until your saffron buns are golden brown. Alternately, bake without the topping, let cool, then brush with melted butter and dip in sugar.

Spices & Cultural Traditions Blend at Yuletide

We’re sharing some of our favorite holiday recipes from around the world

From the staff of The Spice & Tea Exchange® of Alexandria, sponsored

Borscht is a traditional Christmas Eve dish in Poland. Gorgeous red color from beets makes this soup a very festive course. Spice & Tea has all the ingredients to make a spectacular soup.

This year, we’ve been reflecting on our extended family’s diversity and how each of us has brought our own tradition to the larger group, changing the way we celebrate and what we look forward to eating. The holiday season is such a time of tradition and ritual, yet we’ve welcomed new cultures and cusines to our table and have made them our own. Whether you always share turkey and dressing, or never miss making a Christmas Eve favorite, the holiday recipes you prepare each year are a piece of your history and family legacy…the blending of these traditions around the table is what makes the season so incredibly memorable!

Shannon Rene, a retail associate at Spice & Tea of Alexandria, came to loving the richness of spices and her work at Spice & Tea naturally—her father is Creole and from Louisiana, her mother is from Ireland. Shannon’s father was in the Army and they traveled worldwide on his assignments. Her parent’s native cuisines could not have been more different, but they loved to host holiday gatherings.

Shannon Rene, a salesperson at Spice & Tea of Alexandria holds one of her favorite holiday items—sweet and spicy cocoa mixes. Her father is from Lousiana and is Creole, her mother is from Ireland—Shannon’s love of the holidays and spices comes from growing up with blended traditions in the kitchen. Photo by Edible DC.

She says, “Cooking for the holidays was always an all day affair. I remember waking up and my first smells were a boiling ham, and then roast turkey with garlic, thyme, carrots, and onions roasting in the oven. Of course, being an Irish tradition and a must-have holiday dish, there would be several potato dishes because it was the holidays and everyone had a different favorite. This included butter-roasted, garlic mashed or my favorite-home fries with garlic, onion and paprika.

”Then, with what always seemed like magical timing, Army friends would start to arrive bringing with them the holiday foods that they had grown up with, such as bulgogi or tamales. These joined all of our dishes and there was no available space left on the kitchen counters. As the main meal came out of the oven in went dessert, one pecan pie and my Nan’s apple tart.”

In the that spirit of community and embracing diversity, we’re sharing a few of our favorite holiday recipes from around the world with some backstory on each, a link to the recipe and the ingredients you can find at our store to make it complete!

Polish Borscht (Barszcz)

While borscht (a hearty soup made of red beets pictured above) recipes vary across Europe, Polish adaptations have a distinctive and vibrant red hue. Polish borscht is often served as a broth soup during the first course of a Christmas Eve meal over uszka (porcini dumplings) or potatoes. For a heartier winter dish, vegetables are left in to add “meat” to this traditionally vegetarian dish. Onion, garlic, celery and carrots are a few other vegetables that add flavor to this Polish version of Borscht.

Coquito!

Coquito Eggnog

Coquito in Spanish means “little coconut,” which is the highlight of this Puerto Rican eggnog. Often given as a gift, sweet and spiced coquito is a party favorite and decadent Spanish holiday tradition and also for the New Year.

However, coquito isn’t just for the holiday season. It can be consumed any time of year and is celebrated as a signature rum beverage in Puerto Rico, alongside famous Puerto Rican moonshine, pitorro. While coquito begins with the same ingredients, unique and different recipes can be found throughout Puerto Rico and the Caribbean as families perfect their “secret recipes” to share with friends and loved ones.

A German tradition, these homey and humble cakes are almost like large, soft cookies and redolent of warm spices.

Lebkuchen

German Lubkuchen (Elisenlebkuchen) is well known around the world as a traditional holiday dessert. Featuring honey and molasses, warm spices and candied fruit, this one-of-a-kind treat harkens back to the spice trade and “honey cakes” commonly enjoyed in monasteries as early as the Middle Ages. Often served with a strong beer, Lebkuchen also took the name of “pepper cakes,” as it was common to include all of your finest “peppers” (then an all-encompassing term used for spices that helped digestion).

