basil – Ink, Yarn & Beer

In the Kitchen, On the Counter

The wind is whipping through Ventura and Los Angeles counties. Fear of fire is there. Today I have to drive about 30 miles into the east winds.

This morning I went out to check on my patio to see what has blown over, as well as to see the sunrise as there are clouds scudding along the windy river.

And then back indoors – the wind is a bit chilly at 6:30 a.m. But, since I had my camera in hand, I decided to look around and take some snaps of my basil and the little squash I grew this summer.

Kitchen herbs are always welcome! When I come back from my jaunt into the wind, I vowed to water the ones still outdoors – these winds dry everything up and I have lost more than one plant to my laziness and dislike of 40 mph winds .

In a rather E. Weston style, my little squash. I have eaten the others and have decided to see how well it will age. By this I mean I read how people would store pumpkins and squash through the winter months, so this is my experiment to see what it is like – will it be dry and tasteless, dry and tasty, or what? Hard squash is one of my favorite things to eat, but before eating my prey I plan to photograph it some more.

And now, on to breakfast and more coffee. I decided to get this up and out before the electric company shuts off the power in the hopes of preventing fires. These winds whip them up once started, and I sure hope we don’t get any. No rain for months makes us the perfect tinder box.

Daisies, Daffodils, and Basil

With a break in the cold and rain, a relapse of my cold, and sheer need to get out into the afternoon sunshine (74F! – 23.3 C!), I sat down and listened to Lord Peter Wimsey on Audible, pulled out a pan of paints, and looked around me. There are a lot of daffodils in various pots, a bunch of daisies, and a basil plant I just bought. The rains have kept me from replacing and modifying my drip system, but as today we probably had the last of the seasonal rain, it is time to reset them as as well as clean up various beds.

This potted basil was the first bit of painting. I wanted to focus on the lights and darks, the shadows and bright spots. It is quite a complicated bit of greenery to paint – enough detail to get depth and separation of leaves, as well as a sense of the direction of light. Pencil first, and then a try at a bit more than a lick and a promise. Not great, but I did accomplish a bit of what I wanted.

Once the basil was done, the paper was flipped over. I have a huge pot where some spring daisies are just jumping up with an enthusiasm that always frustrates my own when I try to paint them! I tried to paint them as masses – but the white daisies are very clear in shape, white with bright yellow centers – and all this in a field of varying green. The sun was in and out behind the clouds, so the two patches look a bit different. Again, complexity being simplified. The one on the right is my favorite as it feels somehow “cleaner” if that makes any sense.

And then, the daffodils. The one on the left is better than the one on the right; the spiky leaves are okay. What I focused on here were colors and their shapes, not a daffodil. The same with daisies on the right. This meant I did not use pencil, but painted directly.

Altogether, a few hours in the afternoon spent playing and relaxing. Some success, some failure.

Watercolor, 9×12 Arches CP 140# paper.

Summer is Coming!

Today I took off for a long-needed walk in the local botanical garden. Spring is ending, summer is here. My own plants are looking good – flowers, vegetables, fruits and herbs. The botanical garden, too, is entering the beginning of summer, and the air redolent with the dry scent of pine and sage.

In Heaven, There Are Limes, Basil, Garlic & Pistachios

And a few more things, like butter and salmon.

Last night, the Beer Man was off building rockets and dining on fine food chez Auntie Am, so I made myself a small dinner. Browsing through Epicurious, using the magic words of “salmon” and “basil” I came across a wonderful recipe for Salmon with Pistachio-Basil Butter. Sure sounded good! But! I had a lot less salmon, didn’t want a lot of butter, and had tons of garlic, basil, and pistachios. Dutifully, I opened a bottle of 2006 Babich Marleborough Sauvignon Blanc (after fighting with its seal for ten minutes), poured myself a glass, and set to work.

First thought – complementary foods. Jasmine rice, and a chopped tomato-cucumber salad.

Next thought – how much is enough? The original recipe called for one stick of butter, which is way too much for two small salmon fillets, but the intensity of garlic and lime and salted pistachios seemed very alluring. My results were something like this . . .

Pistachio-Basil Butter
1/2 c. roasted, salted pistachios
3 cloves garlic
juice of 1/2 lime
1/2 stick butter, at room temperature, and cut into small pieces
1/4 c. packed basil leaves

Pulse the garlic, lime juice, and basil leaves together. Add the pistachios. When fine, add the softened butter, and blend until as smooth as possible.

Meanwhile . . .
Preheat oven to 400 F. Oil pan. Lay out the salmon fillets in pan and pour about 1/2 c. white wine into the pan. I had a very small pan, and poured in wine to come about a third of the way up the sides of fillets. Bake the salmon for ten minutes, then place about 2 T. of the butter on each fillet. Bake another five minutes. Remove from oven, and serve.

Observation
I had leftovers of the butter mixture, so tried some of the butter after it had baked for 5 minutes, and some which had not. The flavors blended nicely during the time in the oven, and the butter did not melt and dissolve all over the fish. And the unbaked butter? See below.

Caution!
Someone mentioned in the comment area for this recipe it was really difficult to not just sit down and eat the butter mish-mash. Absolutely correct! This stuff is deadly delicious.