In the National Gallery of Art’s description of Still Life with Asparagus and Red Currants, it notes: “Whether depicting a bowl of cherries, an arrangement of exotic shells, or a bunch of asparagus, as in this small masterpiece, [Adriaen Coorte]…
Parmesan Crisps
This recipe for parmesan crisps has one ingredient and one instruction. However, its value is ten times that. Have you ever considered making your own parmesan? Perhaps you’ve gasped slightly, thinking I’m about to inform you how I stomp my…
Old-Fashioned Rice Pudding
There is never a time in my house when rice pudding is not greeted with cheers. With a little stewed fruit, it’s a creamy, healthy dessert. These days, we make it with lactose free milk. I’ve not yet not tried…
International Potato Day
May 30 is designated by the United Nations as International Potato Day! Potato facts: Here is my little tribute to the humble potato: And some potato recipes: placki, sweet potato fritters and salmon, and my cheats’ potato salad.
Strawberries, Nuts, &c. – A Poem
Riddle Me This How is it possible –Orange, so fresh the leaf is intactRuby-red strawberries that if wild would collapseTogether with nuts and raisins, to beIn the same still life in a nineteenth centuryComposition? What, summer and winter?Unless, if not…
A Pomegranate, Siena – A Poem
George Henry Hall was considered a “master of fruit, vegetable and flower still-life painting”, although that’s not all he painted. Here’s a selection of some of his works. A Pomegranate, Siena is a beautiful example of the artist’s renowned realism….
For the People Waiting – A Poem
So many still lifes of previous centuries feature abundance. As The Met points out, for this particular painting by Severin Roesen: “Nineteenth-century improvements in cultivation and shipping practices enabled the extravagant assortment.” It was about status, and fortune, and horticulture,…
Chocolate Biscuit/Cookie Truffles
These chocolate biscuit /cookie truffles are a lovely visual feast. With only three ingredients and a swing of a rolling pin, you have a nice little treat for yourself, or to box up as a gift for some lucky other….
Cherries – A Poem
This project of mine, writing poems as a response to food-themed art, has the added benefit of making me more mindful of small things. Like cherries. They have associations beyond, well, cherries. I remembered Marcel Proust and his madeleines. They…
Fruits of Midi – A Poem
In France, the southern regions along the Mediterranean Coast are known colloquially as le Midi. It’s thought Renoir may have painted this still life somewhere in le Midi on his way to study classical paintings in Italy. There’s a more…
World Bee Day – May 20
It’s United Nations World Bee Day on May 20! More info on the importance of pollinators here And here is my little tribute to the bee.
Figs – A Poem
Figs are one of my favourite fruit. When I was in Greece, I was thunderstuck by the amount of figs fallen to the footpaths from overhanging trees. Fallen figs were underfoot. All that gorgeous bounty, gone to waste. I was…