Cooking spiced meatballs in a tagine is both a flavorful and colorful way to ring in the winter holidays.

Spiced Lamb Meatballs

Spiced Lamb Meatballs from Spice & Tea, are inspired by the blended Jewish traditions of Morocco, North Africa, and Arabic cultures. The presence of parsley, cinnamon, Baharat and ginger gives this dish a strong, authentic North African accent. Serve with warm couscous and naan bread.

Many North African dishes can be prepared in a traditional tagine to cook low and slow (shown in our recipe image). The holes in the tagine serve to release steam during the cooking process. Dishes can also be served in a tagine to add a beautiful display to the dinner table!

Korean families have gathered around a traditional table at holidays for hundreds of years, and bulgogi is a popular favorite.

Korean Beef Bulgogi

Bulgogi, a classic Korean grilled beef, is easy to make and traditionally made for sharing and gatherings. This year-round favorite makes its appearance during the holidays, as well as summertime barbecue menus. Bulgogi can be eaten over rice or wrapped in lettuce. However, it is prepared, this thinly sliced, marinated beef is a staple in any Korean cook’s repertoire.

Hot cocoa is a traditional drink at Peruvian winter holidays.

Peruvian Spiced Hot Chocolate
Spiced Hot Chocolate is the center of holiday gatherings in Peruvian culture, and stems from a long tradition of celebrating the country’s rich resource of cocoa. Made with heavy milk or “tres leches” (three types of milk), spices, and rich chocolate, it is often shared with panetón or sweet bread. Although it seems a bit strange, Christmas in Peru falls in the summer season. And while temperatures begin to rise, so does the heat on the saucepan to make this decadent beverage.

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The Spice & Tea Exchange® of Alexandria has a wide selection of seasonings for any food lover and dozens of choices for any tea enthusiast. The store offers more than 140 spices, over 80 exclusive hand-mixed blends, 20+ naturally-flavored sugars, an array of salts from around the world and more than 40 exotic teas. We focus on providing high quality products and accessories to home cooks, chefs and tea lovers in an old-world spice traders’ atmosphere.

We enjoy swapping good recipes and fun stories, so stop on by! You’ll typically find us hand-mixing our custom blends and seasonings right in the store, bagging our teas, or putting together unique gifts for our guests.

Spice & Tea Exchange, 320 King Street, Alexandria, VA 22314 | 571-312-8505

Monday - Friday, 11:00 am – 9:00 pm
Saturday, 10:00 am – 9:00 pm
Sunday, 11:00 am – 7:00 pm

Winter Around a Campfire

By Kristen Noel, photography by Jennifer Chase

Chicken with sweet potatoes and mushroom stuffing make for a fulfilling campfire meal.

In my mid-20s, I moved to Healdsburg, Calif., hardly knowing anyone and without much of a plan. Since Healdsburg sits at the point where three of Sonoma’s major wine regions meet, I thought I would try to get into the wine business.

At the time, I knew next to nothing about cooking and probably wouldn’t have known how to peel a garlic clove if you handed one to me. However, so close to the birthplace influential California cuisine, the appreciation of good food and cooking is a way of life there.

I ended up working in a bakery owned by two alumni of Chez Panisse and was fortunate to be introduced to a group of friends who cooked together often. I experienced the power of coming together around food, creating deeper connections and an improvement in our overall well-being. It made me fall madly in love with cooking, which forever changed the course of my life.

After attending culinary school in Portland, Ore., I came back home to Washington, DC, where I met my wife, Miranda. One of the first things we bonded over was our shared love of nature. We have a tradition of visiting a new national park every year, and we try to get out of the city for weekend “adventures” in the Shenandoah Valley at least every couple of months.

In the winter, we opt for the cozy cabins at Getaway in Stanardsville, Va. It’s set up like a campground, but you get to stay in the coolest tiny house that you won’t ever want to leave—think Scandinavian minimalism meets rustic log cabin. The comfy queen-size beds are next to a large window looking out into the woods. Each cabin comes with its own fire pit and everything you need for a campfire, including firewood. Inside there is a small kitchen with a couple of burners, a sink and a mini-fridge.

