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Mastering Food Photography & Baking Adventures: A S’mores Bar Journey

The past few days have been a whirlwind of inspiration, largely spent in the glow of my computer screen. I’m not exaggerating; yesterday, I was practically glued to my laptop from 10 AM to 5 PM, and today has followed a similar pattern, interspersed with only a few household chores and some joyful baking. The catalyst for this immersive experience? An absolutely phenomenal live webcast through CreativeLive. This wasn’t just any webcast; it was an intensive three-day course on food photography, broadcast live from Seattle, led by the incomparable Penny De Los Santos. Her talent is truly breathtaking!

Penny De Los Santos is an acclaimed photographer with an illustrious career, having captured stunning visuals for National Geographic and currently contributing her expertise to Saveur magazine. She also shares her culinary insights and visual artistry on her blog, Appetite. Witnessing her process unfold over these days has been a masterclass in itself, shifting my perception of food and its presentation forever.

Insights from a Food Photography Masterclass

The CreativeLive course with Penny De Los Santos was an eye-opening journey into the world of professional food photography. Yesterday’s sessions delved into foundational principles and essential basics, covering everything from understanding natural light to composition techniques that make food truly sing. Today, however, was where the magic truly happened, as Penny demonstrated her meticulous studio setups alongside a talented food stylist. It was incredibly captivating to see how she crafts each scene, transforming simple ingredients into visual masterpieces. Being able to experience this live, from the comfort of my own home, was undoubtedly the next best thing to actually being there in person.

A delightful surprise for today’s session was the appearance of Shauna Ahern from The Gluten Free Girl, who actively participated in the course. It was fantastic to see her engagement and learn from her perspective as well. Immersing myself in this course has profoundly changed the way I view food, instilling a deep motivation to significantly elevate my own photography skills. Penny often says that food is sexy, and after these past few days, I wholeheartedly agree!

I’m incredibly enthusiastic about integrating the wealth of knowledge Penny has shared into my future content. My immediate first step? Actually reading the manual for the camera I’ve been using. Yes, seriously! I’ve been borrowing my daughter’s Nikon D40, but this course has sparked a strong desire to finally get my own high-quality camera. With my birthday on the horizon, perhaps a subtle hint to my husband about a new camera (and maybe an iPad!) wouldn’t hurt. A really nice camera and an iPad would certainly empower me to bring these new photographic principles to life.

A Summer Recipe Project: S’mores Bars for My Daughter

With my daughter now home from college for the summer, I decided to dedicate today’s recipe to her. Her inbox has been overflowing with recipe ideas she wants me to try while she’s here, hinting at a delightful, albeit potentially waistline-expanding, summer of culinary adventures! Needless to say, she’s thrilled to be home, eagerly assisting with my blogging projects and undoubtedly looking forward to being exceptionally well-fed.

My inspiration for today’s recipe, these irresistible S’mores Bars, came from a wonderful post I discovered on Dana’s Food For Thought. I’ve become quite a fan of her website; Dana is a true inspiration, with her immense creativity and passion for entering her culinary creations into contests. She often shares her experiences from various food classes, which has certainly piqued my interest in exploring similar avenues. However, it was her photograph of a jar of Marshmallow Fluff in her S’mores post that truly captured my attention. She initially expressed some hesitation about purchasing it for the recipe, never having tried it before, but after tasting the bars, she was completely won over.

What Dana might not know is the profound connection I have with Marshmallow Fluff. Coming from Rhode Island, Marshmallow Fluff isn’t just an ingredient; it’s a household staple, a beloved part of our culinary heritage, even after our move to Arizona. Both my husband and I grew up with it! In fact, I often buy tubs of it by the case directly from the Marshmallow Fluff website – where else? For us, its primary use is in the classic Fluffernutter: a simple yet utterly delicious sandwich made with peanut butter and Marshmallow Fluff. Dana, perhaps one day you’ll give a Fluffernutter a try!

The Ultimate S’mores Bars Recipe: A Homemade Delight

Indulge in the comforting flavors of a campfire classic with these easy-to-make S’mores Bars. This recipe combines a buttery graham cracker crust with gooey chocolate and perfectly toasted marshmallows, all baked into a convenient bar form. Perfect for sharing (or not!).

