About Time 50: Food Bloggers to Watch in 2016By Alicia Grimshaw
Here at About Time HQ, we believe in starting the year on a positive note. Come january, you can find us spending too much money on gratitude journals, drinking green juice, popping Chia seeds and buying sassy new running trainers, because we really do believe in our own ability to change, to grow, to learn.
And they say the best ways to improve your quality of life is to surround yourself with positive, inspiring people – thanks to the internet, you don’t even need to do that in person anymore. To celebrate positivity and inspiration, this year we’re launching our About Time 50 campaign. From food bloggers to cocktail mixologists, female entrepreneurs to rising chefs, each week we’ll be revealing a new list of incredible, high-achieving people to watch in 2016.
To kick things off, we’re delighted to announce the first in our series of inspiring people of 2016: the food bloggers list. From cake makers to vegan goddesses, these ten food bloggers are changing the face of the internet, one post, tweet and Instagram at a time. Grab a cup of tea and discover the top 10 food blogs to watch in 2016:
1. For Creativity: Top with Cinnamon
Photo Credit: Bea Duncan
Name: Izy Hossack
The Blog: Top with Cinnamon
The Story: Having started the blog when she was 15, Izy Hossack is a Londoner with a real passion for food. When she’s not busy in lectures studying Food Science and Nutrition at the University of Leeds, Izy documents her recipes and amazing food photography on her blog, Top With Cinnamon. In 2014, Izy released her cook book, Top With Cinnamon that includes 75 recipes from chickpea and pomegranate dip to pretzel cinnamon rolls – all at the tender age of 19.
Expect: A feast for your eyes and stomach. Ivy’s recipes include sweet and savoury dishes including dishes suitable for vegans and coeliacs to warming and wholesome eats. Each recipe post is complete with her own images, all beautifully styled and edited. Take our word for it – the cornbread with cinnamon sugar is smashing.
2. For Health: Livia’s Kitchen
Name: Olivia Wollenberg
The Blog: Livia’s Kitchen
Photo Credits: Livia’s Kitchen
The Story: Olivia Wollenberg, is the mastermind behind Livia’s Kitchen. After being diagnosed with whole host of food intolerances in 2014, Olivia had to totally change the way she ate – this meant finding delicious desserts madewithout wheat, dairy, refined sugar and preservatives. Alongside her blog, Olivia created a line of homemade crumbles and is planning to launch her ‘slab bites’ later this year.
Expect: While the recipes are free-from gluten, refined-sugar amongst other things, Livia’s Kitchen believes that it is more important to think about what a product is made-with, rather than what it is free-from. Get lost in dreamy sweet recipes – cranberry and honey flapjacks, raw ginger bread balls and blueberry porridge squares. Heaven.
3. For Photography: Candids by Jo
Name: Jo Yee
Blog: Candids by Jo
Photo Credits: Candids by Jo
The Story: A Boston Native, Jo moved to London in 2011. After 8 years in financial marketing, Jo cut the cord and quit to pursue a career as a full time freelance photographer in 2014. Candids by Jo is a lifestyle blog that focuses on London restaurants, far flung destinations and anything that’s edible.
Expect: A range of different blog post – all containing one similar elements, Jo’s stunning photos. The foodie posts are our favourite, they nearly make us lick our computer screen. Spy on what the afternoon tea looks like from the Sanderson Hotel, or menu tasting at the Imperial. The pictures do the talking on this blog, they’re all things of beauty.
4. For Home Cooking: From My Dining Table
Name: Skye McAlpine
The Blog: From My Dining Table
Photo Credit: Skye McAlpine
The Story: From My Dining Table is a blog that, well, is from Skye McAlpine’s dining table. It’s a collection of stories, antidotes and recipes from her beloved kitchen worktop. Raised in Venice, Skye has learnt to cook and eat like an Italian – pasta cooked correctly and tiramsu made the proper way. Skye is a big lover of home cooking and hosting large family dinners, which is reflected in her comfort food dishes found on her blog.
Expect: Come here for the recipes and stay for the photographs. Each recipe isn’t just a stand alone ingredients list and method, it’s more than that – it’s a story. Posts usually start with a musing of some sort or what happened over the weekend. The Apple Cake with Mascaprone and Amaretti is a must, if we can make it, anyone can.
5. For Wellness: Medicinal Kitchen
Name: Emma Kirke
The Blog: Medicinal Kitchen
Photo Credit: Medicinal Kitchen
The Story: Medicinal Kitchen is not just your run of your mill recipe blog. Emma Kirke, battled breast cancer and successfully overcame surgery following a double mastectomy through her own recovery meal plan. Medicinal Kitchen recommends not only various foods, but recipes as well as different fitness regimes.
