Hi, I'm Julia! Welcome to my food blog JuliasAlbum.com which I founded in 2012 to share my favorite recipes in hopes that other people would also enjoy them. I live with my husband in a small town in beautiful Colorado where idyllic nature and dramatic mountains are my backdrop and my playground when I am not in the kitchen. I develop, test, and make all the recipes you see on my site in my kitchen and do all of the photography and writing. I do not hire any of that out. What you see on my site is the real food that I eat (together with my husband, other family, and friends).
What type of recipes can you expect to find on my website?
- Savory recipes. I don't have a big sweet tooth, so pretty much all my recipes are savory dishes. I do post an occasional dessert once in a while, but I'm definitely not a dessert person.
- Easy weeknight dinner recipes. The vast majority of my recipes are main courses, usually featuring some kind of protein (chicken, pork, lamb, beef, or seafood) together with vegetables (or fruits). I use spices and many other ingredients to make my dinner recipes flavorful and fun. My recipes are usually high in protein and rich in fiber.
- Pasta recipes. A lot of my dinner recipes are pasta dishes featuring a variety of pasta (spaghetti, fettuccine, orzo, gnocchi, ravioli, tortellini, etc) combined with cooked veggies and protein (usually chicken, salmon, shrimp, or scallops). I usually make a yummy sauce to go with pasta (sometimes creamy, sometimes not).
- Salads. I make it a habit to eat a salad every day, either as part of dinner or for lunch. You'll find new salad recipes posted on my website regularly. You can easily add your favorite protein (such as rotisserie chicken, leftover cooked chicken, salmon, shrimp, etc.) to most of my salads to turn them into a complete meal.
- 30-Minute One-Pan recipes. Most of my recipes are pretty simple and can be done in about 30 minutes using only one cooking pan. You can expect more and better simple 30-minute one-pan dishes from me going forward.
- Gluten-free recipes. A lot of my recipes are naturally gluten-free or can be easily adjusted to be gluten-free.
- Easily adjustable recipes. Most of my recipes can be adjusted to be dairy-free, meatless, or gluten-free. I started providing tips about these adjustments and will make it into a system going forward.
My recipes are inspired by the seasons
I use whole foods and seasonal ingredients and make sure that my meals are well-balanced, nutritious, delicious, and fun. Many of my recipes are inspired by seasons and use a wide variety of seasonal ingredients.
- Autumn-inspired recipes. In the Fall, I publish a lot of butternut squash, acorn squash, and spaghetti squash recipes. When apples are in season from July through December - I try to utilize them in my dinners or salads. During September, October, and November, I like to incorporate ingredients we often associate with Fall (such as pecans, dried cranberries, mandarin oranges, and pumpkin) into my recipes.
- In the Summer, I always make use of fresh tomatoes, homemade basil pesto, and fresh berries. I love the peach season which usually runs from July to September. I incorporate fresh corn into my dinners and salads from May to September. I love fresh cherries from June to August.
My food philosophy
The recipes that I publish on my website are real meals that I cook for myself, my family, and my friends. They reflect the way I eat and my philosophy of using a wide variety of ingredients. I use whole foods and seasonal ingredients and make sure that my meals are well-balanced featuring protein, veggies, fiber, complex carbs, and adequate amounts of fat.
- PROTEIN-RICH and FIBER-RICH RECIPES. I prefer to eat protein-rich dinners that usually feature one of my favorite proteins (chicken, beef, salmon, shrimp, scallops, lamb, etc) accompanied by cooked or fresh vegetables and fruits - prepared in a simple, delicious, and flavorful way. I usually serve my dinners with complex carbohydrates that are packed with fiber, which includes a large variety of fiber-rich veggies (asparagus, broccoli, bell peppers, leafy greens, Brussels sprouts, and many others - too many to list). Some of my favorite complex carbs are sweet potatoes, butternut squash, spaghetti squash, and fiber-rich fruits and veggies. I also love beans, wild rice, and quinoa.
- LOW-CARB AND MOSTLY GLUTEN-FREE. I prefer eating mostly low-carb and gluten-free foods. I do eat high-quality protein-based pasta about 3 times a week (see next point below).
