I have the pleasure of working with many talented food stylists. We often joke about how people believe the food they prepare for photos is shellac-sprayed and phony in order to make it look beautiful. Well, I can assure you – the food is real. In fact, 99% of the time, it's still perfectly lovely to eat after it's been shot. Often, we end up having it for lunch or taking it home that night for dinner. And trust me, people – I do not eat shellac. Most food stylists are also great cooks. The last thing they want to do is disrespect food by wasting it or making it out to seem like something it isn't. We try really hard to be true to our recipes when it comes time for photography. It's easy to make something look good, but not if it means sticking exactly to a recipe that isn't beautiful by nature. That's why we try to address "beauty issues" while we're still in the testing process. So if we want something to look different, we tweak the recipe... rather than relying on the food stylist to fake it. Sure, not every recipe is cover-worthy. But to prove that our recipes look delicious, even when not prepared by a stylist, (WARNING: FULL DISCLOSURE!!) I'm posting every one of our photos from the testing process for our April issue (on stands now). These recipes were prepared by our talented food specialists with a regular old digital camera. Not to look beautiful, but just to test them. From "Elegant Easter Dinner": [caption id="attachment_3440" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Asparagus Mimosa Salad"] [/caption] [caption id="attachment_3439" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Roasted Stuffed Cornish Hens"] [/caption] [caption id="attachment_3441" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Roasted Carrots and Radishes With Dill Butter"] [/caption] [caption id="attachment_3442" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Spinach Sauté With Roasted Garlic and Pine Nuts"] [/caption] [caption id="attachment_3443" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Angel Food Cake With Lemon Curd and Mascarpone Cream (our cover recipe!)"] [/caption] From "Quick & Easy": [caption id="attachment_3445" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Quick Beef Bulgogi"] [/caption] [caption id="attachment_3446" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Glazed Salmon Bundles With Sesame Bok Choy"] [/caption] [caption id="attachment_3447" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Herbed Cheese-Stuffed Chicken"] [/caption] [caption id="attachment_3448" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Creamy Ham and Pea Pasta"] [/caption] [caption id="attachment_3450" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Chana Masala"] [/caption] From "Recipe Makeover": [caption id="attachment_3451" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Smart Spaghetti and Meatballs"] [/caption] [caption id="attachment_3452" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Oven-Fried Buttermilk Chicken"] [/caption] [caption id="attachment_3454" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Baked Spring Rolls with Chili Garlic Dipping Sauce"] [/caption] [caption id="attachment_3455" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Classic Scalloped Potatoes"] [/caption] [caption id="attachment_3456" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Lightened-Up Mini Corn Muffins"] [/caption] From "Sweet Treats for Passover": [caption id="attachment_3457" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Flourless Chocolate Truffle Cake"] [/caption] [caption id="attachment_3458" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Matzo Chocolate Almond Buttercrunch"] [/caption] [caption id="attachment_3459" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Vanilla Bean Amaretti"] [/caption] [caption id="attachment_3460" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Fruit Salad with Orange Syrup"] [/caption] From "Cooking Lesson": [caption id="attachment_3461" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Eggs Benedict"] [/caption] And finally, from "A Taste of Prince Edward Island": [caption id="attachment_3462" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Michael Smith's Favourite Maritime Seafood Chowder (with Tattie Scones on the side!)"] [/caption] [caption id="attachment_3463" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Mussels on Toasted Corn Bread"] [/caption] Do they look good enough to eat? Any favourites? I hope you enjoy making these recipes as much as we did! And we'd love to have your feedback.