Anne Stamatellou 12/17/14
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Monthly Archives: December 2014
Rep-Elect Carney Assigned to Legislative Committees
Devin Carney
State Representative-elect Devin Carney will serve on three committees during the 2015 legislative session.
Carney has been assigned to the legislature’s committees on Environment, Transportation as well as Higher Education and Employment Advancement. His two-year term begins Jan. 7.
“Carney will make an excellent addition to these committees, I am confident that he will serve the House Republican caucus with distinction,” said state Rep. Themis Klarides, incoming House Republican Leader. “Committee members serve as our eyes and ears when it comes to developing important legislation.”
Carney, who runs a small business, commented, “I look forward to representing the 23rd District on committees of such great importance as Environment, Transportation and Higher Education and Employment Advancement. The 23rd District is like no other with its scenic beauty and I want to ensure that both residents and tourists are able to enjoy it for generations to come. Transportation is a priority to many folks across the district and I will work extremely hard to try and repair our broken infrastructure.”
He added, “Finally, I believe it’s time for my generation to step up and start taking the lead towards restoring our prosperity in an area that has affected it, higher education. Working to ensure we have a diverse, skilled workforce, aligned with available jobs, is part of the bigger picture of boosting our economy and preventing the further exodus of our youth.”
The Environment Committee has cognizance of all matters relating to the Department of Environmental Protection, including conservation, recreation, pollution control, fisheries and game, state parks and forests, water resources, and all matters relating to the Department of Agriculture, including farming, dairy products and domestic animals.
The Transportation Committee has cognizance of all matters relating to the Department of Transportation, including highways and bridges, navigation, aeronautics, mass transit and railroads; and to the State Traffic Commission and the Department of Motor Vehicles.
The Higher Education and Employment Advancement Committee has cognizance of all matters relating to (A) the Board of Regents for Higher Education and the Office of Higher Education, and (B) public and independent institutions of higher education, private occupational schools, post-secondary education, job training institutions and programs, apprenticeship training programs and adult job training programs offered to the public by any state agency or funded in whole or in part by the state.
“Committee rooms are where the laws of our state are outlined and where we can achieve the best for the people of the state of Connecticut,” Klarides said.
Blood Drive in Old Lyme Today
“It’s not the fanciest accessory, nor the most expensive, but to someone in need of life-saving blood, it’s the most valuable.”
A Blood Drive is being held today, Wednesday, Dec. 17, at Old Lyme’s Memorial Town Hall from to 1 to 5:45 p.m. All are welcome.
To make an appointment to donate your blood, call 1-800-RED CROSS or visit www.redcrossblood.org
Simple, Real Food: A Favorite New Year’s Eve Feast
Coconut shrimp with pineapple dipping sauce
The holidays are upon us and winter is now in full swing. Time for entertaining and planning what to make for New Year’s. I for one, do not love New Year’s Eve (does anyone over a certain age?) but my husband and I often make a gourmet meal and have a really good bottle of champagne (Veuve Clicquot, anyone?) and enjoy a quiet, cozy evening at home.
I have many entertaining menus up my sleeve and focus heavily on appetizers as they are so creative and fun to eat.
Here is a sample of one such menu that is sure to make your guests or maybe just your significant other happy.
This recipe can be cut in half as well as frozen, both the shrimp and the sauce freeze well. If you decide to make this ahead and freeze the shrimp, do not defrost, simply drop them into the hot oil.
Coconut Shrimp with Pineapple Dipping Sauce
Serves 12
Ingredients
1 cup flour
3/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cayenne
3 to 4 egg whites, lightly beaten
2 1/4 cups unsweetened coconut
1 1/2 pounds large shrimp, peeled, de-veined, butter-flied
2 cups vegetable oil, for frying
Dipping sauce:
1/4 cup canned pineapple, drained
1 scallion, white part only, thinly sliced
2 Tb. apricot preserves
1/4 cup cilantro leaves
1 Tb. lime juice
1/2 jalapeno, chopped
Salt
Procedure
1. Combine the flour, salt and cayenne on a flat baking sheet. Place the egg whites and coconut on two separate baking sheets. Dredge the shrimp in the flour mixture, then the whites, then in the coconut. Press the coconut onto the shrimp. Chill for at least an hour.
