LUNCH BOX…2…THE CIABATTA LUNCHES

Josh’s Ciabatta bread is the foundation for a series of mid-day meals, as well as an occasional “fix your own” dinner (when neither P or I want to cook.).  The bread, along with several other common ingredients can be used to create a variety of delicious lunches.  I will occasionally use other breads from the Kirchhoff’s ovens, but Ciabatta is the bread of choice.

The bread is lightly toasted, drizzled with olive oil, salted and peppered, and covered with a small helping of basil pesto.

The broccoli florets have been steamed in the microwave and salt, pepper, and fresh lemon juice added at the table.

The tomatoes drizzled with olive oil and small amount of fresh lemon juice.  Not shown in the photo was the grated cheese – Grana Padano - that was added.

With only a few changes, using many of the same ingredients a variety of “Ciabatta lunches” can be created, each of them absolutely delicious.

THE LUNCH BOX…a new occasional series on the mid-day meal

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Introducing a new occasional series on food, celebrating that mundane mid-day meal we call lunch.  For as long as I can remember, and for reasons unknown to me, lunch has been a meal I refused to miss; No matter what I was doing or where I was doing it, I had to stop for lunch.  The rapidly accumulating years has done nothing to diminish  my ardor for the noontime repast, and in fact have enhanced it..  My friend Harvey is confident that if he calls at noon, he knows I will be sitting down for lunch; I am that predictable.

I hope to post once or twice a week, but do not expect any rhyme or reason to the posts regarding time and subject.

I should probably post a disclaimer now regarding Ciabatta bread.  I have no vested interest in Kirchhoff’s bakery.  It just so happens that I think Josh Ryan’s Ciabatta is the best of the best, which is why it appears in so many of my lunches.  I missed it even during my month in Italy.

1-26-13…a typical “Ciabatta lunch” with tomatoes, asparagus, olive oil, lemon juice, grated Grana Padano cheese, and of course, lightly toasted Ciabatta bread.

THE DILEMA…I am what I am part 4

Many of my jeans no longer fit me.  I have only one pair of slacks – at least 15 years old – that I can wear, and that is because of its elastic, expandable waist- band.  None of my suits fit, and many of my shirts can just about be buttoned around my expanded mid-section.  I cringe at what I see when I look in the mirror, and every night I lie in bed vowing that I can do and I will do, whatever it takes to lose this uncomfortable, and unsightly belly.  And everyday, as lunchtime approaches with the first pangs of hunger, I completely disown that vow.  Did I make a vow?  What vow?  That must have been someone else getting in my head.

I love food and I love eating.  I enjoy the flavors of my favorite foods, and the goal of abolishing hunger is quickly replaced by the desire to maximize the pleasure for my taste buds.  This experience plays out every day, at every meal, whether I’m eating alone, with Patience, or with others.

Food nurtures the soul as well as the body.  Growing up in a family and community of immigrants and first generation Italian-Americans I learned that all social interactions – gatherings of family and/or friends, weddings, funerals, and casual impromptu get-togethers  - all centered around food.  It could be as simple as coffee and pastry or as elegant as a full course meal, but the sharing of food and the kitchen or dinning room table was inexorably linked to the interaction of family and friends. 

So now, in my battle with the expanding waist line, I not only have to overcome the sensual attraction of wonderful flavors, but also a cultural heritage that has stained the fibers of my being.  And that’s not all!

The aromas of the kitchen – garlic sautéing in olive oil, basil, oregano, and Parmigianino cheese – all evoke memories of my mother’s kitchen and her wonderful cooking.  And it is impossible for me to sit before a plate of pasta and not remember my father.   Cooking and eating has become an important link to my past and to my parents.  Whether it is the satisfaction of preparing a simple dish of pasta with olive oil and garlic, or the small fruit glass of red wine at lunch, I am, for that brief moment, with my mother and father.  I am what I am.

My weight…oh yea…well I can deal with that tomorrow.

THE PADUCAH PORTFOLIO…13 The Butcher

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Have you heard the one about the butcher who backed into the meat grinder?  He got a little behind in his work.

