Ariyani

Tedjo

Talam Ubi. Steamed layer cake of sweet potato and coconut milk that originated from Betawi cuisine in Jakarta, Indonesia. Usually the cakes are steamed in small cups, but the ones here are done in a large tray then cut into small squares. The cakes are then garnished with yellow ixora flowers from the garden.

A play with gum paste flowers and butterfly. I found these lovely gum paste flowers and wafer paper butterflies while browsing an online marketplace; then decided to give a try. The result?
Truly beautiful! I also use dried baby's breaths as fill-in. I chose to use cupcakes instead of larger cake as they can be played around in several composition styles.

Tempe or tempeh. Soybean cake from Indonesia, a healthy traditional vegan food that sees increasing popularity. The tempeh is cut into cubes and arranged on a large stoneware mortar; garnished with a basil leaves and a vintage knife. A crumpled Batik cloth is placed near the mortar. Larges pieces of the tempeh slices are placed on a stacked of bamboo plates.

Six traditional Indonesian meat and vegetable dishes of assorted flavors, textures and colors as accompaniments to steamed rice (not included in the scene). Each of the dishes is plated in small saucer and arranged on a tray. The dishes are Ayam Woku (Minahasan / Manadonese chicken in chopped green chili peppers), Sambal Goreng Lodeh (Javanese spicy vegetable curry). Tumis Oncom Leunca (Sundanese stir-fried soy cake and nightshade berry), Kering Tempe (peanut and tempeh crisps), Telur Balado (Minangnese egg in crushed red chili peppers) and Kerupuk (rice crackers). Some leaves are used as decorations and positioned to create the sense of depth of field.

Fresh red kidney beans in pods. My mother found these red beans while shopping in a fresh market; she then bought them and shared some with me. So happy to get beautiful, fresh beans in pods, so I decided to make a few shots of them. I opened three pods and found that each of them has different color and pattern combinations; one has more red with only speckles of white, one is white with very pale red speckles and the other is white with red speckles. By making a close-up shot, I could expose the details of beans.