covers!

happy friday! just a quick hello and some new work. july/august Food Network Magazine is on newsstands now and Andrew shot it with our friend, prop stylist, Paige Hicks, and Rebecca Jurkevich styled the food.
we're excited to watch some baseball and cheer on the angels this weekend while they're in town to play the yankees. also looking forward to seeing these guys and this guy play a free show in our hood on saturday afternoon.
have a great weekend everyone!

summer tart

with such an early hot summer this year, the tomatoes at the market have already been full of delicious flavor! here's a simple tomato tart that makes a great lunch or dinner with some fresh greens on the side and a cold glass of white wine.

lots of new work to share with you soon. we've both been busy working for great clients like People, Food Network, Reader's Digest, La Cucina Italiana and more. we'll post some pics later this week but check out the july/aug Food Network mag for Andrew's cover and a beautiful feature on cherries! also check out both of our websites that have been recently updated with new work & tears.

are you on Instagram yet? both of us are and so are lots of other big leo artists - we love sharing behind the scenes, studio views, pretty props and of course lots of food! hoping to escape the city heat soon & really looking forward to this at the end of the month.

have a great week!

Roasted Tomato Tart
serves 4

4 medium roma tomatoes, halved
3 medium kumamoto tomatoes, halved
4 small vine ripened tomatoes, halved
4 tbs olive oil
1 sprig thyme
salt & pepper, plus more for garnish

12 oz all butter puff pastry

2 large eggs, beaten
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup crumbled goat cheese
4 cloves roasted garlic, smashed into a paste
1 teaspoon kosher salt
12 cherry or yellow pear tomatoes, halved

preheat oven to 350 degrees F. combine tomatoes, olive oil, thyme salt and pepper and spread out in a single layer on a large sheet pan, cut side down. roast for 45 min to 1 hour or until slightly wrinkled but not too browned.

increase oven to 400 degrees F. place puff pastry in a square false bottom tart pan and press up against the edges. prick bottom all over with a fork and fill with foil and baking beads or dried beans. blind bake for 20 minutes. remove foil and beans and return to oven for 8 to 10 more minutes.

in a bowl, combine eggs, milk, goat cheese, garlic and salt and whisk well. carefully arrange roasted tomatoes all over pre baked tart shell and add cherry or yellow pear tomatoes. pour egg mixture over and around tomatoes, filling until almost full but not covering tops of tomatoes. bake 18 to 22 minutes or until crust is golden and filling is set. let cool 15 minutes before slicing.
enjoy!

covers & stuff

just a quick hello - wanted to share andrew's new Food Network Magazine cover that's on newsstands now. check out a few other shots from the inside here and pick up a copy soon!

also excited to share some new work i did for the Williams-Sonoma summer catalog - you can see a few of the spreads here. also check out my recently updated website here!

can you believe it's almost june?! we are excited for a quick trip to Block Island, to fill our bellies at the Big Apple BBQ Block Party and for some fun work projects this month. hope you had a great memorial day weekend - summer is here!

spring!

sometimes it take a little nudge from a friend to get things going. we've been a bit absent from this space, figuring out how to balance everything - we've still been cooking and eating, just not shooting and sharing. our good friend jen, gave us that push when she asked for a guest post on her blog, nectar. check out the recipe for pea & feta crostini, our 46 & mint cocktail and a spring mix playlist here!

now that spring has sprung, we have a fresh outlook and are feeling inspired! check back soon for new posts, recipes and work.

happy new year

happy new year! we had a long overdue vacation over the holidays and spent 3 weeks with family and friends in AZ and CA. back in NYC & we feel recharged for a wonderful 2012! we had some great meals at old favorites like gulfstream, amazing fish tacos at bear flag fish co. and a great dinner in phoenix at noca.

we're working on lots of fun projects we can't wait to share and are feeling inspired by the large stack of cookbooks from our xmas list - especially excited to start cooking and baking from momofuku milk bar, off the menu, & american flavor. before looking forward, it's always good to look back as big leo did for a year of photos - we were so happy to be a part of creating many of these beautiful images over the year!

for the healthy breakfast inspiration above, andrew shot the fit to eat feature from the january 2012 issue of martha stewart living. enjoy!

apple cake

when it comes to dessert, i've always been more of a pumpkin pie (or pumpkin cheesecake) person - and eating a slice for breakfast the next morning with a cup of coffee is really the best part. lots of people have apple pie for the holidays though and it wasn't until last thanksgiving when a friend brought a delicious homemade apple pie that i finally started to understand the allure. so when we made this with apples from our apple picking adventure, i knew it would be a great thanksgiving dessert! and it tasted pretty wonderful for breakfast as well! the recipe is from this cookbook - everything we've made from it, including this, has been so delicious. happy thanksgiving!!

Apple Upside-Down Cake

serves 8 to 10

for the apple butter:

1 vanilla bean

6 apples, peeled, cored and cut into 1/2-inch pieces

juice of 1 lemon

1/4 cup apple juice

2 teaspoons freshly grated nutmeg

1/4 cup sugar

split the vanilla bean lengthwise with a pairing knife, scrape out the pulp with the back of the knife, and put the pulp and the pod in a medium saucepan. add the apples, a few drops of lemon juice, and the apple juice, nutmeg and sugar. cover and cook over medium heat until the apples are steamed and soft, 7 to 10 minutes. smash the apples with the back of a spoon until they form a sauce. cook over low heat, stirring frequently to allow the excess moisture to evaporate, for another 10 to 15 minutes. the apple butter is ready when it becomes thicker and smoother and is a rich tan color. let the apple butter cool to room temperature and remove vanilla pod.

for the caramel:

