Food Porn: The New Food & Wine Cookbook is out.

The new Food and Wine "America's Greatest New Cooks" book is out. And since I'm obsessed with the word 'favorite', I asked one of my 'favorite' photographers Christina Holmes, 5 questions concerning her... well, favorites.

What was your favorite unused outtake image? That would be the play nougat series from Julianne Jones. (Below).

What was your favorite shot in book? Tough. That would have to be a toss up between the Mescal Cured Salmon from Alex Stupak, (below) or the Tart Flambé from Julianne Jones. I feel they transport me when I'm looking at them to a moment where I was actually sitting there eating enjoying the food, or at least wished I could have been!

What was your favorite overall recipe? This is a tough one, but it would be between the Spring Papetoui from Julianne Jones (clean, fresh, and flavorful), and the Smokey Collard Greens from Sarah Simmons (below) unexpectedly wonderful, the Port Ossobucco from Jimmy Bannos (had such great depth to the dish) or the Chipotle Roasted Carrots from Alex Stupak, which had great flavor and a perfect fresh kick.

Ok, confess, what was your favorite dessert, from ALL of them? I do think I ate the entire Almond Cake from Belinda Leong! (far below) And same thing for the Kaffir Lime Custard from Bryant Ng (below) as it has such lovely subtle flavor and wonderful texture.

...and what was your favorite part of working on this book?

Honestly it was the freedom that F&W gave me to really create imagery that I believed in. They allowed me to shoot how I wanted to shoot and do interesting, unique and off-the-cuff imagery. Things like creating the ingredient portrait openers that were used for the Table of Contents (very top image). Those just happened randomly and organically starting with the very first morning of our two week adventure as I was waiting for the first recipe to be prepared each morning. In the end each of these individually strong still-life images quietly began representing each of the chef's ingredient inspirations for what recipes they held for the reader. So if I guess I really had to choose one thing that I loved most about the book, it would be the moments where I was working together with my incredible team; I truly got to create images that represented the true aesthetic of my work.

Thanks for the interview Christina! x

Behind the scenes: The making of the book.

Food & Wine Cookbook edited by Dana Cowin Creative Director: Stephen Scoble

Photo Editors: Fredrika Stjårne,

Anthony LaSala, Sara Parks

Photographs by Christina Holmes Designer: Michelle Leong Food Stylist: Vivian Lui

Food Assistant: Craig Leickfelt Prop Stylist: Pamela Duncan Silver Photo Assistant: Jake Vinsek

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CHRISTINA HOLMES: is a New York based photographer with deep roots in Michigan. When it comes to her favorite foods, her list is long! She will eat anything from Il Buco restaurant, she covets the Mushroom & Egg pizza from ABC Kitchen, loves the pork belly at the Breslin, the olive oil gelato at Otto, the olive oil cake from Abraco, the chocolate chip cookies from City Bakery, and any dessert from Lady M! Her clients include Food & Wine, Bon Appétit, Whole Living, The Cooking Channel, Sweet Paul, Chop’t. Check out her work here. 

How to Shoot a Wolf (Wolf = Being a Metaphor for Hunger)

HOW TO SHOOT A WOLF (THE VORACITY SERIES): Anna Williams is the photographer behind the "Voracity" Series. The pictures (above) are from one of my favorites of the series, the "How to Shoot a Wolf". Here, an Interview with Anna.

WHAT WAS THE IDEA BEHIND "HOW TO SHOOT A WOLF"? This shoot was inspired by MFK Fisher's book, 'How to Cook a Wolf. "The "Wolf" is the Hunger that creeps into the daily life of those that lived post World War II and during the time of food rationing... the 'wolf' is a metaphor for hunger. 

YOUR VORACITY SERIES WAS BORN BECAUSE? The series came out of a desire to explore a more creative way of shooting. I've always loved shooting for magazines, but they have their own needs and direction, so I wanted to assign myself the kind of stories that would push me to the next level.  Almost like, I wanted to regain control of my own career by exploring some of my own ideas and own vision.  It has also pushed me on a technical level; finding new approaches to light and mood, which  has also helped me in my commercial work.

HOW DO YOU MAKE TIME FOR THIS? We produce these shoots just like any other shoot—mainly it depends on the availability of all the artists we call in to work on it.  It is always a big team and so the dates all have to line up.

WHAT WAS YOUR VISUAL INSPIRATION FOR THE WOLF SHOOT? I met with the stylists, Pamela Duncan Silver and Heidi Johannsen (one of the creative forces behind Bellocq Tea), and we talked a lot about that feeling of what it must have been like at home during the wartime. That feeling of longing and worry, it is a little darker.  So it is almost like a period piece, both in the sets and in the emotion. And MFK Fisher's book does have some of that darkness of feeling, but approaches it in such a rich way.  The way she wrote was so beautiful, that even in the most difficult times there was this light that just shined through.

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HOW TO SHOOT A WOLF:

Photographs: Anna Williams Prop Styling: Pamela Duncan Silver Food: Heidi Johannsen Art Direction: Mason Adams.

Anna's work can be seen here. To see the others in the Voracity Series click here.

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ANNA WILLIAMS: was born in Richmond, Virginia, and studied photography at the University of the South. After shooting for commercial clients all over the world, in 2010 Anna launched her project 'The Voracity,' an exploration of her personal vision. When she's not looking through the lens, she is racking up the frequent flier miles with her husband and 2 young kids, Novie and Hugo.