Feasting on Art

Smørrebrød is the Danish tradition of open-face sandwiches. A dark dense bread, usually a type of rye, is toasted and topped with smoked or pickled fish and other vegetables. In this version, the smoked trout is the star and so it is essential to purchase high-quality fish. I picked up a whole fish and carefully de-boned all of the flesh before assembling the smørrebrød. If you have any extra pickled red onions, store them in their pickling liquid in the refrigerator and consume within a week. They are great toppings for hamburgers and can be used to liven up a grilled cheese sandwich.

Gustave Courbet, The Trout, 1873
oil on canvas, 65.5 x 98.5cm, Musee d’Orsay, Paris

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The collages and paintings by Maz Dixon featuring “The Big Things of Australia”, will be featured in the upcoming curated exhibition Art + Food: Beyond the Still Life at Brenda May Gallery in Sydney. Beginning in the early 60s, monumental objects ranging from giant fruit to prawns and pelicans began to litter the landscape of Australia. Personally, the first “Big Thing” I encountered after moving to Australia was The Big Prawn in Ballina which was constructed in 1989. In reality, the bubblegum pink crustacean emerges on the horizon of the roadside much in the same way it pokes out of the surf of Dixon’s Monument (Prawn). Here the vintage feel of the artwork is echoed in the recipe with the retro-classic, prawn cocktail.

Max Dixon, Monument (Prawn), 2012
collage, 31 x 38cm, Courtesy the Artist and Brenda May Gallery, Sydney

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Cheese dates back to pre-recorded history, making it difficult to determine exactly where it was first developed. The word cheese is thought to be derived from the Latin caseus and in the Roman era, cheesemaking was already a widespread practice, with visual representations of the process even in the tombs of the Egyptians. The histories of specific types of cheese are more established as exemplified by the hard and sharp tasting cheddar. First made in Cheddar, Somerset, cheddar cheese dates back to the time of King Henry II and accounts for over half of all cheese consumption in the United Kingdom. The Italian mozzarella is a milky cheese made by heating curds that are stretched, kneaded and then cut. The semi-soft cheese, from the southern Italian regions, has high moisture content and is often consumed the day it is made. Similarly, cheese curds – the solids that form by souring milk, a common cheesemaking process – are best eaten within hours of production. Combining a selection of cheeses on a cheeseboard is best enjoyed with a helping of antipasti and spreads from pickled asparagus to onion marmalade as well as marinated artichokes and spicy cherry chutney, recipes below.

Clara Peeters, Still Life with Cheeses, Artichoke and Cherries, c.1625
oil on wood, 46.6 x 33.3 cm, Los Angeles County Museum of Art

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Disaster…the oven is broken! My organisational skills are getting the better of me – I had my next post planned out to the last detail only to be thwarted by my own kitchen! Due to circumstance, the next couple of posts will be devoted to stove-top cooking. I hope to be posting a bit more regularly in the next couple of weeks once my writing job wraps up. There are a couple of exciting collaborations in the works so keep an eye on this space. Sadly I am very far behind with returning comments on blogs and I hope to catch up soon!

Pablo Picasso, Still Life, 1914
Painted wood and upholstery fringe, 25.4 x 45.7 x 9.2 cm, Tate Modern

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As a Midwest girl I was very excited when Chicago blogger Dana from Real Food Rehab sent me an email regarding a collaboration. She very kindly interviewed me for her site and we quickly began to assemble ideas. The Art Institute of Chicago has always been very near and dear to my heart (it houses the painting that began my still life education) and I was delighted when Dana suggested we pick a painting to highlight an upcoming exhibition at the museum. Dana is a regular contributor to the Huffington Post and combines a unique viewpoint to the vast food blogsphere. A few of my favorite posts are her pickled asparagus and the review of The Flavor Bible, one of my oft-used cooking resources. Thanks for collaborating with me Dana!

Visit Dana’s blog Real Food Rehab for a rustic apple tart recipe.

Henri Matisse, Apples, 1916, Oil on canvas, 116.9 x 88.9 cm, Art Institute of Chicago
© 2010 Succession H. Matisse / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

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