Month: February 2011

There are many variations of Thai fried rice. It’s not as dry as Chinese fried rice. Because of its ingredients. Thai fried rice is moist and flaky. And delicious!

Ingredients

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 onion, chopped
1/4 cup chopped shallots
6 cloves garlic, chopped
2 eggs, lightly beaten
4 cups cooked jasmine rice
1 cup sliced pineapple
2 to 3 tablespoons fish sauce
10 cooked shrimp
1/2 cup peas
Garnish: thinly sliced green onion, red chile peppers, Chinese parsley

Directions

In a wok or frying pan, heat the oil on medium heat until oil i shot. Add onion, shallots, and garlic and stir-fry for 1-2 minutes, or until mixture is light brown. Add eggs and immediately add the rice, pineapple, fish sauce, shrimp and peas. Stir-fry for 2 minutes, or until the ingredients are evenly
mixed.

Yesterday, Saturday, Susan and I visited the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum in Hartford, Connecticut.

I knew the day was to be a day filled with beauty; soon before we left our home I saw this beautiful female cardinal in our backyard sitting on the iron sculpture which holds our Bird-feeder:

As soon as we entered the small gallery where nine Monet’s paintings hung, I saw a quote on the wall and I could not but think of my dear and longtime friend, Tara Dillard:

On either side the river lie
Long fields of barley and of rye,
That clothe the wold and meet the sky;
And thro’ the field the road runs by
To many-tower’d Camelot;
And up and down the people go,
Gazing where the lilies blow
Round an island there below,
The island of Shalott.

Willows whiten, aspens quiver,
Little breezes dusk and shiver
Through the wave that runs for ever
By the island in the river
Flowing down to Camelot.
Four grey walls, and four grey towers,
Overlook a space of flowers,
And the silent isle imbowers
The Lady of Shalott.

We said our goodbyes to our friends the Pre-Raphaelites. And then we found more beauty in this portrait by Elisabeth Vigee-Lebrun, recognized as the most famous woman painter of the 18th century:

We concluded our visit to the museum viewing paintings from The Hudson River School. I have taken some liberties with my photographs of the paintings here, the first by Frederic Church and the second by Thomas Cole; but first, here, is a painting we saw by Albert Bierstdat:

And we conclude our day with:

One last observation: that’s Susan standing in front Cole’s Mt. Etna, Taormina, Sicily, 1843; when we got home and enjoyed a pizza in our sitting room, there was on TV a show about Sicily and Mt Edna!

If you want events in your life documented or are looking for distinctive nature, portrait or wedding photography–photography with soul that inspires you

to live a more artful and beautiful life,

please contact me.

This was very tasty. And easy to make!

Ingredients

3-4 cups shredded cabbage
1 large carrot shredded
1 Shallot halved, quartered, thinly sliced
1/2 orange pepper sliced
1/2 red pepper sliced
1 cup broccoli florets thinly sliced
2 Tbsp rice vinegar
1/3 cup mayo
2 tsp Sesame oil
2 tsp+ Frank’s Hot Sauce
1/4 tsp sugar

Directions

1. Toss cabbage, carrots, shallot, peppers, broccoli in a bowl. Season with salt and pepper.
2. Whisk together vinegar, mayo, sesame oil, hot sauce, and sugar until smooth. Taste; add salt if needed.
3. Pour dressing over shredded vegetables and toss to combine. Serve immediately or chill for a few hours (I chilled mine.) Toss again before serving. Finish with a dusting of sesame seeds or chopped peanuts.

I served this with a Turkey–Oat Meatloaf and Parslied Basmati Rice:

Ingredients

1. 1 8 ounce Sockeye Salmon
2. 2 tablespoons white sesame seeds
3. Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
4. 1 tablespoon olive oil

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
Season salmon with salt and pepper. Combine sesame seeds in shallow baking dish. Brush salmon fillets lightly with oil and dredge the flesh side (not skin side) in the seeds. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat (I used a cast iron pan). Sear the salmon seed-side down in the pan just until it is light golden – do not burn the seeds or they will be bitter. Lightly brown skin side also.  Transfer fillets, sesame seeds up, into the baking dish (or simple use the cast iron pan) and place the salmon in the oven. Roast 8-10 minutes.

Susan and I were very moved yesterday watching the BBC production of The Mill on the Floss.

We highly recommend it to you.

It stars Emily Watson as Maggie Tulliver (Hilary & Jackie–a favorite movie) and James Frain (The Tutors–a favorite TV series) as Philip Wakem.

Here’s a short clip:

And here’s a photograph of a mill near where we live:

The Mill in Granville. Photo by Bruce Barone.