Gorgeous smoothie bowls, beautiful avocado toasts, and stunning salads are a constant recurrence on our feeds lately..and we aren’t complaining! The more food inspo, the better. But when your attempt at the perfect pancake stack looks more like a pinterest fail than your next Instagram post, you might be left wondering how do those food gurus do it? Here are our essentials steps to taking your culinary skills to the next level.
1. Color Coordinate
The first step to creating a dish that will make any foodie’s mouth water is to pick foods with colors that pop. One of our favorite foods that taste amazing and also has a pretty pink hue is pitaya, which is great blended into a smoothie bowl. Bright veggies like bell pepper, tomatoes, green lettuce, and purple cabbage also brighten any dish. Get creative and choose a wide variety of fruits and veggies for extra taste, texture, and color.
2. Toppings, Toppings, Toppings!
Our intern, Sienna, says her favorite way to make her food on @partywithplants stand out is by adding lots and lots of toppings! Not only does this add extra flavor to any dish, but all of the nuts, seeds, and drizzles allows your creation to become eye-catching. For avocado toasts: sesame, hemp, or chia seeds are great additional details. Finished off with tomato and a sprinkle of salt and pepper make the perfect contrast to the green, creamy avo. Make top-notch smoothie bowls by starting with a thick base and topping it with cut fruit, shredded coconut, edible flowers (yes it's a thing!) and a generous drizzle of almond butter. Pro Tip: Amazon carries miniature cookie cutters that can turn any fruit into fun shapes. Make your smoothie bowl pretty and eat it too!
3. Know Your Angles
Once you have a meal that looks straight out of a five-star restaurant it's time to snap away! Don’t be ashamed to hover over your food to get the birds-eye view of all of your hard work. Play around with the angles so you have a plethora of options to choose from. Also, never forget to find the light. Natural light enhances your creation’s beauty and makes editing a breeze. Pro Tip: Having a simple, clean background allows your dish to be the center of attention.
4. It's all in the Details
Finally, it's time to post your creation to your feed for all of your friends and family to drool over! But don’t get lazy here. Picking a filter to make your colors pop is crucial in the food-inspo world. Once your filter is chosen (we love VSCO’s options!) go into your camera roll to further adjust your photo’s settings. Brightness, contrast, saturation, and shadows can make or break your post and potentially get it a spot on the coveted popular page.
We hope these tips help you make your dishes so stunning even Gordon Ramsay wouldn’t have a bad thing to say. Now get plating and snap away! Bonus Pro Tip: Eat your amazing creation and enjoy every bite!