I wanted to bring my new friends in DC together around a meal like I had experienced in California. And what better way to do so than to host a feast by campfire? People have been gathering around fires since the beginning of time. So we invited a few friends along with us to Getaway for campfire feast.

I came up with a seasonal menu that would work for any holiday dinner, while taking flavor inspiration from the aromatic, earthy woods our region is known for. The dishes all have lots of woody herbs and I found a way to include local wild mushrooms.

Rainbow carrots and sweet potatoes add a splash of color to this roast chicken.

Since the campfire can be fickle, I didn’t want to risk everyone having to wait up all night for a turkey to cook. So, I opted for a Dutch-oven roast chicken, with sweet potatoes, carrots and fennel to be served on the side. Inside the chicken was a wild mushroom duxelles stuffing to complete three dishes in one pot. Alongside the Dutch-oven chicken, potatoes au gratin with rosemary cooked in a cast-iron pan with a lid. I also prepared a simple salad of winter greens and garlic chives with an herbed lemon vinaigrette to balance out all the heavy food.

To drink around the fire, I had a hot apple cider with cinnamon and some apple mint that I found at the farmers market the day before. Adults could add their own splash of bourbon to the cider, so our friends’ children could enjoy it too.

And, the next morning, cinnamon rolls were cooked in cast iron over the fire, then topped with cream cheese frosting.

I love cooking over a campfire because, just like camping, it allows you to unplug. In this case, from the controlled environment of the kitchen. Without temperature dials and timers, you have permission to let go of perfectionism and rely on your intuition and senses.

Sure, your food may not come out precisely evenly cooked. You might burn something or have to throw an undercooked piece of meat back on the fire. But I guarantee everyone will happily eat what you serve. There is something deeply satisfying about coming together around a campfire to enjoy a good meal.

A maple marinade helps this roast chicken achieve fantastic flavor and color.

Dutch-Oven Roast Chicken with Sweet Potatoes

Serves 6

This Dutch-Oven Roast Chicken can be a full meal in a one pot. The maple syrup marinade drips down into the sweet potatoes and carrots, gently enhancing their natural sweetness, and the juices from the chicken are absorbed by the vegetables making them moist and savory. It’s really an easy dish to pull off on a campfire with the right equipment (a cast-iron Dutch oven with a lid, charcoal and a shovel for placing the coals). When I do this dish for a campfire, I marinate the chicken the day before we leave. Then I transport it in a cooler, wrapped tightly in plastic wrap and sealed in a zip-top bag. If you opt to do the wild mushroom duxelle stuffing, you practically have a entire fantastic meal in one Dutch oven.

Ingredients

1 (5-pound) chicken
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons butter

Marinade
3 tablespoons maple syrup
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons kosher salt
2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon minced thyme

Vegetables

3 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into large dice
1 large fennel bulb, julienned
1 bunch rainbow carrots, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces
1 pound pearl onions, peeled
6 to 8 sprigs fresh thyme
4 to 6 sprigs fresh rosemary
Zest of 1 lemon
Olive oil to drizzle
Kosher salt to taste

Whisk together all the ingredients for the marinade in a small bowl. Pat dry the chicken and brush it all over with the marinade, pouring any remaining marinade over it. Seal the chicken in a plastic bag or tightly lidded container and marinate in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours.

About an hour before cooking, remove the chicken from the refrigerator and its container and pat dry. Set it on a plate and allow to come to room temperature.

When ready to cook, completely pat dry the chicken once more and stuff the cavity with the Wild Mushroom Duxulles Stuffing (if you are making it). Tie the legs together with kitchen twine to seal in the stuffing.

If cooking this at home, preheat oven to 450°F.

Heat an 8- or 12-inch Dutch oven until very hot but not smoking (if cooking on the campfire, you’ll want to put about 11 hot coals under the Dutch oven). Add the 2 tablespoons olive oil and 2 tablespoons butter. When the oil has heated and the butter has melted, place the chicken in breast side down. Sear until the breast is golden brown, about 4 to 6 minutes.

