I SUPPOSE IT WAS INEVITABLE

That sooner or later this would happen… I would overcome my resistance and the horizon would disappear. It was not by design. I began the piece with the idea of completing this series of landscapes depicting large dramatic skies that overwhelm the horizon and foreground. With the exception of one painting with a few trees, the landscapes were barren, and the horizon became less distinct with each piece. But it was always there!...until now.


All sky...acrylic...16x40

As always, I completed the sky first, before attempting to define the horizon, but as soon as I finished I knew…There was no way I was going to interrupt the painting with anything else…even a horizon. (I can already hear H.T. saying, “I told you so”.)

Below you can see the transition as it unfold in each subsequent painting:



The lesson here? Never say never!

PASTA-CRAB-CUCUMBER SALAD

This was going to be the night! Tonight I would prepare the crab sauce that has been running around in my head for days…the sauce I thought I would prepare last week only to discover I didn’t have the crabmeat I thought I had. But it was not to be; I came home from the farmer’s market with our box of veggies and discovered 6 ears of sweet corn, and with 4 already in the fridge, I knew I had to use them. The result was a pasta/crab salad fortified with cucumber and served on a bed of lettuce with corn on the side.



INGREDIENTS:

Elbow pasta
Fresh crabmeat
Cucumber, peeled and diced
Celery
Mayonnaise
Lemon juice
Fresh chopped basil, oregano, thyme, and parsley

PROCESS:

Cook the pasta, drain and rinse with cold water, mix in just enough olive oil to keep them from sticking together, and chill.

In a small bowl mix the mayonnaise, lemon juice, and part of the herbs and cucumbers. In a larger bowl add the mayonnaise mixture and the crabmeat, plus the pasta, and mix well. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Serve on a bed of lettuce with the corn on the side and tomato for color.

COMMENTS:

Patience advised me to use more crabmeat…but she is from Maryland and there is never enough crabmeat for her.

A great meal for a hot summer day.

VEGGIES, VEGGIES, & MORE VEGGIES 7-18

I have not actually seen it, but I am absolutely convinced that the zucchini, green beans, and other veggies are propagating in our fridge! Every time I think I’ve used them up more appear. It is becoming a challenge to use them without repeating basic recipes. Sometimes the best I can do is to add a new twist to a previous recipe. Tonight’s dish falls somewhere in between.



INGREDIENTS:

Zucchini and yellow squash, diced
Green beans
Broccoli
Fresh basil, oregano, sage and parsley
Garlic
Onion
Lemon juice or zest
White wine
Olive oil
Heavy cream
Mascarpone cheese

PROCESS:

Sauté the zucchini with green onions and garlic in olive oil. Remove and set ½ aside and puree the other half with Parmesan cheese and 2 chopped sage leaves.



Cook the broccoli and green beans in boiling water for about 5 minutes. In the meantime sauté garlic in olive oil, then add the veggies to the pan, along with the un-blended zucchini and the fresh herbs and lemon juice, plus a splash of white wine. Simmer over low heat for about 5 minutes.



While the pasta is cooking in the water used for the veggies, add the pureed zucchini to the pan with the veggies and mix well. Then add butter and cream, stirring constantly. One or two tablespoons of Mascarpone cheese are optional.

PROCESS:

I hereby proclaim this meal an unqualified success! The flavor of the green beans and broccoli remained intact, enhanced by the Mascarpone cheese. I wonder what a dollop of Gorgonzola or Blue cheese would add. Although I don’t pay too much attention to measurements and time, the veggies were just right, still a bit crunchy, but cooked through. I suspect that was accidental, but I’m willing to take credit for it.

HOW I SPENT MY SUMMER...

I thought I would linger a while longer in the '80s and early '90s.

Looking at St Michaels on the Chesapeak Bay...12x37...$70

Cape May Hospitality...12x37...$50

Baltimore's Inner Harbor...12x37...$50

Philadelphia's Boat House Row II...12x37...$100

A Farm...10x24...$40

LINGUINE IN CLAM SAUCE…7-16

My original plans called for hand picked crab meat, which I thought I had on hand. To my dismay I was mistaken, and add the last minute I had to subsitute a can of whole baby clams. This was after I had invited Elaine and Keyth for pasta in crab sauce. They were troopers, and the clams worked out quite well.



INGREDIENTS:

Chopped clams
Anchovy fillets…finely chopped
Tomato paste
Garlic, shallots
Fresh thyme, oregano, and parsley, chopped
Olive oil
Lemon zest
White wine
Linguine

PROCESS:

Saute the garlic and shallots,3 anchovy fillets, and about 1-2 teaspoons of tomato paste in the olive oil. Add the clams with their juice, lemon zest and juice, and a splash of white wine. along with the chopped herbs.

Place the cooked linguine in a serving bowel, add the sauce and mix well. Drizzle with olive oil and add additional pasta water if needed.

COMMENTS:

Elaine gave this a ten! I cooked one pound of pasta for the 4 of us and there were NO leftovers. I consider this a success!

PASTA DINNER # 50! Pasta/chicken salad 7-15

This has to be some sort of milestone…our 50th consecutive pasta meal at home. Given the Kentucky heat I decided on a cool summer pasta salad with fresh sweet corn on the side.

INGREDIENTS:

Campanelle pasta (little horns)
Chicken breasts…sauteed and cut into bite size pieces
Celery
Fresh basil, thyme, oregano, and parsley…finely chopped
Mayonnaise
Lemon juice
Kalamata olives, pitted and finely chopped
White wine
Olive oil
Tomatoes
Lettuce
Blue berries

PROCESS:

Saute the chicken in olive oil and white wine, cut into small pieces and set aside to cool

In a large bowl mix the olives, chopped herbs, and mayonnaise with the lemon juice. Add the chicken and mix well.

Drain the past and rinse under cold water and place in serving bowl. Add the remaining ingredients and mix well.

Serve over fresh tomatoes or lettuce or arugula and top with Blue berries or Rasberries.

COMMENTS:

The Kalamata olives and blue berries, which were a last minute addition, primarily for color, compliment one another and create an alluring flavor. This is a great dish for a warm summer night. The fresh sweet corn came from our Amish friends.

BEEN THERE...DONE THAT

From the mid ‘80s into the early ‘90s I published a rather large (53) series of limited edition prints and posters based on my watercolors. These streetscapes, town and cityscapes, and architectural paintings represented cities and towns in eastern U.S. In a moment of nostalgic fervor I decided to photograph my remaining inventory to have for my personal files and to add them to my new website.

The towns and cities represented include: Wilmington, DE, Fenwick Island, DE, New Castle, DE, Odessa, DE, Philadelphia, PA, Annapolis, MD, Baltimore, MD, St. Michaels, MD, Arlington, VA, Williamsburg, VA, Cape May, NJ, Washington, DC, Boston, MA, Martha’s Vineyard, MA, New Port, RI, Atlanta, GA, Savannah, GA, and Charleston, SC.

Creating these images from dozens of photographs was both challenging and gratifying, but the real joy was visiting all of these cities and towns, often accompanied by a good friend. Each print holds cherished memories for me.


Newport, RI...12x28...$50.00


Philadelphia Skyline...13x27...$100.00


Stockton Place, Cape May NJ...12x37...$50.00


Victorian Sampler...12x37...$50.00


Summer's End, Martha's Vineyard...10x24...$40.00