- FLAVORFUL PASTA DISHES. I eat pasta dishes about 3 times a week. I always eat pasta with some kind of protein (usually chicken, steak, or seafood) and some kind of veggies. Often smothered in a delicious creamy or cheese-based sauce.
Fun facts about me
- I have an identical twin sister and she is a full-time food blogger, too! We grew up as best friends, always creating things as kids. We made clothes from scratch for our dolls (and for ourselves!). We even made our own dolls from scratch. As adults, now, we both have translated those skills into creating recipes from scratch.
- My educational background. Before food blogging, I finished my MBA (Master's Degree in Business Administration) with a specialization in Supply Chain Management, no less! 🙂 I could have been managing a warehouse or procuring equipment or spare parts for a manufacturing plant at this very moment. But here I am, food blogging instead!
- I love naturally orange foods and regularly eat naturally colored orange veggies and fruits, such as butternut squash, sweet potatoes, carrots, beets (both orange and red), oranges, peaches, apricots, mango, persimmons, and papaya. There is something about the orange color in fruits and vegetables that makes them irresistible to me. My recipes reflect my love for orange foods.
- I traveled extensively between 2016 and 2019 and published a lot of useful international travel articles about places to visit, and things to do - if you love to travel, you might like them. I traveled through Southeast Asia (Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Thailand), Europe (Italy, United Kingdom, France, Switzerland, Monaco), the Caribbean (Barbados), the Middle East (United Arab Emirates), and Canada.
Connection with nature
One of the most important parts of my life is feeling a connection with nature. I live in a very small town in Colorado, with the most picturesque mountains and groves of aspen trees and evergreens at my doorstep. I like hiking steep terrain in the wilderness (usually alone, but sometimes with my husband and friends) as a way to keep myself in decent shape through regular (and challenging) physical activity. Being outdoors in nature keeps me both physically and mentally balanced, it energizes me and recharges my batteries. Food blogging can be a lonely journey with a lot of time spent indoors, in the kitchen, or being glued to a computer screen. Getting outside and physically challenging myself while being nurtured by nature makes everything better: it improves my mood and sleep, lowers stress, gives me energy and motivation, and simply makes me a happier person.
Featured On
- My recipes have been featured on major sites, such as Huffington Post, Country Living, Good Housekeeping, Parade, The Kitchn, Delish, Brit+Co, Food Network, BUZZFEED, PUREWOW, and Greatist.
- For a detailed list of some of my recipes featured on these sites + links to those features, check out my Press page.
Join me on Social Media!
- My Facebook page has 950,000 followers.
- My Pinterest account has 700,000 followers.
- My Instagram account has 100,000 followers.
Subscribe to my recipes by e-mail:
- Subscribe to my e-mail list here and I will send you delicious recipes every week. You will also get an email every time I publish a new recipe. The subscription is 100% free and you can unsubscribe at any time!
- How to UNSUBSCRIBE? At the bottom of all my e-mails is the Unsubscribe link - scroll all the way down to the bottom of an e-mail and click on it - you will be unsubscribed!
SAVE YOUR FAVORITE RECIPES in one convenient spot on my site (create a RECIPE BOX)
- Save your favorite recipes to your RECIPE BOX. Click on a HEART in the lower right corner of any recipe TO SAVE it, and it will appear here. Click on the TAG next to the heart icon to access your FAVORITES.
- Create an account to find your saved favorites by clicking on the saved tag next to the heart, or click the magnifying glass (search function).
The best way to contact me and get me to respond
- The best way to reach me (and get my response) is to comment on any recipe on this website or on this ABOUT page in the comments section below even if you'd like to communicate about something that doesn't have anything to do with a particular recipe. I always see your comments! And, if you indicate that your comment is private, I won't publish it. You can email me at inquiriesjulia { at } gmail { dot } com but my email gets cluttered and it's very very likely I might miss your message if you email me. See more at my contact page.
I am very happy that you landed on my website!