Carefully flip the chicken over. Put the lid on the Dutch oven and roast at 450°F for 30 minutes (for cooking on the campfire, spread about 20 coals on top of the lid of the Dutch oven).

Meanwhile, toss the sweet potatoes, fennel, carrots and onions with olive oil, salt and the lemon zest in a large bowl. Mix well to make sure all the veggies are coated in the oil and seasonings.

After 30 minutes, remove the lid from the Dutch oven and arrange the vegetables around the chicken. Place around the thyme and rosemary sprigs.

Replace the lid (and place the coals back on top for campfire cooking). Cook for about another 30 minutes, until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165°F and all the vegetables are cooked through. Let the chicken rest for at least 15 minutes before carving.

Wild mushrooms add flavor and depth to a traditional sage-centric stuffing.

Wild Mushroom Duxelles Stuffing

Enough to stuff 1 chicken

This stuffing borrows from the classic French savory pastry filling duxelles, which is typically a cooked mixture of mushrooms, shallots and herbs. The wild mushrooms make it absolutely delicious, and the sage brings in a familiar taste most of us are used to in stuffing. I recommend cooking it inside the chicken because the flavor from the roasting juices moistening it are unparalleled.

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil
½ pound wild mushrooms such as oyster, chanterelles, lion’s mane or morels, roughly chopped
¼ cup minced shallots
3 cloves garlic, minced
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
½ loaf crusty bread, cut into large dice
½ cup minced flat-leaf parsley
1 tablespoon sage, sliced thin horizontally
Chicken stock, if making on the stovetop

Heat a large sauté pan over medium-high heat and add the olive oil. When the olive oil heats up, add the mushrooms and stir to spread throughout the pan.

When the mushrooms begin to brown, add the shallots and garlic. Season with a pinch of salt and stir; cook until the mushrooms are completely browned and the shallots and garlic have softened.

Scrape the mushroom mixture into a medium bowl. Add the bread, parsley and sage and mix to combine. Stuff the cavity of the chicken with the stuffing. 

Alternatively, add the bread, parsley and sage into the pan with the mushroom mixture and moisten with about ½–1 cup chicken stock. Cook until hot.

Lemon and rosemary brighten this classic French gratin.

Potatoes au Gratin with Rosemary

Serves 6 (fits an 8-inch cast-iron pan)

I had to include this potatoes au gratin recipe because it is my wife, Miranda’s, favorite. It has the flavor of a classic French gratin with butter, cream and gruyere cheese. The addition of lemon zest brings a little brightness to it, and the rosemary gives it an earthy aroma reminiscent of a walk in the woods.

Ingredients

1 cup milk
1 cup heavy cream
3 tablespoons butter, plus more to butter the cast iron
1 bay leaf
Kosher salt, to taste
1 clove garlic, peeled and cut in half
1 pound russet potatoes, peeled and sliced very thin
1 tablespoon minced rosemary
Zest of 1 lemon
1 cup grated gruyere cheese

If making this at home, pre-heat oven to 425°F.

Combine the milk, heavy cream, butter, bay leaf and a generous pinch of salt in a small saucepan. Slowly bring to a boil, keeping an eye on it so it doesn’t boil over. (If you are tent-camping, you will need to use a camp stove or portable burner for this.) 

Thoroughly butter an 8-inch cast-iron pan and run the cut sides of the garlic clove all around the pan to impart a garlic flavor. Arrange the potato slices in the pan, season with salt and sprinkle the rosemary and lemon zest all around.

When the milks come to a boil, remove the bay leaf and pour on top of the potatoes. If you are making it a home, place the pan into the oven and roast for 40 to 45 minutes. (If you are cooking it on a campfire, cover the cast iron with a lid and set on a grill grate over hot coals. Spread about 14 hot coals around the lid and roast for 40 to 45 minutes.)

Once it begins to brown on top, remove from the oven and top with the gruyere cheese. Return to the oven and cook for about 10 minutes more until the cheese melts and browns. (For cooking it on a campfire, carefully remove the lid and sprinkle on the gruyere cheese. Replace the lid and cook for about another 10 minutes, until the cheese melts.

Be sure to check out a campfire cinnamon roll recipe here.