Ingredients:

1¼ cups Graham cracker crumbs
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/3 cup butter or margarine, melted
1 large egg, lightly beaten
¼ cup all-purpose flour
4 (1.55 oz.) Hershey’s milk chocolate bars, unwrapped
24 large marshmallows

Instructions:

Prepare the Baking Dish: Begin by lightly buttering an 8×8-inch baking dish. This will prevent sticking and ensure easy removal of your S’mores Bars.
Create the Graham Cracker Base: In a medium-sized mixing bowl, combine the graham cracker crumbs and sugar. Pour in the melted butter and mix thoroughly until all crumbs are moistened. This mixture forms the delicious crust.
Form the Bottom Crust: Take approximately half of the graham cracker mixture and press it firmly into the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Use the back of a spoon or your fingers to create an even, compact layer. Set this aside.
Prepare the Top Crust Mixture: To the remaining graham cracker crumb mixture in the bowl, add the lightly beaten egg and flour. Mix until all ingredients are well combined and form a cohesive dough.
Outline and Roll the Top Crust: Lay a piece of parchment paper on a clean work surface. Place your baking dish on top of the parchment paper and trace its inside perimeter with a pencil. This outline will guide you in rolling out the top crust to the correct size. Transfer the parchment paper with the outline to a cookie sheet.
Roll Out the Dough: Place the egg, flour, and crumb mixture onto the parchment paper within the outlined area. Cover it with another piece of parchment paper. Using a rolling pin, carefully roll out the dough until it evenly fills the outlined area. Aim for a consistent thickness.
Chill the Components: Place both the baking dish with the bottom crust and the cookie sheet with the rolled-out top crust into the refrigerator. Chill for at least 1 hour. This step is crucial for helping the crusts set and become firm, making them easier to handle and preventing them from becoming too crumbly during baking.
Broil the Marshmallows: While the crusts are chilling, prepare your marshmallows. Place the 24 marshmallows on a lightly greased cookie sheet. Position the cookie sheet under a low broiler for approximately 5 minutes. Keep a very close eye on them, as marshmallows can burn quickly! After 5 minutes, carefully turn all the marshmallows over and broil the other side for another 5 minutes, or until golden brown and slightly toasted. Remove from the oven immediately.
These perfectly toasted marshmallows were almost too tempting to use!
Preheat Oven & Assemble: Preheat your oven to 350ºF (175ºC). Remove both the chilled baking dish and the cookie sheet with the top crust from the refrigerator. Arrange the Hershey’s chocolate bars in a single layer over the set graham cracker bottom crust in the baking dish, ensuring it’s completely covered. Next, carefully place the broiled marshmallows on top of the chocolate in two layers, distributing them as evenly as possible.
Add the Top Crust: Gently take the rolled-out graham cracker dough on the parchment paper and invert it directly onto the marshmallow layer in the baking dish. Carefully peel off the parchment paper and lightly press the dough down to secure it over the marshmallows and chocolate.
Bake: Place the baking dish in the preheated oven and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the top crust is golden brown and the filling is bubbly.
Cool & Serve: Once baked, remove the S’mores Bars from the oven and let them cool completely in the dish before cutting into squares. This allows them to set properly, making them easier to slice and serve. Enjoy your homemade S’mores experience!

An Honest Recipe Review: Learning from the Kitchen

As you know, I strive to bake a different recipe every day (or at least attempt to, when I’m not battling a headache or facing technical glitches with my blog platform!). It’s important to me to be transparent, and that means not every recipe I share will be a resounding success I’d urge you to immediately replicate. There will inevitably be days when things don’t turn out exactly as I envision. My primary goal in starting this blog was to preserve our cherished family recipes, and to share them alongside new discoveries from cookbooks, friends, and the vast expanse of the internet. While I often enjoy putting my own twist on others’ recipes, sometimes, the adaptation just doesn’t quite click.

I believe this S’mores Bars attempt was one of those days. Don’t misunderstand me; the bars were undeniably good (after all, when is anything with chocolate not delicious?). However, the various elements didn’t quite harmonize as perfectly as I had hoped. While I aimed to create something distinct from Dana’s S’mores Bars, in retrospect, following her original method might have been the wiser choice.

On my blog, I rate every recipe on a scale of 1 to 4, with 4 being the absolute best. These S’mores Bars, despite their inherent deliciousness, earned a 2½ rolling pins. They were certainly yummy, as the classic combination of graham crackers, chocolate, and marshmallows usually is. However, there were a couple of significant technical flaws. My first misstep was only incorporating the egg and flour into half of the graham cracker mixture for the top crust, rather than integrating it into the entire batch. As a result, the bottom layer turned out to be extremely crumbly, lacking the desired structural integrity.

The second issue arose with the marshmallows. They were far more stringy than anticipated when eaten. You know that feeling, like when you’re enjoying fried mozzarella, take a bite, and try to swallow, but half of it is still stubbornly stuck in your mouth, creating a somewhat uncomfortable, almost choking sensation? That’s precisely what I experienced with these marshmallows. While delicious, their excessively gooey and stringy texture made for a less-than-ideal eating experience. You KNOW what I’m talking about!

On that slightly sticky note – happy baking, everyone! Remember, every baking adventure, whether a triumph or a learning experience, adds to our culinary journey. I look forward to sharing more successes, and transparently, more lessons, with you all.