Expect: Medicinal Kitchen is informative, without it being overwhelming or patronising. There’s plenty of recipes to choose from, with the it being more substance than arty, styled photos. If you still aren’t ready to let go of Christmas just yet, the mince pie pancakes are pretty special.
Name: Flora Shedden
The Blog: Flora Shedden
Photo Credit: Flora Shedden
The Story: Remember the young lady on this years Bake Off who proclaimed she was more used to baking in an aga rather than a typical oven, well, Flora Shedden is back to what she does best – baking. After her bake off success, Flora is back in the kitchen ruling up tea time treats, decadent desserts and that blueberry and macaron loaf that we can’t stop talking about.
Expect: The blog encompasses Flora’s passions – writing, cooking and photography. It’s truly a work of art, not only are the recipes easy to understand and follow (and, easy to find thanks to nifty sections), but they’re all beautifully presented. It will make your own Instagram pictures weak with envy.
7. For Experimenting: Cate in The Kitchen
Name: Cate
The Blog: Cate in The Kitchen
Photo Credit: Cate in The Kitchen
Story: We’ve been a big fan of Cate from the early days. Cate, who resides in Brighton spends her time reading about food, listening about food on podcasts and cooking food in her kitchen. Not a big meat eater herself, Cate’s blog features tastes tests on different products (vegan cheese, anyone?), as well as recipes and witty one liners that we enjoy.
Expect: Meat-free recipes that actually don’t need a hunk of meat to taste good. Recipes range from cupcakes, to green smoothies and any other dishes that takes Cate’s fancy. It’s a blog that doesn’t take itself too seriously and that’s why we like it. Oh, and look out for cute images of her Border Terrier.
8. For Bread & More: The Little Loaf
Name: Kate Doran
The Blog: The Little Loaf
Photo Credit: The Little Loaf
The Story: Kate Doran cooks up a storm on her blog, The Little Loaf, and let me just tell you it’s not just about bread. Having started her blog to document her baking beginnings, Kate released her own cookbook, Homemade Memories, last year. Think bakes with a hint of nostalgia, using simple, quality ingredients. You’re not just baking a recipe, you’re making memories from it and that’s what The Little Loaf blog wants to achieve.
Expect: It’s a whole heap of sweet recipes. We’re talking about macarons, pies, tarts, brownies and cookies. These recipes are made with the best ingredients around and a whole lotta love. For a Sunday lunch showstopper and to impress your mum, the fig and almond cake is a must.
9. For British Goodness: Rachel Phipps
Photo Credit: Nicole Anderson
Name: Rachel Phipps
The Blog: Rachel Phipps
Photo Credit: Rachel Phipps
The Story: Rachel Phipps self titled blog is a snapshot of her culinary adventures, both in the UK and overseas. Having spent time in California, and with regular trips to her second family home in France, Rachel’s cooking takes influence from both far and wide, with a hefty pinch of family recipes straight from her kitchen table in the rolling Kent countryside.
Expect: Not only does Rachel throw out some restaurant reviews, useful shopping tips and store cupboard favourites, the blog also features recipes for both food and cocktails. Bright, colourful pictures accompany each recipe that are easy to follow. Practical, if you will. Recipes also take inspiration from food Rachel has eaten on her travels that she reworks with her own twist. Sometimes you can’t beat your own creations.
10. For Nature’s Bounty: Food to Glow
Name: Kellie Anderson
The Blog: Food to Glow
The Story: The blog was started by Kellie Anderson, a food-obsessed Floridian living in Edinburgh, Scotland. She grew up eating Cuban and Florida-style foods – plenty of grouper sandwiches, hushpuppies and her mother’s piccadillo. She still loves these types of foods but has expanded her repertoire, and her blog features lots of fantastic recipes. Kellie is a health educationist and nutrition adviser with the estimable Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centres.
Expect: Food to Glow features the yummiest, enticing plant-based recipes. Meat, fish, dairy and sweet things have a look in but it’s really about the plants – their colours, tastes and versatility. There’s a focus on healthy eating, and lots of beautiful colours will be found all over the blog! Food To Glow is mainly plant-based, but you will find the occasional decadent treat – usually with a healthy tweak. It’s very vegan-friendly, too: most of the blog’s non-vegan recipes will have vegan alternatives, as well as gluten-free and soft food diet options where appropriate. We love.
