Cooking with Butter Beans Kitchen in Battery Park City

Last week, I got to join FIDI Families and other NYC Mommy bloggers out for a fun cooking class with Butter Beans Kitchen at their new Battery Park location inside Asphalt Green.  On the Menu: Jeweled Pomegranate Rice Pilaf, Sweet Potato Hummus, Kofta Kebab with Seasonal Market Veggies, and Honey Pistachio Baklava.  The Mediterranean menu sounded exotic and I knew I was in for a fun night out including a complimentary wine tasting by Simply Wine.  butter beans kitchen , nyc cooking class I guess Juliet was right.  Moms do drink wine at their “mommy play dates!” cooking class nyc ny cooking class, nyc cooking class

We all had a bunch of fun thanks to the easygoing and super approachable chef who taught us handy tips along the way including how to best cut an onion, tell if your oil is heated and what not to do to with your knife in order to avoid dulling it.  She was terrific at explaining step-by-step and was unbelievably not phased at all by our social-media obsessed crew who constantly had camera-in-hand documenting each and every instruction, step and photo opp.

These exotic dishes were surprisingly easy to make and tasty too!  My favorite recipes from the night included the pomegranate rice pilaf and the sweet potato hummus.

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The sweet and savory flavor combinations of Middle Eastern cuisine made for fresh and elegant meals with a minimum of ingredients–no special equipment required.cooking class, nyc cooking class, cooking class in ny

I love how Butter Beans demystified this new cuisine for me and helped me feel comfortable cooking up these amazing dishes!

It really was a fun class for people of all skill levels!  asphalt green cooking class, manhattan cooking class, nyc cooking class, Thank you so much to Butter Beans Kitchen, Asphalt Green, Simply Wines and FIDI Families for hosting us!  The candlelit dinner was scrumptious and the cooking class was such a treat!

 

In addition to their Thursday adult classes, be sure to check out the  farm-to-table kids classes on Wednesdays.  Use code BBFRIENDS to receive $10 off their first class.  Use code BBSIBLING to receive 5% off registration for siblings!

Classes are held at Asphalt Green Battery Park City Culinary Center, 212 North End Ave, New York, NY 10282.

$95 per class, 15% off for Asphalt Green members.

DISCLAIMER.  We received a complimentary class and event experience in exchange for the review but all opinions are my own.

How to Get Instagramable photos

Capturing coveted Instagramable photos has shot to a new level of importance.  It’s no longer enough to just snap a quick shot for your own memory.   Secretly, you want to take a shot worthy of showing off through social media!  Whether it’s that cool new find, place or happening, or heck, simply our outfit of the day nowadays, you snap and share!  Here are my 3 top tips for getting that Instagramable photo and guess what….it all has to do with the styling!  So don’t worry about this getting too technical with photography tips.  There are plenty of other articles on general photography how – tos.  These are easy-to-apply styling and fashion tips to take your photography to the next viral level.

Find photogenic backdrops that compliment your outfit.  Consider your backdrop ‘cuz your cluttered room isn’t cutting it.   I usually favor a real simple white or plain colored wall to make my OOTD shot really pop. mommy ad me matching outfit, minime, fashionable mom, fab mom But I also really love a stunning graffiti wall,

lovewall, heart wall, hearts, happy valentines

a cityscape,fab moms, cherry blossom photo, sakura, cherry blossom festival

and a beautiful nature scene.
DSC_8510What I also seek out is modern art.  As soon as I saw this stunningly lit artwork pop up in my feed, I was inspired to take J there in her favorite outfit of all time – her Elsa costume.

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As if she read my mind, the minute she saw the art piece, she knew exactly how to pose with it.  Transforming herself into Elsa, and pretending the room was her ice castle, she immediately went to work with her wand.  Preparing the perfect outfit with this shot in mind created the wow factor I was looking for.

Similarly, the below shot was staged with an enormous star (from the FrankStella collection) to echo the sparkly star-like swirls on her dress.

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And the Gagosian Gallery called my name with this awww-inspiring bow.  I just had to take J there dressed in her favorite Janie and Jack bow sweater and Amour Bows headband.  I like big bows and I cannot lie….5.16

Sometimes all it takes is a little research, outfit planning and prop preparation.  Before heading to your next cool destination, research it, check out the hashtags.  Perhaps you’ll re-think that outfit which you now know clashes with the background, or maybe you’ll be inspired to create a special outfit customized for the destination or want to bring a prop to pose with.  Check out what others have photographed through location geo -tags and destination hashtags.  And you’re bound to find additional motivation to get the shot right!

I hope some of my photos inspire you to take a moment to reflect on elevating your next shot.  For my personal inspiration, I like to follow the following IG feeds!

  • fomofeed (for the coolest, local NYC backdrops and art)
  • artfullyawear (you think I like to match art? wait til you see THIS!)
  • dressedtomatch (when life imitates art)  Tag them in your matching art photo and you’ll get featured like we did!

Have a great day and happy photographing!  Comment below with your favorite Instagram feeds that you like to follow for inspiration!

 

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