VEGAN PUMPKIN CURRY IN COLLABORATION WITH MICROPLANE (AD)
VEGAN PUMPKIN CURRY IN COLLABORATION WITH MICROPLANE (AD)

Disclosure: This is a paid advertorial with Microplane. All opinions expressed in this blog post are my own and I was in no way influenced by the company.

When I write a sponsored blog post I have two core missions in mind. Firstly, to serve YOU with content that is helpful, valuable and interesting and secondly, to serve the companies I work with ensuring their message reaches people who’ll love what they do.

With those core missions in mind, I couldn’t think of a better collaboration than one with Microplane, whose incredible graters I’ve used in my kitchen for YEARS. And seeing that I know you love to cook and don’t mind an awesome giveaway or an amazing seasonal vegan recipe (it includes pumpkin you guys, need I say more?), I betcha’ll love today’s post!

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vegan recipeK J Espinel
VEGAN DATE SYRUP SESAME TOFU POWER BOWL + A COOKBOOK GIVEAWAY!
VEGAN DATE SYRUP SESAME TOFU POWER BOWL + A COOKBOOK GIVEAWAY!

If you love plant-based food, are partial to moody flatlays and adore scrolling through instagram, chances are you’ve come across Rakhee Yadav AKA @boxofspice’s super pretty feed and if you haven’t you’re in for a very special treat. Rakhee, a food blogger and food photographer living in The Netherlands, but originally from India, is known for her plant-based Indian food that she’s adapted to the herbs, spices and flavours available to her in The Netherlands. As a result, her plant-forward Indian recipes are less traditional and more rebellious than what you may be used to!

After years of sharing her recipes and photos online, Rakhee has worked with Page Street Publishing to bring us a gorgeous collection of her recipes and images in book form called Heavenly Vegan - Dals & Curries. And as luck would have it, Rakhee kindly sent me two copies of her debut vegan cookbook - one to keep and one to gift to YOU! Want to find out what the book is like and how you can win a copy? Then please read on…..

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vegan recipeK J Espinel
LONDON CAKE STYLING WORKSHOP BEHIND THE SCENES - A SUMMER'S BOUNTY
LONDON CAKE STYLING WORKSHOP BEHIND THE SCENES - A SUMMER'S BOUNTY

There’s the romance of being a creative/photographer/stylist and then there’s the very grounding reality - how do we stay inspired, how do we keep pushing ourselves to do better and how do we avoid repeating the same tried and tested formula, making way for new forms of creative expression instead?

Though attending food styling workshops like the one Silvia and I taught late last month isn’t the answer to every creative stumbling block a budding food blogger or food photographer might come across, it IS indescribably nourishing and creatively stimulating to see the world of food through someone else’s lens.

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food photography, food photography workshop, food styling, creativity, Creative business, food bloggingK J Espinel
ARE INSTAGRAM ADS WORTH IT FOR BLOGGERS AND INFLUENCERS?
ARE INSTAGRAM ADS WORTH IT FOR BLOGGERS AND INFLUENCERS?

NOTE: This blog post is part 23 of my INSTAGRAM SERIES - content all about helping YOU manage your way around instagram. In the INSTAGRAM SERIES I've touched on subjects such as how much money should bloggers and influencers earn, how the algorithms really work and is your instagram account worth following. Just click here to find all the other parts in the series. Now on with today's post...

INSTAGRAM ALGORITHMS ARE AWESOME! Said no one ever! Or did they? Well, you may be surprised to learn that when I was researching the instagram algorithms for one of my INSTAGRAM SERIES posts last year I came across this guy on twitter who was raving about how awesome the algorithms are and how his blog traffic and business had exploded since they were introduced. WHAT!? I thought - as did a number of perplexed tweeters. HOW? He explained that he used instagram ads and promoted posts and noted that IG algorithms’ ability to target the right audience for his blog was incredible!

That different take on the algorithm stuck with me, so much so that when I heard THE social media expert Gary Vee REPEATEDLY say that entrepreneurs/business owners/probloggers who don’t use ads, are making a MASSIVE mistake, I took serious note. Was I playing it small by not going down the paid instagram route?

