(collage by wm. christman, images © respective website creators)
So...um, I have been rolling the idea of reviewing some truly amazing food blogs around in my head for a few weeks (see the Food Blog Awards mini-post from January). Just when I thought I had it all sorted out and was ready to put fingers to keys, I innocently Googled "top food blogs" and my mind melted into a pile of goop.
It wasn't like I didn't already know this but there are a hell of a lot of food blogs out there, all competing for your eyeball space. And you don't even really have to try hard to find them. So rather than have a think-piece about the cutting edge of the food blogosphere, I'm just going to rant on for a few minutes about the roadside shiny objects that I glimpsed on my 30-minute, high-speed racer run detour through the Interwebs™...
Although these are in no particular order, these are the ones that had either beyond-beautiful photography, a unique take on food or were just plain intriguing. This is by no means a ranked list - believe me, there are PUH-LENTY top 10-20-50-100 lists along with exhortations to "VOTE FOR ME!" to increase an imagined popularity - it seems that the ones that stand out don't have to shill for votes, they just do what they do and let it rest at that.
Nordljus
Photographer Keiko Oikawa fuels her blog with some of the most beautiful food photography on the web. The posts are filled with compact stories and delicious-sounding recipes to enhance her photos. Oikawa also has a Japanese version of her blog with altogether different posts, so if you can read both languages, you get a 2-for-1. Either way, Nordljus is a visual treat.
Artisan Sweets
At first glance, Artisan Sweets comes across as very understated. But scroll down a bit and you see a dynamic little playland of unique photography and food writing. While it breaks just about every rule of journalistic layout theory, Artisan uses font sizes to its advantage. The size variety is like finding those little notes to yourself about a recipe that you tucked away in a specific section of a cookbook that remind you of cooking for someone special. Plus Artisan had a feature on my favorite thing to do with bits of leftover cheese, Fromage Fort. The cheese keeper calls...
Becks And Posh
Two things about Becks And Posh caught my eye: a wicked sense of humor and a recipe for clotted cream. "The Most Disgusting Tasting Cake" post along with a photograph of the recipe for said cake with notation ("this is the shittiest crapest most disgusting tasting cake I have ever made in my WHOLE LIFE") had me rolling around on the floor in a fit of laughter. As for the clotted cream...that's this weekend's project.
Chez Pim
Chez Pim is classy and playful. The Bangkok-born Pim is a celebrity of sorts, parlaying (fancy word for "quitting") a Silicon Valley career to concentrate on food writing and now has a list of kudos and awards to show for it. She even was a judge on Iron Chef America. But what about the blog? It's a fantastic melange of clever, witty writing (check out the I Don't Want To Be Your Valentine post) and cool/crisp layout with equally cool photography.
Delicious:Days
Delicious:Days has that languid look of a summer vacation packed with little tidbits of ace photography and clear, well-thought out writing. There's even a Food Blogging Do's And Don'ts post that is useful for the production side of blogging. Delicious:Days is kind of like that small but well-stocked rest stop on the side of the road where you wouldn't mind spending a few more minutes lingering in the mid-day sun.
And of course, this whole post would not be complete without mentioning the links to your right. These are some of my personal favorites with some even inspiring the tone, tenor and design of ...but the devil.. Of course, this list has been expanded to include some of the blogs that are in this post...so have at it. Spend a moment or four hours perusing. You may want to cook yourself something mid-way though...
