Who would have thought a monthly baking/styling challenge would be so delicious? For our November session Sarai baked this incredible chocolate cake with an infusion of warm, seasonal flavors such as applesauce, cinnamon, peanuts, and my new favorite — apple cider caramel.

When we started this, I just wanted to challenge my food styling and photographing, but now I’m wondering if I got the better end of the deal because I get to sample such fantastic flavors? Sarai is indeed a baking artist. Her rate is currently below the average in our area so I’d book her for your next baking need before she raises the prices again!

For the photography nerds: I used an on-camera flash for the purpose of adding drama, and to brighten a room past sunset (zero natural light, and only warm room lights). I played with wide depth of field for the cake, and narrow depth of field for the glass and slices of cake. Something fun to consider when playing with depth is having objects in multiple distances from the focal object in order to create a more dynamic image.

I wont blame you if you find yourself licking the screen. I wish you could have tasted it, too.