Don’t Let My Ugly Pictures Fool You…
My food was delicious yesterday!
I’m quickly figuring out that eating good food is my specialty…NOT photography. I am so jealous of all you bloggers who take beautiful food pictures; how do you do it? Moreover, how do you know HOW to do it? I’ve never taken a photography class in my life, and despite my persistence to get a perfect shot, all my pictures from yesterdays food fall short. Oh well. The deliciousness makes up for it.
Breakfast was simple yet fun:
1/2 cup oats with 3/4 of a sliced banana and about a tablespoon of freshly ground peanut butter.
I think I could eat this everyday…seriously…
Pregnancy has been a little hard on me in terms of cravings; while I’ve dealt with cravings my entire life (as most, if not all people have), pregnancy seems to amplify them times one million. It’s cool when I get a craving for something healthy, but when it’s for oreos, it kind of stresses me out. Luckily, yesterday I became fixated on Cafe Yumm; although this meal probably dishes up more calories than I consume in an average lunch, the food is all wholesome and organic, so I feel good about eating it.
Enter the Hot ‘N’ Jazzy Yumm Bowl – pretty much one of the most (if not the most) amazing lunches on the planet. This bowl contained a serving of brown rice, kidney beans, black beans, avocados, tomatoes, jalapeno salsa (that would be the green dollop in the middle), Greek yogurt (and that’s the white dollop!) and the fantastic Cafe Yumm sauce (which is a mixture of nutritional yeast, olive oil, lemon juice and spices). The bowl was big but I downed it like a champ. Remember when I used to hate tomatoes? I still don’t like them. But I do crave them, so I eat them. As I always say, I realize this doesn’t make sense…but somehow to me it does 
And dinner is where the REAL ugliness begins. Yes, I realize my first few pictures aren’t winning any awards, but my dinner pictures were just downright horrible. A few things before you read on: do NOT be fooled by the pictures…the soup is absolutely delicious and healthy. It also looks a lot like the chili from my last post; just so we’re all on the same page, I wanted to let you know they’re actually two totally different meals, they just contain many of the same components and somehow photographed similarly. The two meals taste totally different though…so you should definitely make both of these!
This is Sue’s soup. Who is Sue, you ask? Well, no one really knows. This was a soup my mom made growing up…and she always called it Sue’s soup, but to my knowledge, she is unaware as to who Sue is (and if this is wrong mom, correct me! Reveal the real Sue!). Over the years, my sister has become the real master of this soup; while it isn’t anything too difficult, hers always turns out WAY better than mine. But, now that it’s cold and rainy on a daily basis ( 
) here in Oregon, I decided Jake and I needed to pay good ‘ol Sue a visit.
Sue’s Soup (recipe taken from my mother…who got it from a friend…and the trail goes cold there. If you’ve seen this recipe before let me know where it’s from so I can give credit where credit is due).
Ingredients:
-1 Whole Onion, Chopped
-5 Garlic Buds
-1 Cup Celery, Chopped
-1 Cup Carrots, Chopped
-1 Small/Medium Zucchini, Sliced
-1/2 Jug Spicy V8 Juice (by jug I mean just the normal sized container you buy in the store)
-Salt and Pepper, to taste
-1 Tablespoon Oregano
-1 Tablespoon Basil
-1 Tablespoon Rosemary
-1/2 – 1 Pound Extra Lean Ground Beef (or extra lean ground turkey)
-3 Ears Corn (cut kernels off)
-1 Large Box Chicken Stock
-Large Handful of Green Beans (the recipe actually calls for 6 green beans…but who puts 6 green beans in a huge container of soup? I find that strange. Needless to say, I changed it to a large handful).
-1 Can Tomatoes
-A few handfuls of 100% whole wheat pasta (elbow macaroni, rotini, etc.)
Directions:
1.) Brown ground beef (or ground turkey) and onions. Drain any fat.
2.) Add browned meat and onions to a large soup pot. Add the rest of the ingredients; bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook until heated through.
And there you have it…it’s that easy! Again, do NOT be disillusioned by the picture…the soup is seriously delicious. Try it. I dare you. And if you get a better picture of it than I did, send it my way so I can post it for all to see!
