Picano Photography

Providing inspiration for your next meal with simple recipes & creating beautiful photography along the way.

Hi, I'm Vanessa! A Food-obsessed photographer and digital creator bringing you along my journey with all things food. I'm first generation Italian-Canadian and grew up old school Italian (with lots and lots of pasta!) I've struggled with gut issues and migraines my entire li

fe but I figured "that's just how I am." And so, I just dealt with it, or so I thought...

It wasn't until I started learning how food can actually heal - and I mean REAL food, that I finally realized, I've more than likely been the cause of my own pain over the years. So I went full-force; I started working with a naturopath and reading countless health & wellness books. I learned a magnitude of new information when it comes to what we not only put into our bodies, but also what we think, say and how we live. I was ready to start eating cleaner and simpler, with less animal products - just like my grandparents and great-grandparents did in Italy with their "cucina povera" or "poor kitchen", which is a traditional cooking technique that originated from rural peasant populations in Italy. I still wanted to eat my pastas and pizzas and all the bread! So I decided to take what I knew and make it work for me, instead of the other way around. I started turning all those traditional recipes I love and made them vegetarian or vegan. But what I found was there weren't really a lot of options out there. Everything used highly processed meat alternatives or it just showed plain old salads. Nothing that embodied the flavours I grew up on or had any creativity whatsoever. And honestly, these variations, just didn't taste that good or give me the same comfort that those traditional dishes did. So with that, I'm bringing you onto my healing journey where I share not only food tips but also recipes that my nonni - or grandparents, would've been proud of. Please follow along while I also do what I love (besides eating) and show the beauty in food through photography. Follow on TikTok/IG/Twitter where I get even more candid. xx,

Vanessa