1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened

1 1/4 cups sugar

5 apples, peeled, cored and each cut into 8 wedges

preheat oven to 350 degrees F. heat a 10-inch cast iron skillet over medium heat and add butter and sugar. stir to combine as the mixture melts. cook until mixture caramelizes to a deep brown color, about 7 to 10 minutes. carefully add the apple wedges and transfer the skillet to the oven. bake 15 minutes or until apples are tender but retain their shape. remove and let cool slightly.

for the cake:

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened

1 cup light brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1 egg, beaten

1 cup all purpose flour

3/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour

cream the butter, brown sugar, salt, baking powder and nutmeg in an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. add the egg and 1 cup reserved apple butter and mix to combine. add the flours and mix just until incorporated. spread the cake batter directly over the caramel apples in the skilled and bake for 35 to 40 minutes. the cake is done when a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean. let cool slightly. place a rimmed plate that's larger than the skillet over the top and invert with towels or oven mitts. if any apples stick to the skillet, remove and put back on the cake. let cool 20 minutes before serving. enjoy!

sweet paul - finger food

have you checked out the winter issue of sweet paul magazine that came out on tuesday?! it's the biggest issue yet and full of beautiful photography and styling by all our favorite people. we got to contribute a fun story of finger foods and cocktails with some delicious treats for any holiday party!

also excited that we just picked up a few items we bought from elephant ceramics in the most recent shop update - gorgeous stuff you'll be seeing in some shots soon! finally made it to dinner here with our friend dimity and had an amazing dinner!! we are getting very excited for thanksgiving (the best food holiday of the year) - what will you be making?!

raspberry jam tartlet

seems like the fall colors are in full effect here in nyc and we've had some gorgeous warm days to wander around the city and enjoy! we've been busy working and playing so far this month - our friend ashleywas in town cooking on a yacht and we had a blast planning menus together and creating dishes in the galley. we'll be posting a few of the delicious dishes we came up with here soon - like sausage pretzel crostini and asian lobster buns! before she headed off to morocco we met for drinks at the breslin in a newly discovered cozy nook upstairs.

looking forward to the holiday issue of sweet paul magazine to come out next week! sporting these cute new toms to support movember and raise awareness for cancers affecting men. we've had 2 memorably great meals out recently - an indulgent comfort food filled dinner at the redhead and amazing pizza at Co.

hope you enjoy this cute little jam tartlet - perfect afternoon snack . . . or sweet treat for breakfast!

Jam Lattice Tartlets

makes 4

3/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour

3/4 cup all purpose flour

2 tbs sugar

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup cold unsalted butter, diced

1 large egg yolk

1 tsp almond extract

2 tbs ice water

1 jar raspberry jam

confectioner's sugar, for serving

in a medium bowl, combine flours, sugar and salt and stir. add butter and using fingers or pastry cutter, work mixture until it resembles a coarse meal with some small pea-size lumps. in a small bowl, whisk together yolk, extract and water and add to flour mixture. stir just until dough comes together and forms a ball. divide dough into 2 balls, flatten into disks and cover in plastic wrap. chill 1 hour.

preheat oven to 375 degrees F and lightly grease four 3 1/2-inch tartlet pans with removable bottom. keep on disk in the fridge and cut one disk into 4 equal portions and roll each out between sheets of parchment into a thin round slightly larger than the tartlet pan. transfer each circle to the prepared pan and press lightly to fit into pan. prick the bottom of the tart dough with a fork and chill for 15 minutes in the freezer. bake 15 to 20 minutes or until shells are golden brown. let cool slightly.

distribute jam among 4 pre-baked shells, filling almost to the top. cut remaining disk into 2 parts and roll into circles about 1/8-inch thick. cut into long thin strips with a knife or pastry wheel. assemble a lattice top across each tartlet, trimming the edges of all strips so they are flush with the edge of the pan. bake 20 minutes or until jam is bubbly and top is golden brown. let cool, 15 minutes in pan and then remove from tartlet pan and cool completely on rack.

dust with confectioner's sugar before serving. enjoy!

halloween for adults

happy halloween everyone! Just wanted to pass on a link and a couple images we did with dimity jones for her blog three to one. she wrote this fun little story about a couple cocktails for the holiday. we were more than happy to photograph them before we drank them. check out her blog often, as it has amazing writing and lots of talented photogs are featured all the time! check back here this week as we will be sharing more recipes and images. happy halloween

apple picking

we came home with loads of fruit from apple picking at stuart's farm over the weekend and wanted to come up with some new recipes. they may not be the most beautiful northern spy, macoun, baldwin and mutsu apples due to some late season rain but they taste great - it was so much fun to walk through the orchards on a cool overcast day, tasting apples before we picked them to ensure the most tart flavor and crunchy texture before filling our bags. we'll post a sweet apple recipe soon but on this cold rainy almost wintry feeling evening in nyc a savory dish felt more appropriate. there are many classic combinations but few are better than pork, apples & sage - this dish is a simple roast dinner and the apples become unbelievably tender and creamy.

Roast Pork Loin with Apples & Sage

serves 6 to 8

4 tbs olive oil, divided

3 1/2 lbs boneless pork loin roast

1 tablespoon kosher salt

1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper

6 to 8 small tart apples, quartered or cut into wedges

6 large leaves fresh sage, chopped

6 cloves garlic, chopped

preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

grease a large baking dish with 1 tbs olive oil. place pork roast in fat side up and season all over with salt, pepper and 1 tbs oil. arrange apples around meat and drizzle with remaining oil. sprinkle pork and apples with sage and garlic. roast for about 1 hour or until temperature reaches 140 degrees F. let rest 10 to 15 minutes before slicing to serve with apples. enjoy!