Meet Hudson Valley Cookbook Author, Food Stylist, Chef + Photographer, Melina Hammer

We are Upstate NY with Melina Hammer, an award-winning cookbook author, expert recipe developer, avid gardener, forager, food stylist, photographer and the co-owner of Catbird Cottage, an iconic B&B run out of her home in Accord, New York. Melina’s work has been featured in The New York Times, Edible, Food52, Bon Appetit, Eating Well and Blue Apron, amongst others.

Along with her husband Jim Lafferty (also a successful commercial photographer), Melina embraces the value of slow living, connecting with community, and nurturing friends, family and guests. Their coveted social gatherings are celebrated with deliciously curated meals–nothing too extravagant, all seasonally inspired with locally sourced, grown or foraged ingredients. Melina’s culinary creations are a big part of the success of Catbird Cottage. Guests love the cozy, casual elegance of a stay at Catbird, and many book a stay to indulge in the seasonally-inspired meals and warm hospitality offered by Melina and Jim.

About a week After our chat with Melina for this interview, we learned of the exciting news–she had just won a 2023 IACP Award for her cookbook A Year at Catbird Cottage for best food photography and styling. Congratulations Melina, we are so excited for you. We happily added your cookbook to our home collection and look forward to our upcoming winter project… cooking our way through Catbird Cottage!

Her excitement came through loud and clean on instagram:

“Y’ALL, I JUST WON A BOOK AWARD!…I am over the moon, because I created the images and styled it all myself. The idea of @catbirdcottage originated with humble beginnings, and, after years of feeding people around our table, I’ve been on a wonderful, wild ride that ended up here. Which I guess means don’t ever give up on your dreams, because anything is possible.”

If you’re a foodie and love to cook, definitely follow @melinahammer on instagram. Along with over 82K followers, you’ll enjoy Melina’s delightful musings, seasonal tips, and fabulous recipes. Without further ado, let’s meet Hudson Valley local- Melina Hammer and experience her way of living, eating and nurturing.

Where are you originally from, and how did you wind up in the Hudson Valley? 

I grew up in Detroit, in the city proper. This bears mentioning because while still a young girl, there were tens of thousands of layoffs, which meant a lot of devastation for the local community. While I experienced various threatening moments throughout this chapter, I became a better person because of it. I’m proud to call Detroit my hometown. Brooklyn was the last stop on a journey of living in various large cities over the years. After a stint in Birmingham, Alabama, I yearned for the solace of nature, front and center in my life. As a result, we set out to solidify that and found our humble cottage. Living here has brought me great joy, and I haven’t looked back since. In my time here, I’ve cultivated an entirely new skill set, bringing foraging into my day-to-day and becoming a full-on gardener, deepened my overall sensitivity to nature, and grown connections with my local community – all of which I’m immensely grateful for.

When did you realize you wanted to be a food stylist, and what was your journey?

My first career was as a metalsmith, and that is what I pursued in art school. After our move to NYC, I found myself making numerous tradeoffs to make it work. My pieces were labor-intensive, one-of-a-kind artworks. Even with pieces in collections around the world, I didn’t have enough clients or notoriety to pay all the bills consistently. Ultimately, it felt like the exchange just wasn’t adding up. After a heart-to-heart with my husband, I pivoted to explore food photography since I’d recently won a grant for fine art photography (a parallel pursuit to the metal). I had a love of food and visual aesthetics. This was a way to merge the two. It wasn’t until I became more familiarized with this field that I realized everyone worked as part of a team, and I didn’t have one. So, I began the work of developing discernment about great foods and studying the work of people already established in the industry. A serendipitous early experience led me to two food greats, Jon Rowley and Betty Fussell, who became my mentors. They fast-tracked my understanding of what “great food” actually was, and along with a few New York City chefs whom I respected, reshaped my approach. From there, the many commissioned projects where I was both in charge of the photography as well as the styling brought me closer and closer to the food: the character of ingredients, discovering unusual ingredients, and ways into storytelling based on what was–and wasn’t–present on a plate.

Tell us about your cookbook, A Year At Catbird Cottage. Was it a natural progression from food styling? 

I was well established as a food stylist and photographer, operating as a one-woman show to meet deadlines for The New York Times Food section. I picked up an IACP styling award along the way. Once I moved to the Hudson Valley, I knew I would need to grow my career beyond commercial food work, and I was ready for it. Over time, my sharing food via Instagram really struck a chord with my audience, so we decided to open our home to host intimate dinner gatherings – “eating events,” I called them, and build humanity at the table. 

