art endures

i was at the new york art fair last weekend, (more specifically, the armory show over on the west side in piers 92 and 94, not to be confused with the art dealers show at the armory on the east side, yes, but i know that is confusing, i think that is the whole point of having all these art fairs the same week all over town). anyway i saw marvelous things. whimsical things, serious things, gorgeous things, frivolous and unimportant things. it was jammed with all sorts of art appreciators as well. it really made me happy to get the chance to see all these fantastic creations from galleries all over the globe in one afternoon. dizzying, overwhelming but marvelous. i was reminded that art is important and art endures. and that i love art. do you? do you love art?

in other news, rainy weekend. all weekend. going to finish reading middlemarch by george eliot by next weekend even if it kills me. and it just might. it is so very very long. but so very very smart. anyway, happy weekend to you. xo, g

update: i am happy to report i did finish middlemarch on schedule. it is an amazing book. possibly the best novel ever written (at least virginia wolfe thought so). everything i ever needed to know about personality, effort, ethics, outcome, the complex web of society, it's all in there. so much so that i am now reading it again, spoiled for everything else. only this time, swishing through it on the ipad, much lighter than the book as the numerous pages are nearly weightless.

enjoying spring weather

it's been gorgeous weather here, near 60 and sunny 4 days in a row and more on its way. been busy out and about enjoying it. crocuses are emerging. giant bunkers of snow are utterly melted into nothing. lots to do. lots happening. xo, g

weekend simplicity

i don't know who invented weekends. but it was a marvelous, marvelous idea. maybe a leisurely breakfast, some outings, a get together or two. catching up on some household projects. an art fair perhaps. enjoy xo, g

sesame dressing

this is similar to salad dressings you may have had in japanese restaurants. it lends itself well to simple green salads and to cucumbers and carrots and avocados and scallions and combinations of those. there are endless variations of this dressing, some have no miso, some have ginger, some have dashi, some have sake. go ahead and try it. mix and match. thinner, thicker. find the one you like the best. i am crazy for japanese food so we use this dressing whenever we make japanese style dishes at home and we need a salad to go with.

sesame dressing

2 TBSP tahini or sesame paste

1 TBSP soy sauce

1 teaspoon white miso

2 TBSP rice vinegar

1 tsp brown sugar or agave nectar

1 tsp toasted sesame seeds

hello march

it is march. and i am daring to think the last winter storm has roared its way through here. in april the leaves will come back. colorful food and spring produce will arrive soon to a store near you (and me). asparagus, strawberries, peas, it will be delicious, i promise. but not just yet.

it is still march, still winter and i am still trying to keep my cooking motivation going these days. i find, as i imagine most everyone does, grocery shopping gets a little difficult this time of year, at the tail end of winter. the produce department becomes a bit tired, even dreary some days. thankfully, there are tasty greens and mushrooms, japanese sweet potatoes and cabbages, scallions and carrots and cucumbers, even artichokes. as i gather and scavenge i can always find a few things at whole foods, if not i head to balduccis or fuji mart, a local japanese grocery store. my net is not exciting necessarily, but always something good. i love to make a bit of sesame dressing for a salad. maybe a soothing bowl of soba with broiled tofu and enoki mushrooms and those sweet potatoes, and savoy cabbage i was telling you about. pasta with artichoke hearts lemon and garlic. risotto with multi-colored cherry tomatoes and some lovely broccoli.

meanwhile i've been sewing more rectangles together and firing up the printing press. plodding along making progress. planning. imagining. plotting and strategizing. a little further along the way.