Zoe Pickburn
Freelance food writer | Gluten-free & plant-based blogger | Food photography & marketing tips
Why I'm relaunching EatsLeeds. Is polenta gluten-free? + Pesto polenta recipe. What's best for a blog? What's in season in April in the UK? Phone food photography. What's in season in March in the UK? Peanut Caramel Blondies. Content marketing for restaurants. Food businesses, whether bricks-and-mortar or pure eCommerce, need an online presence.
It’s just non-negotiable nowadays. You want people to magically stumble across your business? The closest you’ll get to that (online) is engaging, helpful, regularly updated content. Content marketing for restaurants (or any other kind of food business), is the magic dust that brings potential new customers straight to your (internet) door. Why food blogging is an essential part of content marketing for restaurants Content is a cornerstone of SEO. Consistently publish high-quality content, in a strategic mannerResearch & use focused keywords (and keyword phrases) throughout your contentOptimise website content (using on-page SEO techniques, like meta titles & snippets) SEO can take a lot of time and investment. Social Media It is very tempting to use social media only to tell people about your business. With a food blog full of content you’ll always have a fresh topic to post to social media about. 1. 2. 3. Vegan & gluten-free tempura batter recipe. My non-technical food photography essentials.
Since starting Fig & Fennel, I’ve built up a photography kit of sorts.
This isn’t the technical stuff – I’m not going over the lenses, lights or tripod I use. Whenever I go to shoot onsite, I bring a box of tricks to help me take the best photos I can – whatever the situation. This list of things is definitely not exhaustive, but should help you to start your own food photography kit, to keep on standby for taking better food photos: Affiliate disclosure: This post uses affiliate links. What's in season in February in the UK? Vegan gluten free cookies. My relationship with calories. The best camera settings for food photography. Recently I started this brand, Fig & Fennel, as a way to professionalise (is that a word?)
The freelance photography side of my business. My food photography has improved massively over the years since I started my blog (if I do say so myself), and especially in the past months since investing in a photography course at the local college. For a long time though, I was terrified of taking my camera off auto settings and into manual mode. A DSLR can take great pictures in its automatic settings – cameras are very clever these days. But without the control of manual mode, it is hit-and-miss. Affiliate disclosure: This post uses affiliate links. You can learn more about food photography in my other posts on the subject. Camera settings for food photography Lets start with the basics, shall we?
NB. Photography is all about light There are three key settings on your camera that affect the amount of light coming in and hitting the sensor. Aperture The aperture is measured in f/stop. Shutter speed. Vegan & Gluten-Free Mac and Cheese Recipe. What's in season in January? + January 2019 personal update. Essential WordPress plugins for food blogs & businesses. WordPress plugins are pieces of software that you can add to your site, to give you extra functionality or features.
The fewer plugins you install, the better (in terms of site speed and security), but when working with theme-based sites some plugins are necessary to keep your site running. I use the free versions of all of the following plugins (so no affiliate links in this list). I’ve split the list down into rough sections, though they all feed into one another (site security, for example, could arguably be classed as SEO as security has been shown to have SEO benefits). This post is part of my series on starting & building your food blog. Other posts in the series include: Plugins for SEO Plugins for backups & security UpDraftPlus – Automatically takes regular backups of your site and store them in Google Drive, just in case.iThemes – To secure, protect and defend your site against the risk of attacks and hacking.
Simple Gluten-Free Granola. This blog post + recipe for Gluten-Free Granola originally appeared on my old blog, EatsLeeds.co.uk, but has now been republished and redirected here to ZoePickburn.com.
So, first post of January! Purple Cabbage Stir Fry. This blog post + recipe for Purple Cabbage Stir Fry with Red Wine and Chestnuts originally appeared on my old blog, EatsLeeds.co.uk, but has now been republished and redirected here to ZoePickburn.com.
Now, I love a good salad, but there’s a time and a place, no? This purple cabbage stir fry is a great option for when you want something light and healthy, but it’s just too damn cold for a salad, no matter how delicious it is. This bright purple dish always looks pretty served up as a vegetable on the side (it’s somewhat adapted from my Ma’s traditional Christmas red cabbage stir fry), but is just as delicious served as a standalone lunch or light supper. As cabbage tends to keep its crunch, you can store it in the fridge for a few days and it still makes a delicious pack-up. Some people think cabbage is boring, but this dish will prove them wrong. Winter Squash and Kale Curry. Apple and Almond Overnight Oats Recipe. This blog post + recipe for apple and almond overnight oats originally appeared on my old blog, EatsLeeds.co.uk, but has now been republished and redirected here to ZoePickburn.com.
Ever feel like there just isn’t enough time in the morning? Especially in the winter, when getting up for work feels like you’re rising in the middle of the night, the morning struggle is very much real. All too often I end up grabbing a banana and a cereal bar on my way into work because I didn’t get up early enough to make a proper breakfast – and now, when it is cold and grey and gloomy is when you most need a good breakfast, to fuel you through the day (and stop you snacking on a midmorning cake. ahem.)
Enter: Apple and Almond Overnight Oats. Overnight oats are definitely the answer to all of your #MorningProblems. Hedgerow Blackberry and Apple Jam. This blog post + recipe for Blackberry and Apple Jam originally appeared on my old blog, EatsLeeds.co.uk, but has now been republished and redirected here to ZoePickburn.com.
I love this time of year, when the weather gets a bit more sensible, the leaves begin to drop and I can start wearing scarves again. Blackberrying is basically a national sport at this time of year, and my mama spends weeks preserving all the autumn fruit: thick chutneys, fruit infused vodkas, warming crumbles, homemade ciders, and sticky, delicious, toast-ready jams.
So, my partner husband and I grabbed a bunch of blackberries from the brambles near our flat, and a handful of apples from the tree in the yard and, erm, jammed them up into a few little jars of Blackberry and Apple Jam. This Blackberry + Apple Jam recipe is super simple, and the best part? You don’t need any fancy equipment to make it! Learn to make this delicious, autumnal Blackberry and Apple Jam recipe from scratch, using fresh fruit. Turmeric Tea. This blog post about turmeric tea originally appeared on my old blog, EatsLeeds.co.uk, but has now been republished and redirected here to ZoePickburn.com.
I’ve been drinking this turmeric tea for years now, it is really warming and refreshing. Turmeric Tea is great for a sore throat or a cold, but I’ve been drinking a few cups of this tea every day. It is so simple to make and tastes delicious – it curbs the mid-afternoon sugar cravings and is just really energising.