I’m off to work for the rest of the day. I’ll be back tonight with a fun product review, so be sure and check back. There may be a giveaway involved…I just can’t decide if I want to eat them all myself…
Have a wonderful Tuesday!
Looks like a good day of eating to me:)
Sue’s soup is delicious! I think that you are correct that no one really knows who Sue is, but her soup is great!
Yum, the bowl looks extra tasty. As for pics I have trouble too. it depends on the lighting. Most of the time now I turn the flash off and put it on the macro setting. I will thank my sister for cluing me in on that one.
Mmm, I think the soup looks great! The addition of V8 is a good idea too. I like to get the low-sodium kind, since my body reacts to sodium quicker than anything….but either way, looks and sounds fantastic to me!
I don’t think your photos are ugle at all- the soup looks and sounds delicious
Your food looks great!
When I was pregnant my cravings were pretty intense… when I wanted food, I would do anything for it!
That soup sounds awesome, I’m gonna make it!
Well all your food looks wonderful to me :p
A friend of mine at work is pregnant and she doesn’t crave food, she craves the smell of creosote or petrol, now that’s weird.
Sue’s soup sounds exactly like my kind of soup!! Love it!!
Soups never photograph well but they always taste yummy!
Oh sweetie, I think your photos are just fabulous! You don’t need artistic photos to make food look delicious!
I definitely think it’s completely normal for you to be having cravings, especially since you get mild cravings WITHOUT pregnancy. Just listen to your body and do what YOU know is best!
LOVE the sound of that soup! So many flavors!
xxoo
Heather
I think your pictures are great – soup never looks too pretty anyway! I am really struggling with night-time pictures, it is pitch black when I eat dinner so never have any natural light…they never turn out very good
It’s SUE BEETER’S soup!!
Haha.
That yumm bowl looks like something I need to eat immediately. What is nutritional yeast? Does it have flavor?
Even though you think your pictures are ugly I think your food looks delicious, especially that lunch bowl and the soup!!
I don’t think you take bad photos at all!
Cafe yum sounds sooo yummy! I wish I had one of those near me. This soup also looks delish!
I don’t think your pics are ugly at all–they’re quite pretty, with all those colors going on. I’ve never taken a photography class either, but I kinda wish I had in high school–I find photography so much fun now!
That soup looks wonderful! I might have to conjure up a vegetarian version:)
You are crazy girl – your pictures are AWESOME!!! I was expecting some ugly pics from your title … but they are fantastic!
oh I think your pictures are gorgeous!
The scoop on Sue–yes, there really is a “Sue.” My girls forget but for my job, I train women on how to sell a certain product. On one of my many trips to Atlanta, I was training a lady named “Sue.” (I won’t divulge her last name). She served me this delicious soup–ala “Sue’s Soup.” She had made it up and didn’t really have a recipe so she just rattled off the ingredients to me (this is why the recipe calls for 6 green beans–lol!) Anyway,I am not sure if your recipe is exactly like the original (a little like playing the “telephone” game as it changes a tad bit everytime it is passed on) but close enough. You can really add any vegetable you want–and it is so healthy for you! I think I am going to have to make it tonight!
Lainie, are you kidding me?? I think you do a fantastic job of taking pictures of your food!!! Most food bloggers have ridiculously expensive DSL cameras and the ones who don’t have great experience and lots of trial and error, so I wouldn’t even think about not taking amaaaaazing pictures if i were you. They’re honestly delicious enough to eat.
I love love love your lunch bowl. Though your theory sort of doesn’t quite make sense to me still…you don’t like tomatoes but you crave them? I haven’t yet found a food like that, but i’ll keep that theory in mind so I can search for something that fits the critera!
hehehe
Hope you’re having a lovely day sweetie!
i always hate putting up pictures of soups or casseroles because they NEVER look as good as they taste! but that’s all that matters
Your pictures are great! Whatcha talking about?
Sue’s Soup looking like something I need right now on this cold & rainy day!
you’re crazy girl! That soup looks a-maz-ing! seriously, I want to make it now