WEATHER REPORT

from

all over
)

PUMPKIN

This year's crop of pumpkin paintings began when fish customer and Klara's owner commissioned a painting for her and her husband's twentieth wedding anniversary.
It's only fitting that they are pumpkin lovers, having gotten married on Halloween.....in costume

Here are a few

In the Window September 2014  Watercolor

September 2014

and another with Klara and Martini

Pumpkins have always been a favorite painting/drawing subject of mine

a previous crop

"Night Pumpkin" colored pencil drawing

going way back to pre Henry and Violet, when I had Pancho the cat and lived in Manhattan

mini crop of Jack- be- littles

RECIPES
for
*  * 
)
*frosty nights*
*    **

  Pumpkin  
S O U P E
from  
Catou's

   french   

kitchen

Chez Catou, Biarritz France

Place small cubes of peeled pumpkin in a thick bottomed pot
Let it cook in its own steam covered for three minutes
Add a teaspoon of sweet butter per cup of pumpkin, good coarse salt, pepper
and a touch of nutmeg ( optional)
Cook until totally soft
 whip in the blender until smooth and fluffy
Et voilà

simple et délicieuse 

PUMPKIN
Stew 
at the 
FARM

Roast four small pie pumpkins until soft
peel and scoop out the flesh

saute three to four large shallots and garlic cloves in olive oil and butter
add two to three chopped red peppers, and one spicy anaheim
separately saute mildly spicy turkey sausage until brown
Add to the pumpkin mash
add a cup or so of water or chicken stock, salt and pepper to taste and simmer together
less simple and delicious!
Eat in front of a roaring fire
and listen to the crazy coyotes partying outside in the night
(click here to hear them howl!)

And if you missed the opening of my painting show,

come to the closing this 

SUNDAY

November 9th

3-7pm

95 Fenimore St

Brooklyn, NY

POT LUCK PARTY AND BIG SALE

WEATHER REPORT

from

LAKE ONTARIO

with

happiness

to be back on the Lake

for the REVISIT with Kathleen and John

 *

AUGUST 28th

John picked me up at the airport and we drove straight to the Burchfield Penney

This time there were Burchfield paintings to see

Charles E. Burchfield (1893-1967) "Fireflies and Lightning" 1964-65

Charles E. Burchfield "Drifting Dandelion Seeds" May 1916

Charles Burchfield "Wind-blown Asters" 1951

We drove through three Olmsted Parks, including Niagara Falls State Park, the oldest state park in the country, saw mist from the falls (visible from the plane too!), and casinos

on the way to the lake.

 Amos W. Sangster, (Canadian-American, 1833-1904), "Entrance to Cave of the Winds, Niagara Falls, American Side"(Plate XXVI) - 1886, Copper plate etching - 13-5/8 x 8-7/8"

We made it in time to see the sunset over Toronto, across the water, and enjoy quiche, salad, grilled vegetables and drinks of choice

"At the Lake" my hand painted ceramic bowl with memories of the previous year..a gift for my hosts

With Chuckie, the woodchuck.....John's nemesis

 
 AUGUST 29th.....

a whirlwind of activity

Blueberry picking at Russell's, Dolansky Farms for plums and eggplants

Singer Natural for garlic where the handsome farmer let us pick as many sunflowers as we wanted.....for free

Kathleen in heaven (click on her name to find out more)

 revisited the plum orchards and the mystery flower lady's place

Moi dans le jardin de la femme mysterieuse

then to Handsome farmer #2's, Hiller's Farm in Burt for melons, basil and sunflower seed heads,

Next to Dispenza's Meat Market and Slaughterhouse to buy the pork for the party

see the baby pigs and the oldest tom ever

 last stop, the crazy $1 veggie place

AUGUST 30th

on the hunt.....in MEDINA and beyond

Jeddo Mills Antiques (where I found a cool fish tray)

 a revisit to a Lily & a Sparrow for new dresses
Ellen J. Goods for antiques and John's paintings

 El Gran Burrito Taco Truck for pollo and chorizo tacos

bad yard sales

good cheap stuff at an "antiques" barn in Holley

Cobblestone houses along route 104
(click on the names to see more)
and a 

thunderstorm that didn't cool off the 90* heat

 AUGUST 31st

DINNER PARTY 

My illustration of Dizzy Gillespie for the South Carolina Jazz Festival this October!

*

*  *COCKTAILS** 

 PIZZA a la KATHLEEN

GRILLED CORN SALAD 

BO SSÄM....again 

and

 ditto 

BLUEBERRY PEACH CAKE

if it ain't broke.....