Sometimes I wonder if I’m not that butcher as I work on this Paducah Portfolio, getting behind in the work.  Actually not “behind” but “behinds”.  I’ve just completed another painting, and like so many others, it depicts the back of a series of buildings on Broadway.  It is not as if I don’t like the fronts of the buildings, but there are so many interesting lines, shapes, and textures in the back that do not conform to any pattern, and I think it this mix of non-conforming lines and shapes that captures my attention.

Behind them all...watercolor with pastel, ink, and acrylid

I won't tell you where this is, but here is a hint...someone very dear to me works in one of these buildings.  (click on the image to see the full painting which is aprox. 19x25")

Just when I think I’m about done I find more places demanding to be included in the portfolio.  If I don’t figure out how to say no I will end up with a totally unwieldy tome that weighs 25 pounds or more!

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WHEN YOUR EYES ARE BIGGER THAN YOUR STOMACH Paducah Portfolio...12

Surely you have heard of this expression.  Well today I am presenting a case where my eyes, or in this case, my ambition and enthusiasm, were bigger than my determination and self-discipline.

Weille Buildings

The Weille Buildings on Broadway, current home of the Paducah School of Art and Design, has been calling to me with its elaborate and ornate detail, but a little voice in my head kept saying, “Billy, are you sure you want to do this?  You may be a tiger, but this is a lot of work.”  Of course I didn’t listen; it simply had to be included in my Paducah Portfolio, and I was sure I was up to the task of rendering the building, in watercolor and/or markers.  After all, this is what I do!

work in progress

So I started the laborious task of laying out the building, figuring scale and proportions and size.  I worked on the drawing for about 30 to 40 minutes every day, stopping when I began seeing double or started mumbling things to myself under my breath.  I eventually reached the stage where I could begin adding color to the completed parts…I needed to feel like I was making progress.  A little color, a little drawing, a little more color, a little more drawing, on and on, day after day, after day, when suddenly, out of the blue, it came to me.  I could not spend another minute on this without going nuts, and I knew how to extract myself from the quagmire that it was becoming.

Weille Buildings...markers...14x13

Every artist knows that there are times when we allow the viewers to complete the image using their eyes and their imagination, by leaving a part of the painting or drawing incomplete.  Often the viewer is not even aware of this.

Hey...I did all the hard work!

PADUCAH PORTFOLIO…11

Workus interuptus, the bane of my existence.  Sara’s show was a great success and our visit with her was even greater.  I settled back into my routine and managed to complete a few more drawings before leaving to visit a dear friend in California.  Unfortunately the trip was cut short by my wife’s illness and hospitalization, which fortunately was quickly abated and she has since been discharged and is now back to work.

Once again I find myself struggling to regain my footing; it is amazing how quickly my work routine can be thrown off kilter, an experience that seems directly related to the years I have accumulated.

I have added the following to the Paducah Portfolio:

Buzzard Bros. BBQ

Drivers

South side gem...Nehemiah Church

Behind tribeca & Cynthias

CLUTTER...or...I am what I am...part 3

Clutter, no matter how hard I try, it always seems to collect itself around me, in the studio, the kitchen, and my study.  Actually it appears wherever I settle for whatever reason for any length of time.  Of course the content of the clutter varies with the location, but common to all “clutter pods” are pens, pencils, small note pads (except when I want one.), books and/or magazines.

 

I should acknowledge that I do not mind clutter, and in fact find some degree of comfort in being surrounded by familiar, frequently used “tools” and “doo-dads”.  But, it must be organized, not so much for neatness as for utilitarian purposes.  I do require some sense of order, and organized clutter fills that need.  I am not ashamed of my clutter, and feel no need to put everything away when we have company.  Clutter tells others something about who we are, our interests, and more.

Clutter is not for everyone.  It certainly is not for the OCD inclined individual, or for someone who cannot exercise a degree of self control; un-kept, disorganized clutter quickly become an unsightly mess

From time to time I get some misguided inspiration to clean up, to remove the clutter and expose virgin table, counter, or whatever tops.  This tends to happen after I’ve visited friends or family whose entire home is reflected in clean, glistening surfaces”.  Of course it comes to nil.  I can expose the surfaces for perhaps one or two days, maybe even three days, but eventually the real me takes over, and clutter returns, accompanied by a silent sight of relief.

Then there is the clutter that follows me wherever I may be, affectionately called the "canine clutter".