The vegan dessert account that sweeps Instagram (and that will make you very sad to eat)
More of million and a half people have fallen in love with the wonderful culinary proposals that usually appear on the Instagram profile daily Naturally.jo.
Behind him is the young promise of gastronomic art Jose Carlos Flores that with only 18 years (about to turn 19) has made a sweet feed full of vegan recipes where 'cuquismo', bright colors and creativity are the order of the day.
Audiovisual Communication student, he declares himself a lover of photography, of veganism as a way of life and of course, of cooking. Do we know more in depth his project?
THE ORIGIN OF NATURALLY JO
"It all goes back to year 2015 , which was when I began to take a serious interest in gastronomy, veganism and photography , and I found this side on Instagram where users were doing much more than share the food they prepared or ate . It was about decorating it and presenting it as an artistic work”, he tells Traveler.es Jose Carlos Flores.
Since then discovered a world full of colors and creations what are they from cakes in the form of all kinds of animals, smoothies that are pure fantasy or ice creams and sculptures full of fruits . The result? A delight for the eyes and also for our palates.
The name of this project arises from a combination of factors between the essence of the account, which is veganism and the name of its own creator : “I remember that I spent many hours trying to find the right name, I wrote down in a notebook words related to the photos I took as foodies, vegan, smoothies and among those came the word 'natural' , I thought it was more general and better represented what I was doing”, says Jose.
"I wanted to somehow connect it to my name so I thought ' Naturally.Jose’ but I felt that it was very long, so in the end I was left with just 'Jo', as a small nickname by which people who see my photos can call me. OR A way to separate my day-to-day life and my online presence ”, he continues. And that's how this inspiring Instagram account came about.
As a child, one of his favorite activities was prepare desserts and cakes with your family every weekend, food was the place where they found happiness. “For a few years it stopped being like that, and then when I became a vegan I had to start prepare my food myself , try new recipes and experience much more; what else I like it is the part of innovating . I see the kitchen as a therapeutic activity , and I still think I still have a lot to learn”, says the creator of Naturally.jo.
What he never imagined when he started is that a few years later, his profile was going to accumulate 1.6 million followers (and going up at the time these lines are being written) and that his photos were going to spread like wildfire through the aisles of Instagram.
“I thought that it would happen like all the other hobbies I had as a child, that I would like it for a while and dedicate a few months to it and then leave it; I don't even remember the moment when everything started to grow, it was something I didn't pay so much attention to and now I'm just grateful, "he says. And for the moment, everything seems to indicate that we have Naturally.jo for a while.
100% VEGAN RECIPES
Behind his culinary proposals there is a great job in which the result that is shared is only a minimal part of the entire creation process that it is most creative and inspiring . “Everything starts with the idea, the most difficult and time-consuming part for me. many times since something that inspires me or I usually sit and brainstorm with a blank notebook , I do a sketch or write a word and the dessert begins to make sense there. It is at the end that I usually have a detailed drawing of what I want to do and a list of ingredients ”, Jose comments.
On other occasions the inspiration may come later and more time passes between the idea and the drawing, but it is a process that he always carries out before making any recipe. Take as long as it takes.
His references as can be predicted at a glance in his instagram feed come from photographs, films, television series, paintings ... “I believe that someone can enter my page and know a side of me very well; I like pastel colours, symmetry, smooth surfaces and I am very inspired by japanese kawaii culture , something that fascinates me for much longer than I have this project”, he tells Traveler.es.
And then? It's time to make the dessert: “normally they are variations of recipes that I already know very well, I play music or watch a movie while I do it because it can take several hours. I prepare the place where I will take the photograph and I take my camera, I place the final dessert and I take many or few photos, it depends on how confident I feel with the idea that I drew. Most of the time I upload the image the same day I make the recipe, because I like being able to go on my own, find a photo and remember exactly what it was like that day.”
Each and every one of their recipes are 100% vegan. . “For me, veganism is what opened the doors to many types of food and alternatives that I am now very grateful to have discovered; but it's more important to me ethical aspect, being aware of the entire process that food goes through before consuming it ”, Jose says. He dedicated many hours and desire to find the right recipes and thus little by little he was transmitting it to his family and later to the community of his followers who went up as the months passed.
Regarding the recipes, he affirms that after many years he has “found substitutes of all kinds and many brands of vegan products”. If I had to choose three of his star recipes par excellence, they would be:
- The smoothie bowls in the first place, because he has not stopped preparing them since he started and recognizes that they are simple and versatile recipes.
Cakes are second . "A piece of cake for dessert is all I need to have a good day," said the young man from Lima.
And in third place would be the vegan cheesecake : “made from cashews and they are so creamy. I feel like I'm eating something too good to be true, and it doesn't need baking! It's my favorite summer dessert,” he says.
WHO SAID VEGANISM IS BORING OR LIMITED?
This Instagram account is one more example that it is time to give the value that it has long deserved to the vegan kitchen . Because limitations and boredom are factors created by society itself and are far from reality. “ Life is too short to eat boring food ”, can be read in the Instagram biography of Naturally.jo. And he could not have been more successful with this premise.
“I used to have a concept of vegan/vegetarian food as something restrictive , I felt that something was missing that would show that these types of recipes also could be colorful and fun . Every dish enters first through the eyes and a beautiful presentation can change everything”, says Jose.
That is why he proposed with this project to do things differently and the result is that more and more people after seeing his photographs are encouraged to incorporate more recipes with ingredients based on fruits that are ideal to decorate your breakfasts, snacks or desserts.
“The feedback is always very positive, the messages from followers who try my recipes or who like my creations overwhelm me a lot. It still seems unreal to me, but I'm very excited for all the community of fans around me, I can never thank you enough for changing my life ”, says Jose excitedly.
THE FUTURE OF THE PROJECT
For now almost all the creative weight comes down to your Instagram account , although little by little Jose is Entering the YouTube world . With some videos of recipes already published, his next step in the short and medium term is to dedicate himself more deeply to the recording of audiovisual content for his channel on this platform.
“I have some videos ready to go to the editing process and others to be recorded . But I admit that I am very perfectionist with everything I do and it will be the same with videos, I prefer to publish quality content than quantity and I am sure that my followers appreciate it too, ”he indicates. He is even clear that he wants to include a person in his 'team' to help him with the recordings so that the result is optimal.
In the absence of this new audiovisual stage for his project, we can always continue to delight ourselves with your fabulous Instagram recipes.
And as the icing on the cake, he gives us this advice that he would have liked to have received a few years ago: “Those crazy ideas that you see far away and you don't think you have the ability to make them come true one day, you will only know if they are possible when you do them. I never imagined anything that is happening in my life now and if I could change something from the past it would be give me a little more security , which I think is something that many creative people need. If you really want to do something great in this world, self-confidence is the most important thing, and of course, have a lot of fun in the process!
What do you say, shall we take him at his word?