John's Le Boulevardier Cocktail

*

1 1/2 oz. bourbon
1 oz. Campari

1 oz. sweet vermouth

ice

garnish with a twist of orange

Kathleen's Pizza

*

Dissolve 1 package of yeast in 1/4 cup of water with 1 tsp sugar

When proofed (active and foamy)

toss in a food processor with

3 cups of unbleached flour and a tsp of salt and add 1 cup of water slowly

Dough should be sticky, you may have to add either more flour or water......

In a bowl, add 1 tablespoon of olive oil

add the dough and roll it around in the oil, coating it thoroughly so it doesn't stick to the side of the bowl

Cover with a shower cap and put in a warm place to rise

when doubled in size and soft

cover with a towel until ready to use

*

Punch it down then divide into 2 or 3 sections

put each section on a greased pan, in any shape you like

top with:

red sauce, calamata olives, caramelized onions, mozzarella and cooked sausage
Bake in a hot oven 450* + 

then the crust will be nice and brown on the bottom
and when done add some fresh herbs

 SEPTEMBER 1st

recovery

and

PAINTING with JOHN

Yellow Dress

John's oil painting "The Mathematician's House" (click on his name to see more of his work)

Apple Tree

Handsome Farmer's Sunflowers

Final night bonfire

Thank you John and Kathleen for a grand birthday weekend

Charles E. Burchfield "October Colors" 1960

in 
October

PACIFIC....ATLANTIC

A showing of my new paintings from California and France

OPENING SUNDAY OCTOBER19th

sip some wine and take a look

 

3 to 6 pm

95 Fenimore St

Brooklyn, NY 11225

Hope to see you!

WEATHER REPORT

from a 

birthday fête

incredibly

DELICIOUS

Under the Arbor

It was a whirlwind 5 days in California, to celebrate Dad's, Aunt Sandy's, Hui Shu's, and Olivia's birthdays.

There was a lot shopping, a lot of traffic ( the 405 to the 101, the worst ever) arranging, preparing, cooking, talking, laughing, eating and drinking and fighting of course....it's the family. 

 Late * afternoon 

  DINNER    

by the 

pool

MOMOFUKU BO SSAM

SMOKED WILD KING SALMON

HEIRLOOM TOMATOES WITH MOZZARELLA AND BASIL

CHINESE RICE WITH SAUTEED VEGETABLES

 SALAD

PEACH AND BLUEBERRY CRUMBLE

home grown 

FIGS, GRAPES, PEACHES, APPLES

Peter doing the honors with his pork

Bo Ssam with Ssam Sauce and Garlic-Scallion Sauce

(Momofuku, via The New York Times)

(we doubled this for our crowd of 22)

1 whole bone-in pork butt  (8 to 10 pounds)
1 cup white sugar
1 cup plus 1 tablespoon kosher salt
7 tablespoons brown sugar

 

Place the pork in a large, shallow bowl. 

Mix the white sugar and 1cup of the salt together, and rub all over the meat. 

Cover it with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for at least 6 hours, or overnight.

When you’re ready to cook, heat oven to 300. 

Remove any juices and place the pork in a roasting pan and set in the oven

Baste hourly after the first hour with pan juices and

 cook for approximately 6 hours, ( we did 8) until the meat pulls away easily with a fork

remove the meat from the oven and allow it to rest for up to an hour.

meanwhile, make the sauces.

 

Garlic-Scallion Sauce

2½ cups thinly sliced scallions, both green and white parts

½ cup peeled, minced fresh ginger

¼ cup neutral oil (like grapeseed)

1½ teaspoons light soy sauce

1 scant teaspoon sherry vinegar

½ teaspoon kosher salt, or to taste

 

Ssam Sauce

2 tablespoons fermented bean-and- chili paste (ssamjang, available in many Asian markets, and online)

1 tablespoon chili paste (kochujang, available in many Asian markets, and online)

½ cup sherry vinegar

½ cup neutral oil (like grapeseed)

In a large bowl, combine the scallions with the rest of the ingredients. Mix well and taste, adding salt if needed.

  In a medium bowl, combine the chili pastes with the vinegar and oil, and mix well.

When your accompaniments are prepared and you are ready to serve the food, turn oven to 500. 

In a small bowl, stir together the remaining tablespoon of salt with the brown sugar. Rub this mixture all over the cooked pork. 

Place in oven for approximately 10 to 15 minutes, or until a dark caramel crust has developed on the meat. 

Serve hot, with the accompaniments.

 Caramelization!

the pork was the best thing ever, unbelievably tender, with that sweet/salty crust and super for a crowd

Hui Shu's tomatoes

my blueberry peach crumble with homemade whipped cream

from the backyard orchards

arbor grapes

It was a beautiful party, family came from LA, DC, Detroit, NYC and Philly to celebrate with Dad. Peter and Hui Shu out did themselves, everyone visited, fêted and feasted

 and was happy

*

and the next day it was drizzling

icing on the proverbial cake for every Californian