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Small painting of a rhino at Shamwari, using Indian Yellow rather than Raw Sienna. The warm yellow colour, rather than the earth tone (which I felt was a tad flat), contrasting with Alizarin Crimson adding drama to the painting. Could have used more of the Cobalt Blue, Burnt Sienna mix to push back the shadows.

Trying to work through my paint supplies and move to the ‘modern colours’ that have higher translucency, hues, chroma and pigmentation, rather than the traditional impressionist colour palette I have been using. Hansa yellows, rather than the Cadmiums.

Le Marquis didn’t disappoint. The terrine scrumptious and the salmon a visual feast. Tender Springbok loin and the coconut macaroons, a perfect ending.

A surprise visit from Kevin Duke in the studio. Botswana days suddenly not so distant.

New Apple Mac a tad frustrating as it has a different range of connectors and doesn’t support older versions of Microsoft office or Photoshop, needing expensive upgrades. This after crashing during the time-machine installation. Going to try using the apple versions for spreadsheets, word processing and presentation for the limited stuff I need to do.

https://www.justpaint.org/color-mixing-you-cant-get-it-unless-you-do-it/

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Fishing

Oil on canvas 20cmx20cm

Painting of Peter ‘Come Along’ received a Special Recognition Award for ‘Outstanding Art’ at the LST 2019 Figurative Online Exhibition. Amongst the top 15 paintings chosen from 845 entries, from 35 countries.

This is the fifth year in a row that my portraits have received international recognition.

Baked cheesy brinjals, from the latest Taste magazine, must be the most flavoursome brinjal dish imaginable. The fire adds smokiness that transforms the bitter flavours of brinjals, while the cheese filling adds pure deliciousness. Didn’t manage to get the grilled colour on the cheese from the Kamado Jan, and might need to get one of those flame torch things.

Painting of the dueling elephants at Ruha sold and heading to its new home in Ireland. A painting that was originally damaged on the trip back from Tanzania, and one that highlighted the tension of being in Tanzania. Incredible scenery and an impossible work environment. Only a couple of the paintings from that period still available. Another trip needed?

Police here for the break into the studio. Our security guys with CCTV footage identifying the alleged thief. A tad more vigilance needed on my part.

In the novel I’m reading, Stromboli were mentioned. According to google, it’s an Italian-American dish that can have all manner of fillings rolled into a rectangle of pizza dough. Using the mozzarella diabetic base, I did the broccoli as well as a ham and broccoli version. Couldn’t find Provolone so the cheese balance wasn’t quiet correct, but still delicious.

After a few requests recently to package paintings that weren’t my work for shipping, I’m putting together a Professional Painting Packaging Service for both local and international destinations. While styrofoam is recommended as additional protection for the paintings, I’m searching for an environmentally friendly alternative.

Broccoli & Cheese Stromboli

Makes one 12-inch stuffed roll; serves 4-6
From Pizza by Brigit Binns

salt

1 1/2 cups (3 oz) broccoli florets

2/3 cup whole-milk ricotta cheese

2 oz sliced provolone cheese, torn into small pieces

2 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh basil leaves

1 ball thin-crust pizza dough (recipe follows), at room temperature

all-purpose flour for dusting

salt & freshly ground black pepper

olive oil for brushing

coarse sea salt for sprinkling

Place a pizza stone on a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat to 400 F. Let the pan stone heat for 45-60 minutes.

Fill a saucepan with one inch of water and bring to a simmer. Place broccoli in a mesh strainer or steamer basket and place over the simmering water, not letting the broccoli touch the water. Cover and steam for 5-7 minutes until crisp tender. Remove strainer or basket from saucepan and let cool. Coarsely chop the broccoli and set aside. In a large bowl combine the ricotta, provolone, and basil. Mix well.

Place a large sheet of parchment paper on a pizza peel or large rimless baking sheet and place the ball of dough in the center. Dust the top of the dough with flour and, using a rolling pin, roll out to a 9-by-12-inch rectangle of even thickness. If the dough springs back, let it rest, uncovered, for a few minutes then continue. This video by Peter Reinhart demonstrates how to shape pizza dough for stromboli. Cover the dough rectangle with a clean kitchen towel and let rise for 10 minutes.

