Art in Food? Food as Art?

Not exactly an artistic endeavor but a creative one? When I limit myself to just posting about art, in its 2 dimensional form, the results are inconsistent posting. As I continued my daily agonizing over not having done anything creative (art) and equally not posting, it came to me that I could be posting about any creative process I go through on a daily basis. When the art of collage or drawing or painting won't manifest itself on demand what else do I do that is fun, playful and creative in a different way?

Thinking, thinking, thinking...slap on forehead - PLAY WITH YOUR FOOD! I tried a recipe from a book - Andrew Schloss www.amazon.com/Homemade-Hurry-Shortcut-Recipes-Delicious/dp/081184899X/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1253829985&sr=1-5
I used a banana and chutney - A. Schloss asked for Grey's chutney but I picked up an Apple-cranberry chutney from Trader Joe's. This red jellied goodness supported my autumnal mood. Anyway, you mix melted butter with the chutney and spread it on split bananas and run it under the broiler till bubbly and browning. I served it with French Vanilla ice-cream putting an a la mode spin on it. My autumnal plates from Martha Stewart and ooo...la...la!

So, what was creative about that? Well, taking a recipe and tweaking it with my own tastes might be considered minimally creative. Ah, but the photo! The photo was to record my endeavor before the ice melted and it all went pass my taste buds. The question is, how to make food look appetizing in a photo to get those salivary glands going and get someone to want to try the recipe out. I am not a photographer by training - completely an amateur but it was fun. I took about 10 pics with my latest toy - iPhone - and this was the best before, as I said, the ice cream melted. Playing with my food - Love it!

P.S. Oh, the book is fabulous - get it as it is worth it for cooking fresh food with little trouble.