Feasting on Art

Recently I have been thinking a lot about meatballs. From Molly Wizenberg’s search for the perfect meatball for Bon Appétit to The Traveler’s Lunchbox’s adaption of Lynn Rosetto Kasper’s beguiling recipe featuring spinach, cinnamon, almonds and candied citron, I have been reading about delicious little orbs of meat in all of my favourite venues. Although the recipes certainly peaked my interest, I struggled to find a meal composed entirely of ground mince appetising, especially sans a generous portion of noodles. However, upon discovering an issue of Australian Good Food magazine nestled among the classifieds, I spotted a recipe for cabbage-wrapped meatballs and soon found myself in the kitchen rolling, wrapping and saucing. My grandmother affectionately calls this dish pigs in the blanket, a recipe she has made for as long as she can remember. The version my grandmother referred to has roots in Slovak cookery and is also known by the name gołąbk.

Nikos Hadjikyriakos-Ghikas, Still Life with Vegetables, 1976
oil on board, 24 x 34 cm, Private collection

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I am so happy to reinstate the monthly collaborative feature here on Feasting on Art. Alyson, the designer behind the website redesign, is also the blogger behind the charming design site, Unruly Things. I visit her blog daily to gush over pretty vintage finds and inspiring photography. In addition to her design company Seventy & Sunny, Alyson runs a letterpress shop called Postal Press where her appreciation for specimen charts manifested into a letterpress calendar. It seemed only appropriate that we would deconstruct a botanical art illustration.

Visit Alyson’s blog, Unruly Things, for the recipe for Pear Almond Sticky Buns.

Johann Christian Berndt, Plate 21, 1809-1812,
colour plate of pear varieties from Johann Ludwig Christ’s book, Vollständige pomologie, Royal Horticultural Society
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When I moved to Australia 8 months ago I did not foresee my palate-lag. I arrived 4 days before Thanksgiving and promptly made a big traditional dinner. Never mind the fact that it was 80°F, humid, and the food sat in our stomachs like a heavy brick. Throughout the Australian summer I made chili and soup, the warm and hearty dishes I typically craved in December and January. Now that we are in the middle our our southern winter I can’t stop myself from daydreaming and craving barbecues and fresh fruits. This little dish is my attempt to get over my palate-lag with the BBQ taste made inside on the stove top, perfect for a winter supper.

Severin Rosen, Still Life with Strawberries, (c. 1848-1870)
40.6 x 50.8 cm, oil on fabric, Private collection

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I know that this is only my eighth recipe here on Feasting on Art and like the lemon & orange ice cream this risotto has a focus on citrus flavors. If you are familiar with still life paintings then you will know that the majority of them will feature a lemon somewhere on the canvas. Traditionally citrus fruits represented the wealth of the patron commissioning the painting because they were exotic commodities that required a substantial sum of money to acquire. In an era where artists were treated as craftsmen, the lemon became a test for the artist to demonstrate skill in illustrating the different manipulations of light. The paint was carefully applied to depict the lustrous light glowing from within the semi-translucent flesh of the lemon with the delicately cut peel curled in a long tendril showing a complex perspective (example here). These beautiful fruits will in all likelihood be featured many times here at Feasting on Art but like the 17th century artists, the lemon is a challenge for me to keep looking for new fresh and inspired recipes.

Giovanna Garzoni, Still Life with Bowl of Citrons, late 1640s
tempera on vellum, 27.6 x 35.2 cm, J Paul Getty Museum

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