Knowledge Base › Char Nolan & Cathy Katin-Grazzini - Chef vs Chef

For a cook book is there a work around if you have some of your recipes photos but some you don’t. My husband is who’s also a photographer suggested I just cook those meals that need to be photographed.

Chef vs Chef

Char Nolan & Cathy Katin-Grazzini - Chef vs Chef

Recorded

This event was on January 21, 2025

Join Chef Char Nolan and her special guest, author and Rouxbe grad, Cathy Katin-Grazzini the author of Love the Foods that Love the Planet, Recipes to Cool the Climate and Excite the Senses.(HCI, 2024). Cathy Katin-Grazzini’s life took a dramatic turn when a health crisis in her family led her to embark on a transformative health journey. Join us for an intimate conversation with Chef Char and Cathy as they share their experiences, delve into the world of recipe development, food photography, and the profound impact of a plant-based lifestyle on the environment. Prepare to be captivated by their warm and engaging discussion.

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Question

Toni Crawford

For a cook book is there a work around if you have some of your recipes photos but some you don’t. My husband is who’s also a photographer suggested I just cook those meals that need to be photographed.?

Answer

Geez, you know, uh, we didn't really have a chance to really talk about publishing, uh, too much, but really depends if you're interested in, in doing a cookbook. So many cookbooks are so visual right now because people really eat with their eyes and sometimes people buy cookbooks just for the photographs, you know, I don't even know if they cook the dishes, the dishes half the time. Um, but so I would encourage you to just, you know, photograph away, get your, you know, entice your husband with some tasty meals because it might help you attract a, an agent and ultimately a publisher. But of course not every cookbook has a million, uh, photographs. So, you know, there are differences. Plenty of them don't. So, um, you know, uh, it's certainly less expensive for a publisher to publish without the photography, uh, for every recipe. So, you know, you might be able to succeed that way too. There's probably no single answer to that question. I don't think there is a single answer. And I will say that I have purchased many books thinking, oh my gosh, look at these photos, and then at the end read that they're stock photos from a certain place, and that the book that I'm speaking of, uh, was wildly popular. So I think it all depends on wow, your budget and everything else.

Char Nolan & Cathy Katin-Grazzini

Chefs

*Char Nolan* is a serious crusader for plant-based education, armed with a degree in public health from Philadelphia’s Temple University. She teaches nutrition and plant-based cooking throughout Philadelphia, and in many underserved communities. Char holds a certificate in plant-based nutrition from eCornell and completed Rouxbe’s Plant-Based Professional Certification course in 2015. In 2019, Char completed post-graduate course work in social media marketing at the University of the Arts. When she is not cooking or teaching, she manages social media accounts for several plant-based influencers. Char prides herself on learning everything she knows about cooking from growing up in her grandparents’ Italian restaurant. Her favorite vegetables are Brussels sprouts and kale, of course. Char originally hails from Queens, NY, but has lived in Philadelphia most of her adult life. She is a former Peace Corps Volunteer. *Cathy Katin-Grazzini* is a sustainable chef, and author of the Love the Foods that Love the Planet, Recipes to Cool the Climate and Excite the Senses(HCI Books, 2024) and Love the Foods that Love You Back, Clean, Healthy, Vegan Recipes for Everyone (Rizzoli, 2022), both photographed by Giordano Katin-Grazzini. In addition to developing healthy, climate friendly recipes from around the world, Cathy is a culinary instructor, teaches about the environmental and nutritional impacts of our food choices, and helps people take steps towards a greener, healthier lifestyle. Cathy manages her food blog, cathyskitchenprescription.com, and since 2015, has offered cooking classes, lifestyle counseling, and run corporate employee wellness programs. From 2017-2022 Cathy was Food Editor for VEGWORLD Magazine. In 2024 Cathy attended Climate Reality Leadership Corp’s NYC Training program. She and her husband Giordano Katin-Grazzini live in Ridgefield, Connecticut.