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instagram tricks, Creative business, food bloggingK J Espinel
EASY VEGAN GRANOLA WITH POACHED RHUBARB + A COOKBOOK GIVEAWAY!
EASY VEGAN GRANOLA WITH POACHED RHUBARB + A COOKBOOK GIVEAWAY!

What makes a good cookbook? It’s the question I asked on my instagram a few weeks ago as well as inside my creative community and it was so interesting to hear everyone’s thoughts. Some people felt that it’s all about the recipes which need to be delicious, easy and creative. Others believed that engaging writing was what set a good cookbook apart from a mediocre one, and yet others thought it was all about the food photography.

I believe a great cookbook should have all three - photos that make me WANT to cook, recipes that sound delicious, yet achievable and writing that warms my heart. Ryan and Adam, also know as Husbands That Cook, have just released their debut cookbook and it has everything a wonderful cookbook should have! And moreover, YOU can WIN a copy of the book on the blog this week!

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vegan recipeK J Espinel
LONDON FOOD STYLING AND INSTAGRAM WORKSHOP / BEHIND THE SCENES
LONDON FOOD STYLING AND INSTAGRAM WORKSHOP / BEHIND THE SCENES

In the lead up to every food photography and food styling workshop I host right here in London, I’m always frantically running around till the 11th hour, sourcing the most photogenic food, getting the right food photography props and scouting the perfect lunch locations, whilst wondering if I’ve bitten off more than I can chew. But then, when students come from near and far, I realise it is all worth it and that I’d do it again in a heartbeat!

As I had such a wonderful time this March teaching the 3-day London workshop, I thought perhaps you'd like to see what happened over the course of those days, what the final shots taken during the workshop looked like and basically, what exactly went down. Ready to take a look behind the scenes? Awesome, then please scroll down and read on … 

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branding, food photography, food blogging, Creative business, creativity, food photography workshop, food stylingK J Espinel
VEGAN BROWNIES WITH AQUAFABA CHOCOLATE FROSTING + A COOKBOOK GIVEAWAY!
VEGAN BROWNIES WITH AQUAFABA CHOCOLATE FROSTING + A COOKBOOK GIVEAWAY!

How do you follow up an international best-selling debut cookbook called Vegan in 7? With another fantastic vegan cookbook of course! Well, at least that’s what you do if you happen to be Rita Serano, vegan chef, cookbook author and plant-based instagram queen.

After the phenomenal success that was Vegan in 7, Rita decided not to rest on her laurels, but instead to write another cookbook - Vegan for Good - packed full of inspiring and delicious vegan recipes for longer, lazier weekends as well as busy, hectic weekdays. Seeing that I got my hands on Rita’s fab cookbook early, I thought I’d share my impressions of Vegan for Good and tell you how YOU can win a copy for keeps. Sound like a plan?

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vegan recipeK J Espinel
4 ESSENTIAL FOOD PHOTOGRAPHY LIGHTROOM CC MOBILE PRESETS
4 ESSENTIAL FOOD PHOTOGRAPHY LIGHTROOM CC MOBILE PRESETS

After you’ve asked me for months, I’m excited to share that my popular Lightroom presets are now finally available for Lightroom CC mobile, and the best part is that you won’t need to paid for an Adobe Creative Cloud or Lightroom subscription to access them! The only thing you need is the FREE Lightroom CC mobile app, which is available to both ios and android users. So now you can edit your food photos on your phone on the go.

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Lightroom presets, food photography, creativity, branding, food bloggingK J Espinel
EASY VEGAN CAULIFLOWER WINGS + A COOKBOOK GIVEAWAY!
EASY VEGAN CAULIFLOWER WINGS + A COOKBOOK GIVEAWAY!

When the adorable Sasha Gill, from @thesashadiaries contacted me in late 2018, asking if she could send me a copy of her soon-to-be released debut vegan cookbook, Jackfruit & Blue Ginger, I was touched. I was even happier when Sasha and her publisher Murdoch Books kindly agreed to send an extra copy to one of my lucky audience members. That’s because it’s through sharing cookbooks full of delicious recipes with YOU that I get to say THANK YOU for being here and reading my ramblings. Now - enough gushing! Shall we take a closer look at what Jackfruit & Blue Ginger is all about and how you can win a copy?

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vegan recipeK J Espinel