Changing Plates

We have quite a few new projects boiling in the FHC kitchen. One of which will be portion control cooking. The camera, as always, is poised in the kitchen. The cabinets are filled with a variety of "dish singles" - meaning dishes that are great for photos - but there are only one of them! And seeing how the summer usually means great dish bargains in stores, I decided to hunt for new additions.I elected to purchase a new set of everyday dishes. The old set was getting tired - it had a lot of chips and the dishes were just too big for the cabinet and the dishwasher and the portion control project. Which prompted some dish research. What type? What colors? What sizes?I decided on getting a variety of smaller plates - sort of Mediterranean style. Bye bye big dinner plate:Hello smaller plates:dinnerplatesmall platesmall plate #1With smaller plates, you are encouraged to serve yourself less food. They fit in the dishwasher and cabinets easier. And they are fun to mix and match. Thanks to Williams and Sonoma having an 85% off sale, these beautiful imports were comparable to Walmart pricing.The bowls were downsized as well. To illustrate that point, I loaded them with a sugar-frosted, sugar-flavored cereal that we don't eat that is left over from a photo assignment that adds color and effect to the picture.Bye bye bigger bowl:big cereal bowlSmaller new bowl:small cereal bowlEach bowl contains exactly one cup of cereal. Look how the cup of cereal appears larger in the smaller white bowl. Smaller bowls just make good sense!The smaller bowls are also great for serving and storing ready-to-eat fruit:cherriesThere is one very large pasta bowl I bought in WS. I pictured the most gorgeous large entree salad in my mind when I was choosing it.I also thought this bowl could double as a serving dish or a vegetarian pasta entree dish as pictured below. It made a fine dinner when paired with the chopped salad below it.large salad pasta bowlchopped saladSo, we are changing plates! More recipes and photos to come soon.

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Judy Doherty, MPS, PCII

Judy’s passion for cooking began with helping her grandmother make raisin oatmeal for breakfast. From there, she earned her first food service job at 15, was accepted to the world-famous Culinary Institute of America at 18 (where she graduated second in her class), and went on to the Fachschule Richemont in Switzerland, where she focused on pastry arts and baking. After a decade in food service for Hyatt Hotels, Judy launched Food and Health Communications to focus on flavor and health. She graduated with Summa Cum Laude distinction from Johnson and Wales University with a BS in Culinary Arts, holds a master’s degree in Food Business from the Culinary Institute of America, two art certificates from UC Berkeley Extension, and runs a food photography & motion studio where her love is creating fun recipes and content.

Judy received The Culinary Institute of America’s Pro Chef II certification, the American Culinary Federation Bronze Medal, Gold Medal, and ACF Chef of the Year. Her enthusiasm for eating nutritiously and deliciously leads her to constantly innovate and use the latest nutritional science and Dietary Guidelines to guide her creativity, from putting new twists on fajitas to adapting Italian brownies to include ingredients like toasted nuts and cooked honey. Judy’s publishing company, Food and Health Communications, is dedicated to her vision that everyone can make food that tastes as good as it is for you.

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