A Year at Catbird Cottage evolved from hosting guests over the span of a few years, to pulling from the seasonally driven celebration menus I’d curated. This was the inspiration to share deeper storytelling and my own learning process with a much larger audience. When I realized what “my voice” was in the sea of information – that there were crucial things I wanted to contribute – it set the ball in motion to bring A Year at Catbird Cottage to life.

You’re also a photographer! Did you shoot your book, A Year at Catbird Cottage? Plus, it was recently nominated for an IACP award. Congratulations! What does this mean for you?

Thank you so much! The category in which I have been nominated is for Outstanding Photography and Styling. This feels particularly affirming, as I personally was the one who photographed and styled my own book. It’s huge just to receive the nomination and be included with other terrific authors in the category, such as Rick Martinez and Elle Simone. If I win, that will be icing on the cake. (Update: She won!)

Are you a commercial photographer for hire? 

Most definitely. I love ushering a project start-to-finish with clients, similar to how I collaborated with Julia Turshen for her best-selling, most recent book, Simply Julia. To be entrusted to breathe life into a burgeoning thing and cultivate all the layers is very gratifying!

Your husband, Jim Lafferty, is also a photographer. Do you collaborate on projects?

While we often work on different subject matter (Jim is an incredibly talented portraitist and lyrically captures some of the most talented professional dancers around), we do team up with a few clients: we have collaborated with Maya Kaimal, a wonderful brand *and human*, and most recently, we have been producing the vegetable collection catalogs for Row 7 Seeds. It is extremely fulfilling to partner at home at the cottage, then tap into our various talents out in the world and do so professionally.

What type of camera equipment do you use? Do you shoot videos as well?

I work with the Nikon system. When I won a grant for my urban ruins abstractions in 2001, I used some of the funds to invest in Nikon (film cameras), using some National Geographic photographers’ preferences as my guide. Over the years, we’ve brought in new bodies and lenses and stayed constant with the brand. I regularly create the now-ubiquitous Stories and Reels on my Instagram, done more informally on my iPhone. I’m always exploring and pushing myself to learn new ways to express my vision. The phone affords an immediate way to shoot and edit video. It was initially a grind, but now I’m immersed in it, and it’s even fun.

What would be your dream assignment as a chef + photographer?

I’d love to be commissioned to travel to Italy, spending a month or two as an artist-in-residence and meeting artisan food makers, developing a deeper connection to age-old processes and regional specialties, and documenting the entire process with beautiful imagery. I’d like to repeat this experience in Japan and Vietnam and take this model to other areas.

How do you decide what projects to focus on: food, writing, photography?

As I further my path, lacing in my philosophy and working with intention becomes ever more important. I care about investing in projects that speak to the earth, sensuality, and sustainability grounded in amazing ingredients.

What is one question you’re constantly asked, or what’s the biggest misconception about your work?

People outside the industry have an outdated reference point for what food photography and styling encompasses. By and large, nearly all food on all photo sets is real, edible food. Another misconception is that once you’re an author, you live off your books. Many accomplished authors need multiple income streams to sustain themselves unless a book achieves celebrity bestseller status.

What is your favorite aspect of being a photographer, food stylist and writer? Do you have more of a passion for one over the other?

The visual work comes quite intuitively and immediately for me. The writing is a real discipline. While I don’t crave writing, once I commit and sit and begin, a wellspring usually reveals itself. That tension, however, is ever-present. I love seizing on an ingredient or recipe, and just knowing that I’ll find a means to make it tantalizing… using food’s visceral, sensual reality to make a dish irresistible is so fun.

What are you working on now that you’re excited about?

I have just come off of an incredibly dynamic summer, hosting three intimate popup dinner events on our hillside, as well as a 46-person family-style feast at the Starlite Motel. It’s been wonderful. While part of me is ready to slow down, I am also thinking about my next book, gathering elements to shape what it will become. Stay tuned!

Tell us more about Catbird, your amazing dinner soirees, and whether you have special events planned throughout the year.

