If you think it’s tough preparing one dinner each night, then imagine cooking up 10 different main dishes in one day —and making sure each meal looks perfect for photos.

Gretta Irwin and her crew of home cooks heated up their kitchens this winter by embarking on a cooking marathon to test recipes for the Iowa Turkey Federation’s (ITF) latest turkey cookbook.

Irwin, a former home economics teacher who now serves as the ITF’s executive director, opened up her home and kitchen in Boone for the turkey cookbook photo shoots.

Before each shoot, Irwin and her team, including four moms and one college student, cooked up to 40 different turkey recipes. They used every available inch of counter space and tabletop to prep each turkey dish for its turn in front of the camera lens.

Becca Carlson, a local photographer from Jewell, took the food photos as a side project before the busy spring and summer wedding season.

When the ITF’s cookbook comes out later this year, you won’t find the...