Valentine’s Day is just around the corner.

How about a Hummingbird Heart print to share your love?

8” x 10” in a black or white frame $150. Will deliver by February 14th.

Click on image to order and please specify black or white frame.

three things we love

Thich Nhat Hanh

Beautiful illustration by Carla Madrigal from the book Holy Troublemakers & Unconventional Saints by Daneen Akers @carlamadrigalembroidery

I like to cite the podcast On Being often for its great interviews with interesting people and last week's conversation was no exception. In memory of the great Thich Nhat Hanh, who died last week in his native country of Vietnam at the age of 95, I share with you an interview Krista Tippett made with this Buddhist monk, teacher, peace activist, author and poet back in 2003, when she attended one of his mindfulness retreats along with a group of police officers and other criminal justice personel in the state of Wisconsin. Someone please pass this on to our police commissioners. Thich Nhat Hanh is known as the "father of mindfulness" and this conversation contains a lot of wisdom on "living peace"--well worth the listen!

Cauliflower Piccata

One of the silver linings for me from the pandemic is that I started cooking more. I used to be the kind of cook that had a small repetoire of things I would cook over and over--turkey burgers, pasta and sauce, salmon, meat loaf, lasagna for special occasions...But my standards weren't cutting it for me anymore--I missed restaurants and I got real sick of my own cooking. So I started looking up recipes for foods that I was craving--and actually following recipes for the first time in my life...and guess what, it worked! And then I decided to splurge on the NY Times Cooking app-- best thing I ever did in the food department. I love all the choices and the recipes are good ones! Since I am trying to eat less meat, here is one I tried the other night that was just plain delicious!

CAULIFLOWER PICCATA
By Hetty McKinnon

Ingredients

1 whole cauliflower, cut into large 2-inch florets
3-4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and black pepper, to taste
1 (15-ounce) can chickpeas, drained
1 shallot, finely diced
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 cup vegetable stock
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons capers, drained
Zest of one lemon
2 tablespoons lemon juice
Parsley, chopped, for garnish
1 lemon, sliced, for serving.

Heat the oven to 425 degrees.

Place the cauliflower florets onto a sheet pan and drizzle with 2 to 3 tablespoons of olive oil.
Season with kosher salt and black pepper, and roast for 20 to 30 minutes, until the cauliflower is golden and tender.
Remove from the oven, add the chickpeas, if using, and toss to combine.

Heat a medium skillet to medium-high.
Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and the shallot, and sauté until soft and fragrant, about one minute.
Add the garlic and cook for one minute longer, stirring constantly to keep from scorching.
Pour the stock into the pan and simmer until reduced by half, about 4 to 5 minutes.
Reduce heat to low, then stir in the butter, capers, lemon zest and juice.
Season with 1/2 teaspoon of kosher salt and a few turns of black pepper.
Combine sauce with cauliflower and chickpeas and serve over pasta or rice.
Top with parsley and serve with lemon slices (optional).

Gert Mathiesen's Tigers

In honor of the Chinese New Year and since this is the Year of the Tiger, I thought I would share with you some of my late husband Gert Mathiesen's paintings and prints that contain tiger imagery. It was a common theme in his work. The origin is a humorous one: We used to chuckle with the art school teacher Olivia that our daughter Morgan, with two artist parents, would stick to just one image in her elementary art class year after year--the head of her beloved teddy bear Pocahontas. So Gert decided to adopt it and make it his own...turning the teddy bear into his signature tiger...
For a long time I wasn't selling Gert's work--wanting to hold onto it because all of a sudden the endless fountain of his creativity came to a screeching halt upon his death in 2013. I feel differently now. I want to spread it around and share it. Please contact me (or in Denmark, Galleri Liisberg) if you are interested in owning one of his paintings or prints and to check on availability and pricing.

Charity of the Week:
Southern Poverty Law Center

Please donate to the Southern Poverty Law Center, an organization that has been on the forefront of fighting hate and white supremacy for many years.

Product of the Week
New Yoga Mats

New ! Yoga Mats—$88. Contact me directly to purchase: pamsmilow@me.com

About The Author

New York City based contemporary artist, Pam Smilow created the creative lifestyle blog “things we love” in an effort to foster a sense of community during times of isolation and reflection. To read more about her and her art, visit her website and check out the essay written by the Hammond Museum's Frank Matheis entitled The Sophisticated Innocence of Pam Smilow.. And by the way, let me know in the comment section what you think of the new haircut...