With the long side of the dough facing you, spread the cheese mixture evenly over the dough, leaving a 1-inch border uncovered on all sides. Scatter the broccoli evenly over the cheese and season generously with salt and pepper. Starting with the long edge nearest you, gently roll up the dough, lightly compressing the filling. Crimp firmly to seal, but avoid pressing down too hard. Turn the stuffed roll seam side down, cover with a clean kitchen towel, and let rise for 5 minutes. Brush the roll lightly with olive oil, cut a few small steam vents in the top, and sprinkle with coarse sea salt. Carefully slide the roll-topped parchment onto the hot pizza stone. Bake until golden brown, about 25 minutes.

Using the pizza peel or a rimless baking sheet, remove the stromboli from the oven and transfer to a cutting board. Let the stromboli stand for 15 minutes then use a serrated knife to slice it crosswise into rounds.

https://www.handletheheat.com/brocco

Diary of an Adventure

Harbour Town Adventures 

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Oyster CatchersAcrylic on canvas 200x70cm
Struggling to get my blood sugars up with the cooler weather. Fingers searching for the warming of a tea mug and its almost time to take out my shoes. As I’m making confused dabbing motions on the canvas in some sort of wild attempt at the movement of the sea, having cold fingers isn’t making that much of a difference.
Finished my painting of the Oyster Pickers at Wilderness, who search for wild oysters in the sand between the rock pools at low tide. 
From a photo by Rose Blogger, we walked down the gazillion stairs to the beach to get a feel for the movement of the sea and the reflections. 
I’m pleased with the abstract ‘scratching’ technique I first used in Vietnam with acrylic paints. 
A break into the studio while we were out to breakfast a tad irritating. My laptop and iPad stolen. This after a few weeks of dodgy individuals in and around the studio. The building site next door not helping. Security fantastic and responsive. Still irritating and expensive.

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Our part of paradise being transformed with building next to us undergoing a massive rebuild. A modern update to what has, to-date, been constrained architecture along strict low-impact guidelines. As with the rebuild of Ile de Pain, the building itself is set to become a destination. A year of chaos and noise ahead!

Not the best, for a sensitive Border Collie.

Stopped playing with the portrait of ‘Ben’, the racehorse. The muscles of the horse a guide for the direction of my finger strokes to add power and breath life into the painting. Constrained by the small 50cmx60cm canvas.

Ben is beautiful mixture of dark brown, gold and red. Indigo (Ferrario No.57) for the iris of the eyes with Mineral Violet Light (Ferrario No.46) highlights. Raw Umber (Ferrario No.76) for the dark brown. Cerulean Blue and Cadmium Orange for that touch of sparkle.

A gap before a world turned crazy. Storms ripping across the estuary. Insides turned to mush on Homtini Pass cycle. Not much time to enjoy the stunning indigenous Forest, as keeping going forward was all consuming.

Small elephant painting sold, and the new silk scarf samples of the dolphins and King Protea have been shipped. While most are already pre-sold, it will be fascinating to see how they have turned out

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A preliminary painting of a rhino (30cmx30cm) for the larger commission piece I’m hoping to do. Permanent Magenta an odd colour to be using. The ‘extra-spectral’ (meaning it doesn’t exist in the visible spectrum) nature of the colour perhaps making it special in relation to the rhino on the edge of extinction?

Fabulous run along the mist covered beach, with Prince, from Brenton. Running on a silver mirror. My Achilles not happy with the run. Barefoot running?

Gurgling water running down gutters. Cars splashing along wet streets. Gentle rain, creating a magical world. For which. Good wine, friendships and laughter were created. Not forgetting, the vibrancy of a Border Collie!

The display book collection of my paintings from Vietnam finally sorted, and the draft of the Vietnamese diabetic sensitive recipe book compiled. Not sure the small format is the answer?

I seemed to ‘crash’ my way through the day. While coordination isn’t one of my skills, the effects of low blood sugars having an impact after a good cycle up Homtini Pass.

Exceptionally dusty with a bunch of motorcycles ensuring I rode in a cloud of the stuff. Fortunately Pete was having his bicycle washed so I did mine as well. I probably would have benefited from a similar hose down!

