Sarah Bolla has been a friend of Perfect Bar for a couple of years now. Other than loving her stunning food photography, we have fallen in love again and again for her incredibly tasty recipes. One of our favorite things about Sarah is her creativity when it comes to creating these recipes. She is able to create delicious and beautiful recipes using our very own Perfect Bar! So, we thought who better than to chat with than Sarah about some tips & tricks to developing recipes and photographing her creations.

Check out some of the other recipes she created for us on The Hive and check out her website!

Get to Know Sarah Bolla of @lemonfirebrigade

Let’s start with your own health story – what has it been like?

My interest in health began around the time I picked up hot yoga 7 years ago. When I attended culinary school in New York in 2008, I had to eat and taste a lot of things and I didn’t always love how it made me feel. Shortly after, I became vegetarian due to health and ethical reasons and now maintaining a healthy and plant-based lifestyle is part of who I am. I love a really good warm donut or cinnamon roll every now and then though!

What has been the biggest challenge turned lesson you’ve learned along the way?

I’m lucky enough to live in my hometown of San Diego (and the home of Perfect Bar) where it’s easy to go outside, get some exercise, and find great food that fits my lifestyle. So really the only challenge for me is finding a balance between managing my workload and self-care.

As a food photographer, what is the hardest type of cuisine to shoot?

Some foods are better for eating than photographing. Restaurant burritos, one-dish casseroles, and foods that lack color can sometimes be tricky to make beautiful.

What is your number one piece of advice for people experimenting in the kitchen?

a). Don’t be afraid to not follow a recipe, it’s going to turn out great, just use nice ingredients. b). Taste along the way. Tinker with flavors, and try to understand your ingredients and their power at that moment. It will add a lot of love and soul to your creation. c). Don’t be afraid to use fat, to season, and to add some kind of acid in the mix. d). Follow up with a grinding, squeezing, drizzling, grating, or tossing to make your dish that more vivacious. These steps will help you get to something very delicious.

What is the must-do self-care practice that helps you stay balanced with your busy schedule?

Yoga sculpt and running. No matter what the rest of my day holds, I know that if I squeeze one of those in I feel good about my day. I also love to put music on while I cook and shoot.

And finally, what is your favorite Perfect Bar?

Super tough question, it would have to be between the limited edition Chocolate Hazelnut Crisp or the Dark Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter!

Want to try some of Sarah’s perfect recipes? Try these to start!

• Gluten-Free Peanut Butter Paprika Snickerdoodle Recipe
• Festive Peanut Butter Chocolate Bark Recipe
• Gluten Free Mocha Chip and Cardamom Marble Cake
• Squash Blossom Salad with Millet and Blueberries