Food Styling Makeovers: Before And After

I was recently on the Today Show talking about before and after food presentations. The segment went over BIG and Hoda Kotb actually stopped me at the end of it to tell me how much she enjoyed it. It's clear people want to make their food look better not just for guests, parties and gatherings but in general making your food look pretty is a pretty popular subject. Just check out Pinterest. I thought it would be a fun idea to include more food styling tips this week for you.

I will be offering stylist solutions to plating and presenting food as well as what I think about when styling food for my guests.

Let's start with Sunday Supper, shall we?

1. Before :: Roast Chicken and Vegetables

After:: Roasted Chicken and Vegetables

Check out the composition on the after plate, the easiest way to compose your plates is to separate the vegetables and lay the chicken in a concise pattern, you can never go wrong with a white plate. I always like to say think like a 5 year old and separate your food, like a 5 year old would say... "no food touching."

2. Before :: Dip

After :: Dip

No comparison here. Dips are tricky because they are innately not pretty. A good solution to presentation is what you place a dip in. Make sure to use a simple and low profile bowl and surround the dip with artistically placed crackers, breads or veggies in a random composition. The surrounding composition becomes important because it takes the eye all over the plate and makes the focus the entire presentation and not just the dip. Garnish (like the dill randomly placed here) is a nice touch. Using herbs in general as garnish is a great idea.

3. Before :: Salad Nicoise

After :: Salad Nicoise

The before surely tasted delicious but it could not be more unappetizing, it's a hot mess. The after is separated which is always a great styling solution. It's not only visually pleasing but gives guests a chance to pick what they like. A big styling tip is to separate things in a plate creating a pleasing composition, it's a styling basic.

If you're interested in learning more about food styling check out my workshop June 7th. Hope to see you there, it's always a super fun day of learning, sharing and creating and of course eating.

Photo of chicken after :: Deborah Whitlaw Llewellyn Picture Perfect Parties

Photo of dip after :: Bon Appetite

Photo of Salad Nicoise :: The New York Jewels

 For more on this food styling series from Annette Joseph, visit her blog to get inspired!