‘Johannes’ heading to his new home in Europe

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A series of small paintings of various rowing boats, yachts and fishing boats against the backdrop of the Knysna Heads to replace those that have been sold.

A pleasant lunch under umbrellas, protected from the wind, at the Girls on the Square, in Wilderness, before taking Kirsten to start her long trip back to the States. The wine list takes a bit of time to sort through as it’s interesting and extensive. While many of the dishes aren’t suitable for a diabetic, we shared a bunch of stuff from different parts of the menu. Interesting flavour combinations and delicious.

New Year celebrations in China. The new sample designs from my paintings of the King Protea and dolphins now only expected towards March. A tad frustrating and something I will need to factor into our unpredictable tourist season.

Achilles sort of behaving. Zooty red Kinesiology Tape stripes up my leg that sort of mach my running shirt, holding things together. Bunches of overnight rain making for fresh, beautiful rides through the Forest. A gazillion shades of green between sweat, and mud stained glasses.

From Lucy’s kitchen, roasted nutmeg cauliflower from a Levi Roots cookbook, with a surprise delivered by the addition of chilli powder. Served with Filet Au Poivre (the bacon tied with nifty silicon ties) and oodles of wine. Mouthwatering

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New Year

Beach play before a day of bubbles and laughter. The ‘pizza’ base getting better. A humongous number of empty bottles, probably adding to the, somewhat, bizarre decision to hold an e-bike Challenge up Phantom Pass. With the proceeds to Animal Welfare, a more than expected bunch trundled up the pass. The Challenge, somewhat lost in the enjoyment of a fabulous day to be out riding in paradise.

Rain bringing holiday makers into the studio. Humbling, and thrilling to have paintings heading to new homes in Oslo, Rome and London. The silk scarves, a popular option.

Backup hard-drive crash. The gazillions of photos from our travels, which I use as reference sources for my paintings, the major loss. Perhaps a data-recovery company can retrieve them? Or perhaps. It’s one of those. Clean-slate. New-year. Start-afresh. Moments.

Friday market. A Cheloist that touch of amazing with the last of the daylight and the storm moving in.

Diabetic Sensitive ‘Pizza’ Recipe

Ingredients

170 grams grated mozzarella cheese

1 tbsp butter

½ cup fine almond flour

¼ cup coconut flour

1 tsp baking powder

¼ tsp salt

1 large egg

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C).

• Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone liner. Lightly grease the liner.

• In a large saucepan, melt the cheese and butter together over low heat until they are melted and can be stirred together. Remove from heat and add almond flour, coconut flour, baking powder, and salt.

• Add the egg and stir everything together until a cohesive dough forms. Use a rubber spatula to really knead it up against the sides of the pan. It may still contain some streaks of cheese.

• Transfer to the prepared pan and knead a few more times until uniform. If your dough is very sticky, work in another tablespoon or two of almond flour. Cover the dough with another piece of parchment and roll out to a 12-inch (30 cm) circle.

• Spread olive oil, salt and herbs over the dough before putting in the oven to co

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Seven Passes road to Wilderness makes for a fabulous 75km morning ride. Twisting down through the gorges, the light filtered through the indigenous Forest. Didn’t see any elephants, although that could have been due to the sweat staining my glasses. Legs finished. Bum, complaining.

Flava restaurant the meeting point for the support crew that assembled the bits of cyclists, gear and bicycles for the trip home. Despite being confronted by a hord of hungry, dirty cyclists, our food was amazing, and the cappuccino perfect.

Quick trip to see Lesa and Mark in Kommetjie.

Harbour House at the Waterfront. The menu, for a diabetic, a list of impossible, delicious sounding food. Settled on the starters as they had the most manageable, but still exotic, options. The Seafood Stack with salmon tartare, crushed avo, tomato bits, prawn tempura and caviar with pea shoots tasted as amazing as it looked. Spicy grilled calamari with olives, lemon and capers a tad less exciting.

Walk out to the wreck of the Kakopo, which ran aground on Long Beach in May 1900 en route from New Zealand to Cape Town. It mistook Chapman’s Peak for Cape Point in poor visibility. Lots of warning signs about muggings. The beach, stunning.

