Mirabelle, circa 1979

I rarely cook anymore, other than to throw pre-cooked meat and frozen veggies in the microwave for dinner. Occasionally I whip up a pie from scratch, or I sous chef for my husband, who is a far better cook. But, I love a good cookbook, and I have a particular favorite. It's called "Cuisine Mirabelle" by Sheila Black and Anthony Hern. It was published in 1979 to feature stories, chef profiles and recipes from the venerable London restaurant. I have never made a dish from the book. Instead, I can spend an hour poring over the recipes and the photos. It features a kind of cuisine that is from another era – truly cuisine classique. It's pure old-school, with Moules Tartare and Croustade de Saumon. A quote from the introduction on Les Poissons: “Start with fish before serving fowl or other meat. Or begin with a good strong pate, an excellent but filling soup, or an egg dish before serving a main fish course: salmon and turbot are very substantial.”
The photos frequently feature open bottles of wine such as Louis Latour and Chateauneuf-du-Pape alongside the all-too-fresh ingredients like the just-killed body of a rabbit or a fresh-caught fish. Lots of copper pots and fresh flower arrangements. I smell cigarette smoke and scotch, and half expect to hear ABBA faintly playing somewhere from the kitchen. The book inspired us to visit the restaurant, which had been bought and remodeled by the White Star Line under the leadership of chef/bad-boy Marco Pierre White. The restaurant closed recently, and I'm not surprised. The food and service were good, but not great. Someday I'll brave to attempt Rognons de Veau a l'Estragon and an Ananas Orientale, with spun sugar on top, for dessert. Until then, I'm more likely to turn to Mark Bittman's "How to Cook Everything," which is a workhorse in any kitchen that both my husband and I wholeheartedly recommend.
I found this picture and reference to another copy of the book for sale on the Web http://www.vintagecookbook.com/0rcb300.html Bon appetit

Art, Italian style

The Kimbell Art Museum, among the top museums in the country and an architectural jewel, has acquired the earliest known Michelangelo painting. The strange little piece is called The Torment of Saint Anthony. While the painting remains in New York for a bit longer, the Kimbell continues to host an exibit of other Italian renaissance fare. So, for Mother's Day, the hub indugled and took me to see Art and Love in Renaissance Italy at the Kimbell Art Museum (www.kimbellart.org).

Morrissey came for a concert in April. Many thanks to colleague J.P. for getting the tickets. The Palladium in Dallas is a decent venue for a concert a.k.a Gilleys. Here is the You-Tube of This Charming Man http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=amSMoTU6lSE&feature=PlayList&p=62D7EF7EC3404E4E&index=0
and here is a link to the Palladium. As good as he was, and, really, he was good if not truly great, perhaps the most interesting part of the show was the warm-up music and videos played after the opening band and before Moz hit the stage. This included montages of Shocking Blue like this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U2DBcbZc3ck.