I Could Never Be a Food Stylist

When I was growing up, we had a delightful neighbor that was a food stylist for General Mills. She let us in on a few unappetizing secrets about the food biz. The only one I really remember is that they varnished raw turkeys to make them look so amazing in their Thanksgiving cookbooks. She told us that they used blow torches on almost a daily basis, which got me thinking that food styling just might be in my future. When she told me that she once spent several hours with a tweezers and shredded cabbage, I wrote off that career option for good.

The above picture is another reason why I will never be a food stylist. First of all, I refuse to waste food to take pictures of it. So, the picture above is dinner and I'm hungry. And I'm getting the weird faces from D and Young One that I get when I play with my food. And, you can see my shadow. And there's a renegade tomato seed and a piece of purple cabbage that looks like dirt. But, I snapped it anyway.

Most likely, if I hadn't pointed out any of this, you wouldn't have really noticed or cared.

My point? Good food isn't always pretty. The giant burritos from one of my favorite taco joints in town would crack camera lenses (and are guaranteed to stain your shirt). My mom's potato dumplings look suspiciously like wallpaper paste. Gravy is ugly. The Hamentashen cookies from the Jewish deli are a delicious, but kind of lumpy looking cookie.

I'll still try to capture food, the best that I can. I think it helps tempt you to try the recipe. But, please forgive me for some ugliness. I'm hungry when I'm snapping these pics and I can only wait so long!

Tilapia Tacos
You could sub just about any delicate, white fleshed fish. Each taco equals 4 WW Points.

3/4 cup fat free sour cream
1 can chopped green chilies
1 TB fresh cilantro, optional (I don't like it, so I leave it out)
1 TB lime juice

Whirl all the above ingredients in a food processor until well blended.

6 Tilapia fillets, 4 ounces each
1 cup all purpose flour
2 egg whites, beaten
1 cup Japanese Panko crumbs
1 TB canola oil
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp each cayenne pepper, white pepper, and paprika
12 corn tortillas
1 (or 2) large tomato, chopped
shredded cole slaw mix or shredded lettuce, optional

Cut each tilapia fillet lengthwise into two portions. Heat nonstick pan over medium high heat. Meanwhile, place egg on one plate, flour and seasonings on another plate, and Panko crumbs on another plate. Place oil in pan (or sub with nonstick cooking spray). Dip fillet pieces into flour, then egg, then bread crumbs and into hot pan. Fry 4-5 minutes each side. Serve on warmed tortillas with 2 TB sauce, chopped tomatoes, and shredded greens.