The pizza quest that is tasty, diabetic friendly and can be done in the Kamado Jan. A tad more challenging than the holy-grail. A galette recipe the inspiration for a trial dinner. Tasty. The fire too hot. Cooked too long. Still, much better than any commercial alternative we have experienced. Definitely, to be repeated!

Just in time for Christmas, the new silk scarves arrived. Orders couriered to their new homes and the studio display, luxuriantly decadent.

Low-carb spinach mushroom galette

Have you ever made pizza dough out of mozzarella cheese? Made famous by the people behind the Fathead movie, it really is quite revolutionary. Try your hand at my magic mozzarella dough and make this spinach mushroom galette. You won’t regret it!

Ingredients

Crust

• 170 grams grated mozzarella cheese

• 1 tbsp butter

• ½ cup fine almond flour

• ¼ cup coconut flour

• 1 tsp baking powder

• ½ tsp garlic powder

• ¼ tsp salt

• 1 large egg

Filling

• 3 oz. cream cheese, softened

• 1 garlic clove, finely minced

• salt and pepper

• 8 oz. frozen spinach, thawed and drained

• 2 oz. mushrooms, sliced

• 2 oz. grated mozzarella cheese

• 1 oz. grated parmesan cheese

• 1 large egg yolk, lightly beaten

Nutrition

by Carolyn Ketchum (Recipe, Photo)

.RecipesAppetizersLow-carb spinach mushroom galette

Instructions

Crust

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C).

2. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone liner. Lightly grease the liner.

3. In a large saucepan, melt the cheese and butter together over low heat until they are melted and can be stirred together. Remove from heat and add almond flour, coconut flour, baking powder, garlic powder and salt.

4. Add the egg and stir everything together until a cohesive dough forms. Use a rubber spatula to really knead it up against the sides of the pan. It may still contain some streaks of cheese.

5. Transfer to the prepared pan and knead a few more times until uniform. If your dough is very sticky, work in another tablespoon or two of almond flour. Cover the dough with another piece of parchment and roll out to a 12-inch (30 cm) circle.

Filling

1. Spread the dough with the softened cream cheese, leaving a 2-inch (5 cm) border around the outside. Sprinkle with the garlic and salt and pepper.

2. Squeeze as much moisture as possible from the spinach and layer over the cream cheese, then add a layer of mushrooms. Sprinkle with the grated cheeses.

3. Fold the edges of the crust over the filling and brush with the beaten egg yolk. Bake the galette for 25 to 30 minutes, until the crust is golden brown and the cheese is melted.

4. Remove and let cool 10 minutes before serving.

Carolyn’s tips and tricks

Because the cheese creates a flexible dough that stretches like pizza dough, it’s useful for so many other things. Consider it for stromboli, calzones, and even sweet pastries. It can be rolled out thinly and used for crackers or even pie crusts.

I modified the basic Fathead dough, which is just simply grated cheese, cream cheese, almond flour, and an egg, to be a little sturdier. A combination of almond flour and coconut flour means it holds up better and doesn’t spread as much during baking. A little baking powder gives it a bit more of a rise, and some garlic powder gives it a great savory flavor.

A galette is tart or a pie that isn’t baked in a pan, but formed by hand with the crust folded partway over the fillings. Fathead dough makes a perfect galette crust because of its flexibility. This savory galette is filled with mushrooms, spinach, and cheese and makes a nice alternative to meat based keto recipes. It can be the whole meal or served as a side dish or appetizer. It

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Air reverberating with the sounds of helicopters heading to the fire front, the news that one of my collectors homes had burnt down. 3 generations of memories lost, and my paintings.

Blood sugars suddenly trampolining all over the place (7.8 mmol/L -3.8 mmol/L) after a month of being stable. Averaging 6.0 mmol/L with a standard deviation of 0,7. Diabetic carbs at 23grams, well within the 50 gram range. Particularly noticeable an hour after exercise, with cycling creating the biggest swings. Dehydration with the onset of warmer weather?

‘A Pair of Kings’. A small painting of the King Protea on the studio table that reminded me of Van Gogh’s ‘Still Life with Two Sunflowers’ painted in Paris, 1887.