2. Heat the oven to 200. In a medium saucepan heat the oil until moderately hot but not smoking. Working in batches, fry the shrimp until golden about 2 minutes. Drain on paper towels. Transfer to a baking sheet and keep warm in the oven.
3. In a processor combine the pineapple, scallions, apricot preserves, cilantro, lime juice, jalapeno and salt to taste. Process until blended and taste, adjust seasoning.
4. Serve the shrimp on a platter with the sauce in a small serving dish.
Burrata on Crostini with Caramelized Shallots and Bacon
Serves 6 to 8
Ingredients
¼ cup olive oil
1 cup thinly sliced shallots
¼ cup balsamic vinegar
1 Tb. brown sugar
1 baguette
12 slices applewood- smoked bacon
1½ pounds burrata, sliced into 12 slices
extra virgin olive oil
parsley, chiffonade
Fresh pepper
Procedure
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the shallots and sauté for about 5 minutes stirring often. Add the balsamic and brown sugar and simmer the shallots until the bottom of the pan is dry about 6 minutes. Set aside.
- Heat the oven to 400. Slice the bread into ¼ inch slices and place on a baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and rub with the garlic clove. Toast for about 8 to 10 minutes until golden.
- Cook the bacon on a rack on a baking sheet in the oven until down but not crisp about 15 minutes. Drain on paper towels. Cut in half.
- Place a slice of burrata on each crostini, then a piece of bacon and then a spoonful of the shallots. Drizzle with the extra virgin oil and then grind some pepper over each one before serving, garnish with parsley chiffonade.
Pan-Roasted Duck Breasts with Port Wine and Balsamic Glaze
Serves 4 to 6
Ingredients
1/2 whole duck breast per person
Salt, pepper
2 shallots, diced
4 garlic cloves, minced
½ cup Tawny port
1 cup chicken stock
¼ cup balsamic vinegar
1 Tb. honey
Procedure
- Heat the oven to 450.
- Score the fat on the duck and season the meat side with salt and pepper. Heat a medium cast iron or stainless steel skillet over medium high heat. Sear the duck skin side down until golden brown about 5 minutes. Place the duck on a rack fat side up in a roasting pan and roast in the oven for 5 to 8 minutes. Transfer to a cutting board and cover to keep warm. Reserve the fat from the roasting pan.
- Heat a medium skillet and add 2 Tb. of the duck fat to the pan. Sauté the shallots and garlic for about 3 minutes. Add the wine to the pan and de-glaze, reduce the port to half and add the stock, reduce to about 2/3 cup. Add the vinegar and honey and cook until thickened. Season with salt and pepper and taste for seasoning. Remove from the heat.
- Slice the duck breast and arrange on a plate pour the sauce over and serve.
- Chicken breasts can be used in place of the duck.
Arugula, Endive Salad with Simple Vinaigrette
Serves 6 to 8
Ingredients
1 bunch arugula, washed and spun dry
1 head endive, julienne
2 cups mixed greens
1 lemon, juiced or vinegar of your choice
1 Tb. Dijon mustard
3 Tb. chopped mint
1/3 to 1/2 cup virgin olive oil
Salt, pepper
Procedure
1. Combine the arugula, endive and greens in a large bowl and toss.
2. Combine the lemon, Dijon and mint in a small bowl and whisk add the oil slowly while whisking, season to taste with salt and pepper.
3. Toss some of the dressing with the greens and reserve any leftover for another salad.
Amanda Cushman
Editor’s Note: Amanda Cushman of Simple Real Food Inc., is a culinary educator who has cooked professionally for over 30 years. She has taught corporate team building classes for over 15 years for a variety of Fortune 500 companies including Yahoo, Nike and Google. She began her food career in the eighties and worked with Martha Stewart and Glorious Foods before becoming a recipe developer for Food and Wine magazine as well as Ladies Home Journal. Having lived all over the United States including Boston, NYC, Miami and Los Angeles, she has recently returned to her home state of Connecticut where she continues to teach in private homes as well as write for local publications.
Amanda teaches weekly classes at White Gate Farm and Homeworks and is also available for private classes. Her cookbook; Simple Real Food can be ordered at Amazon as well as through her website www.amandacooks.com
For more information, click here to visit her website.
‘Magic of Christmas’ Now on Show at Florence Griswold Museum, Events Galore Through Holiday Season
The perennially popular “Magic of Christmas” exhibition is now open at the Florence Griswold Museum on Lyme St. in Old Lyme. For more than a century visitors to Miss Florence’s house and the quaint village of Old Lyme, Conn. have found the perfect destination to rekindle their holiday and creative spirit.