I love hearing your feedback about my recipes (both positive and negative - it helps me grow). I always see your comments and try to respond promptly. I just updated my homepage (as of October 2023) - it now provides a very good overview of my recipes - I highly encourage you to check out my homepage for helpful navigation! If you'd like to see my most recent food creations, you can find my latest recipes here.
Dee Newman
That is sooooooo helpful Julia. Thanks so much for sharing.
Dee Newman
I love love love your pictures Julia. I am about to buy a new camera. Can you share you photography gear?
Julia
Hi Dee! My gear is embarrassingly simple and cheap. 🙂 I have a very old Nikon D80 DSLR camera (camera body) that is not produced any more, but you can buy used ones for about $300! That's cheap! But the most important part is actually the lense - the lense that I use is a very basic 50mm Nikon lense - Nikon Normal AF Nikkor 50mm f/1.8D Autofocus Lens. It costs around $100 - I bought it several years ago at B&H (http://www.bhphotovideo.com/). This $100 lense is truly a classic - it will fit just about any Nikon camera body and it's excellent for food photos or portraits!
Himanshu
I loved your blog. It is full of so many yummy recipes. Will try some from here soon and let you know 🙂
Natalie
I absolutely adore your blog and can't wait to try out some of your recipes.
Your photographs are absolutely mouth-watering too!
Julia
You're so sweet, thank you! I am glad you're visiting and enjoying the recipes and the photos!
Nancy P.@thebittersideofsweet
Hi Julia, you just commented on my blog so I popped over to take a look. You have amazing dishes and pictures! I also have an identical twin! I have mentioned her in a few of my post, I refer to her as my twinny! Look forward to reading more post!
Julia
Another set of twins! How fun!
Juan Beltran
Hi Julia,
I'm hoping I can connect with you via email (apologies if you have your address somewhere on your blog - I browsed everywhere and couldn't find it!). I have a blog suggestion that I'd like to share with you. Can you shoot me an email when you get the chance?
Best,
Juan
Eat Well and Sleep
Hey Julia,
Great blog. Great photography. Glad I found you. Are you on Twitter? Can't find a link if you are.
Julia
No, I am not. I am ashamed to admit I've never used twitter. For now, I am on Pinterest and Facebook.
Julie Thomson
Hi! I'm working on a round-up of agave dessert recipes for The Huffington Post Taste. I'd love to include your crepes with ricotta filling recipe. Please contact me if you're interested. Thanks!
Liz
Hi Julia, Thanks for stopping by my site today! Love your pics and recipes. I'll be stopping by often! 🙂
Marcela
Hi Julia! Thanks for passing by my blog and leaving such a lovely comment. Beautiful recipes, beautiful pictures, congratulations!
Also, how nice to read that you are a twin. I have (fraternal) twins myself!
Have a wonderful weekend!
Julia
Thanks for visiting back! It's fun to have twins, I am sure. They are usually such buddies!
Natasha @ Natasha's Kitchen
Great website Julia, I will be checking in regularly from now on :). Looking forward to try your recipes.
Julia
Thank you! I loved your blog and happy to see you visiting mine!
Holly | Beyond Kimchee
I love your site, the recipe, the photography and everything else. Looking forward to seeing many great recipes from your blog.
Julia
Thank you for such a sweet comment!
Olga
Great photos here!
Julia
Thank you!
Jean | Delightful Repast
Julia, love your blog. But, my goodness, I hope you're not going to try to keep up this frequency of posting - with a husband, two energetic dogs and a corporate job - whew! Love "peasant" food - hate things like sous vide and other trendy nonsense! 😀
Julia
Thank you! You're right, keeping the blog is not as easy as it seemed before I started it :). It takes a lot of time investment for sure!
Ana
Hi Julia! I just found you (thanks for stopping by on my blog) and I'm in awe of your photography and cooking skills. You're amazing! If you just started this blog then I can't wait to see where this goes! Everything about it is already perfection. I will definitely follow you and can't wait to make some of your delicious recipes. Thanks for sharing!
Julia
I LOVED photography on your site! Thank you for your kind words - it will be fun to follow your blog!