After the contortions to create the small works my shoulders and hands are straining with the demands of covering the large surface for my painting of dolphins. The rough canvas blistering fingers already a tad sensitive from not concentrating when changing hot braai grids on the Kamado Jan for the slow cooked fillet.

The Forest. Full of magic. Roses of every hue, perfuming the world. Ghost tendrils. Air plants in the setting sun. Timeless laughter with excellent wine and an exquisite dinner under a star filled sky. Woodcutters Cottages, another gem in our part of paradise.

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Calf muscle a tad unhappy. Singed fingers from a super hot braai grill that was engulfed in flames from the burning duck fat. This cooking is dangerous stuff.

Beach walk with Prince at the Wild Side. The sea rough with deep pools that kept him out of the water for most of the walk. Probably not as much fun, but at least he hasn’t been ill.

Crusted lamb ribs with anchovy and parsley salsa. 2 hours on the Big Red Egg in a tinfoil bath, before letting them cool (another 3 hours) and then grilling them over the fire on a Teflon sheet with their crust of Parmesan cheese, rather than the flour and bread crumbs of the recipe. Rosemary rather than celery, as I don’t like celery. And it’s lamb after all.

‘Reading’ my painting of a woman sitting at the ‘Reflections Seed Pod’, in Steenbok Park. Under blue skies, summer flowers amongst the new green grass. The Reflections Seed Pod statue commemorates the June 17 fires that swept through Knysna. A sacred space for remembrance, gratitude and reflection.

http://www.steenboknaturereserve.org.za/news/

Despite the early hour, it was already warm on the a ride up Phantom Pass. My legs fatigued from running. Lungs gasping, which only resulted in a mouthful of bugs! Fortunately our breakfast stop, at the newly opened Knysna Hollow, was much tastier.

The hotel burnt down in the fires and has been transformed in its reconstruction. Elegant, clean, light-filled and comfortable. One of those places where a morning. Or a day?, will disappear. A tad sad that they haven’t managed to bring in any large trees to soften the harsh lines of the new buildings. Envious that my paintings aren’t on the walls.

The studio has had a busy month, after a quiet winter. Hopefully a good indication of the months ahead. Still waiting for the next bunch of sample silk scarves to arrive. Holidays, customs and the unexpected have delayed things by a few weeks and I’m starting to wonder if I will get the next order sorted in time for Christmas? Guess it’s all a learning curve, and there will be next Christmas. I have decided to do a 30 paintings in 30 days challenge to make sure I have enough small paintings, for those ‘unique Christmas gifts’ as this week has seen a bunch leaving the studio.

The smell of salt on the air. Entwined with the heady scent of the star jasmine flowering on the patio.

CRUSTED LAMB RIBS WITH ANCHOVY-AND-PARSLEY SALSA

Woolworths TASTE1 Oct 2018

Serves 6 to 8

EASY

Preparation: 30 minutes, plus cooling time (another 3 hours)

Cooking: 2 hours 20 minutes

Woolworths free-range farm-style lamb ribs 1.2 kg

carrots 2, peeled and cut into chunks

celery 2 sticks, cut into chunks (I used rosemary as I don’t like celery. And it’s lamb after all)

leeks 2, cut into chunks

Woolworths organic beef stock 2 litres

sunflower oil, for deep-frying

flour 120 g

free-range eggs 3, beaten

panko breadcrumbs 200 g

For the anchovy-and-parsley salsa:

anchovy fillets 12

garlic 2 cloves,

chopped lemons 2, juiced

extra virgin olive oil ¼ cup

Italian parsley 30 g, roughly chopped

1 Preheat the oven to 180°C. Place the ribs into a deep ovenproof dish with the carrots, celery and leeks. Pour over the beef stock making sure that everything is covered.

2 Cover the dish with foil and braise in the oven for 2 hours, until soft.

3 Remove the dish from the oven, set aside and allow the ribs to cool completely in the liquid. (another 3 hours)

4 Once the meat is cold, remove it from the liquid and portion into individual ribs. Heat the oil in a deep saucepan.

5 Dip the ribs into the flour, then into the egg and the breadcrumbs. Deep-fry each rib until golden brown.

6 To make the salsa, place all the ingredients into a blender and process until chunky.

Serve with the ribs Waterford Kevin Arnol