Catbird Cottage itself is a humble, beautiful space filled with still-life arrangements curated from travels, family heirlooms, and natural ephemera. I have also cultivated multiple gardens in the time we’ve lived here. On our mossy hillside there are pollinator gardens, edible and medicinal plants, and a raised bed garden, where each season, I devise a map for growing favorite heirloom veggies, plus new culinary edibles I am eager to experiment with. Many of these make appearances in the three and four course dinners we host. When guests come to dine, they receive a snapshot bursting with wild and cultivated ingredients that frame that season. For instance, I love hunting wild mushrooms: this year, there were so many oyster mushroom fruitings that I made oyster mushroom duxelles and created a handmade stuffed pasta course incorporating them for one of our popup experiences. There were also collaborative events such as the Summer Fête event at the Starlite – a big family-style affair loaded with favorite summer hits. The coursed dinners are an ongoing offering – if you’re four or more people and can plan ahead, drop me a line to plan a special dinner experience like no other.

What is it about the Hudson Valley that makes it unique to live + work here?

There is such abundant beauty and a wealth of wild foods in our region. Every season brings with it a special charm. Add to that the layers of people here who appreciate unique dishes made with these ingredients. This creates a unique opportunity to grow relationships.

What are some of your favorite places that you most frequent?

As a chef, because I have my own discernment towards ingredients and how I want to eat, it is more complicated to find a meal that really stimulates me. That said, we love Feast & Floret. I love the deeply flavorful, inventive dishes they offer, and there’s always something on their menu that is divine. That, and Hudson Food Studio… by the time this piece goes live, they will have permanently shuttered, but Chef Dave’s rendition of ramen featured so many excellent layers! Though I cannot eat pizza often (I’m not 25 anymore), I also love the grandma pie at Ollie’s – the extra-savory sauce is killer. The fermented dough makes an excellent chew. And the cocktails at both Darlings and Silvia make me swoon!

What impact does your business have on your town/community?

In my book, I speak extensively about the special beauty of our region, how fertile our land is, and more ways to connect with nature (and ourselves). As a chef, I am constantly pulling from the wealth of ingredients from my local community, whether it is local farm stands and farmers or unique provisions from Mom + Pop places like Cheese Louise and Adam’s. I am also building humanity at the table with each dinner I dream up. These shared experiences become interwoven as part of people’s next great memories. When I think of this aspect, I feel extremely grateful I can contribute in this way to people’s lives.

What local businesses do you rely on to be successful?

I love sourcing from Adam’s Fairacre Farms, Mother Earth’s Storehouse, the Meat Wagon, Catskill Wagyu, Cheese Louise, Fox & Hound, and The Green Cottage.

What is missing in the area that you wish we had?

I intensely wish we had more quality cuisine representing food from around the world, including Vietnamese, Mexican, Peruvian, Indian, Spanish, Portuguese, and others. These foods are often healthier than the fried chicken-pizza-burger offerings so widely available and are always so flavorful.

Tell us something about yourself that people might be surprised to know.

My grandparents fled the Holocaust and landed in Ecuador. Years later, my grandfather ended up moving back to Europe, which meant my immediate family visited him in Switzerland multiple times, creating some of the dearest experiences of my childhood.

What would be your dream local Staycation?

I’m not trying to be funny, but actually roaming the gardens and mossy hillside at Catbird Cottage! Forest bathing is one of my favorite things to do – I’m always discovering something new, even on my own property. I’d pair that with a jaunt out to one or a couple of my favorite restaurants for an extra treat.

What is your current state of mind?

Great question! I am feeling grateful and reflective. This was an ambitious season, which went off with few complications. I made new friends in the process, cooked a LOT of amazing food to enthusiastic responses, and challenged myself with new creative explorations. I want to build on this going forward, but as a freelance/self-employed person, the path is never really obvious. So, what’s next? I’m going to take some needed downtime to imagine what the future will bring. Obviously, it will have fantastic food… will I teach workshops again? Dive deep into my next book. Find a bigger outlet to create delicious menus for people. Partner with a new client to actualize a gorgeous project? So many possibilities…

“I am interested in every one of us falling in love with food so much that in a daily way, we are met with joyful eating” – Melina Hammer

+ + +

Follow Melina Hammer >  Website  | @melinahammer | @catbirdcottage | Tiktok

2023 IACP Winner, A Year at Catbird Cottage 
2020 IACP Nomination | Best Food Instagram
2018 IACP Award | Best Food Styling

 

Click HERE to see all of our exclusive interviews with the amazing folks who proudly call the Hudson Valley home.