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Food Blogger Interview: Yosef Silver of ThisAmericanBite

Dishfolio boasts of some of the best and most creative food bloggers who can rock it with a chef's knife and a camera all in the same breath! That's why it's such a pleasure to interview and get to know them. Today, Yosef Silver of ThisAmericanBite took the time out to give us an interview and share his insights about cooking and photography. In his own words, his blog is, "A fresh approach to home-cooking focusing on real ingredients that everyone in the family will enjoy. I write with a healthy slant, many of my recipes are vegan and my recipes are always Kosher."

Tell us about your food blogging goals: What are they? How are you accomplishing them?

My food blog blogging goals are always evolving - I like to push myself in the kitchen and express it with my writing. I'll get really excited when another foodie tells me I have done something innovative or when someone tells me they cooked one of my recipes. If just one person gives up processed food for one night a week because of my writing, I feel like I will have made an impact.

Of innovative cooking ingredients you've tried, which was the hardest to find or use?

Cooking with Jackfruit was a trip… this is a stinky, large, rubbery fruit that transforms into a delicious meat-alternative. You can buy it in a can, but of course, I went for the real deal when making my vegan jackfruit BBQ. More recently, my ginger wasabi cookies got people's attention, especially as I don't bake all that often, and one of my most viewed recipes this year is my purple pickled egg.

Who is your foodie hero and how do they inspire you?

So many… I love the way Tyler Florence and Michael Symon approach cooking. As an author, I love Anthony Bourdain, and I find Ina Garten to be so relaxing to watch at work. There are a number of food bloggers I look to, mainly through our group of "Kosher Connection" writers, for inspiration as we brainstorm ideas and recipes off of each other almost daily.

What ethical food issues get you talking with your friends and family?

I'm all about real food and real ingredients. You can eat really well and it doesn't have to take hours in the kitchen. Dinner should be served around the table, free from iPhones and TV screens so you can spend time with each other at the end of the day. The food industry in the US is complicated and the more I learn about it, the more I want to take control of what my family and I eat. People will sometimes raise eyebrows when you say "vegan" or "gluten free" but I do what I believe to be right. Whole food, real ingredients and balance are staples in our kitchen.

Describe your all-time favorite recipe.

My all time favorite recipe… do I have to choose one? I love my quinoa stuffed turkey, my lamb wellington and my lamb-stock grilled polenta… equally!

How many cookbooks do you own and which do you reach for most often?

Our cookbook collection is always expanding. Aromas of Aleppo stands proudly in my kitchen alongside Culinary Artistry, a book by Andrew Dorenburg and Karen Page that I refer to almost daily.

If you had to choose a kitchen tool you couldn't live without, what would it be and why?

A chef's knife. Everything else is noise.

What's next? How will you make yours the best food blog in town?

I'd love to publish a book one day, it's been a dream since I was in grade school. I've toyed with the idea of self-publishing or writing an ebook, and I can't rule it out, but I'd love to get a call from the Harvard Common Press or Quayside Publishing!