This year, the Museum will unveil ‘The Skaters’ by Miriam Barer — a generous gift of the Tamsky family — and host several new activities and budget-friendly discount packages along with the ”Magic of Christmas” exhibition, which runs through Jan. 4, 2015.
A holiday activity list for Museum visitors should include a ‘selfie’ in front of one of the three unique and iconic trees (use #FloGrisTree) dressed in more than 150 painted palettes in a variety of styles and scenes in the Krieble Gallery.
Enjoy a stroll through the historic late-Georgian style Griswold House decorated as it was in 1910 and stop in for a Sunday ‘Joy in the Making’ with hands-on arts and crafts.
It’s also possible to spend a day with the Snow Queen on Saturday, Dec. 13, and celebrate Miss Florence’s birthday at a party with cake and crafting on Sunday, Dec. 28.
Nationally acclaimed illustrator Tim O’Brien painted this creative new palette for this year’s tree.
For over a decade, visitors from across the region have admired the painted palettes on Miss Florence’s Artist Trees in the Krieble Gallery. This year 12 palettes will be added to the collection of pieces created by more than 140 noted artists from across the country who have donated works; an effort that alludes to the door and wall panels artists painted throughout Miss Florence’s boardinghouse over a century ago.
‘The Skaters’ by Miriam Barer
The Museum is proud to unveil ‘The Skaters’ by Miriam Barer, a generous gift of the Tamsky Family that will be displayed in the historic Griswold House. Also on display in the Griswold House will be Three Fantasy Trees – one a nod to Tonalist art, one celebrates Impressionism, and the other captures the spirit of the painting “The Skaters.”
Painted in 1943 and inspired by the novel outdoor rink at New York’s newly-completed Rockefeller Center, Barer captures the energy of the city during the holiday season in ‘The Skaters.’ The New Haven-born Barer trained at the Yale School of Fine Arts, where she learned the ancient technique of egg tempera painting, using pigments she ground by hand. ‘The Skaters’ relies on this method, borrowed from early Italian painting, but the artist updates the composition with swooping angles and rippling silhouettes that announce the vitality of the contemporary American Scene. This painting captures the delight of winter.
Other events at the Museum through out the holiday season are as follows:
Christmas Time Teas
Tuesdays through Saturdays at 3 p.m. from Dec. 5-20
Museum visitors can relax and celebrate the holiday season at one of the afternoon Christmastime Teas featuring delicious scones with clotted cream, tea sandwiches and cookies prepared by Gourmet Galley, a local caterer known for delicious flavors and impeccable presentations. Savor a cup of “Miss Florence’s Tea” which is a special blended tea from Sundial Gardens. Reservations are required. Call 860-434-5541 x. 111. Cost is $35 (members $30). The fee includes admission to the Museum and a 10% discount to the Museum Shop, which is filled with a carefully curated array of gifts and treasures.
Art Bar Happy Hour: Decorate Glass Ornaments
On Dec. 9 from 5:30 to 7 p.m.
This popular evening event takes a holiday twist. Gather your friends, enjoy a glass of wine and create a gift-worthy masterpiece. This event is for guests 21 and over and is a great excuse to have a girl’s night while creating gift-worthy piece of art with the assistance of the museum’s talented instructors. For reservations call 860-434-5542 or visit florencegriswoldmuseum.org.
Girls Night Out Special
December 5 – January 4, 2015
To extend a Museum visit or night out at the Florence Griswold Art Bar Happy Hour, walk across the road to the Old Lyme Inn for a holiday meal featuring traditional comfort food with a modern twist. Built circa 1856 and once part of a 300-acre-estate, The Old Lyme Inn’s bar and restaurant feature a full menu and holiday inspired cocktails including the Miss. Florence’s Chocolate Martini for $8 and a specialty FloGris Bailey’s Coffee for $6. The Inn’s SideDoor Jazz club features live music and was voted “Best Live Jazz” by Connecticut Magazine. For details and the discount code visit florencegriswoldmuseum.org.
Joy in the Making: A Creative Approach to the Holidays
Sundays, Dec. 7, 14, 21, 28 and Jan. 4 from 1 to 5 p.m.
Sunday visitors of all ages are invited to make mirth and more during these fun-filled holiday craft workshops. Come delight in several creative projects relating to the spirit of the season and the decorations on view. Workshop included with museum admission.
“O Artist Tree,” An Old Lyme Escape for Ye
December 5 – January 4, 2015
The historic Bee & Thistle Inn has designed a relaxing escape for two in time for the holidays. Spend the day exploring The Florence Griswold Museum and shopping in Old Lyme and enjoy a perfect retreat and dinner for two. The winter package includes two night’s accommodations and gourmet breakfast each morning, Champagne and chocolates upon arrival, a one hour Swedish couples massage, dinner for two at the Chestnut Grille and lounge and two passes to the Florence Griswold Museum. Midweek package starts at $600 and weekend packages are $750. For details and reservations visit http://beeandthistleinn.com/
Meet the Snow Queen: Crafting and Tea Party
Dec. 13 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Children of all ages will love this daylong crafting and tea party, enjoying sweet treats and celebrating with the Snow Queen who will share stories and song before posing for pictures every hour on the half hour from 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Included with museum admission. And children 12 and under are always free.
Baking Chez Moi Book Talk & Signing
On Dec. 7 at 2 p.m.
Called a “culinary guru” by The New York Times, Dorie Greenspan is a celebrated author of nine cookbooks including Around My French Table and Baking: From My Home to Yours. Dorie will discuss and sign her latest book, Chez Moi: Recipes from My Paris Home to Your Home Anywhere, a collection of simple desserts from French home cooks and chefs. Talk included with museum admission and cookbooks will be available for purchase.
Miss Florence’s Birthday Bash
On Dec. 28 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
The Museum will host a hands-on-creative celebration of Miss Florence’s Christmas Day birthday in its Hartman Education Center. Guests will enjoy birthday cake and fun celebratory activities to honor the woman who started it all. Miss. Florence would be 164 this year, but age is just a number. Included with museum admission.
Ode to the New Year: Harp Music by Faith Leitner
On Wednesday, Dec. 31 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Come and hear harpist Faith Leitner play Miss. Florence’s favorite instrument, a relaxing way to begin New Year’s Eve celebrations. Included with museum admission.
Life Stories in Art
Oct. 3-Jan. 25
Together, these three exhibitions highlight the contributions of three important women artists in Connecticut in three different media over the course of three centuries. The Museum’s Krieble Gallery will feature more than 70 works by 19th century painter Mary Rogers Williams; 20th century sculptor Mary Knollenberg; and contemporary glass artist Kari Russell-Pool. Although separate exhibitions, they each carry the theme “Life Stories in Art” and serve as an exploration of these women’s individual journeys of sacrifice, self-discovery, and balancing multiple roles in the pursuit of their art.
The Florence Griswold Museum’s Krieble Gallery and Griswold House are open Tuesday – Saturday, 10-5 and Sunday, 1-5 and will be closed Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day and New Year’s Day,. Admission is $10 for adults, $9 for seniors, $8 students and free to visitors 12 and under. Admission includes access to exhibitions, the historic Florence Griswold House, and the rest of the Museum’s grounds.
Founded in 1936, the Florence Griswold Museum in Old Lyme is a center for American art and history accredited by the American Association of Museums. Located in a stately Late Georgian mansion designed by Samuel Belcher and built in 1817, the Museum and its grounds served in the early years of the twentieth century as the center for the Lyme Art Colony, one of America’s most famous art colonies.
Today, the Florence Griswold Museum is complimented by the contemporary architecture of the award-winning Krieble Gallery and together stand as one of the only places in America where visitors can walk through a landscape setting, view paintings of those landscapes and experience first-hand where a colony of prominent American artists lived and worked. The recipient of a Trip Advisor 2014 Certificate of Excellence and ranked as the number one attraction in Old Lyme, the Florence Griswold Museum has been called “Giverny in Connecticut” by the Wall Street Journal, and a “must-see” by the Boston Globe.
With an eye toward the integration of art, history and landscape in all of its program plans, the Museum has spent the last 10 years redefining itself as a central part of community life –building an education center for hands-on experiential programs, constructing an award-winning exhibition gallery for its collections, and completing a thorough restoration of the Griswold House as a boardinghouse for artists, c. 1910.
Visit www.florencegriswoldmuseum.org for more information, including history, events and hours of operation.