Ben Nicholson, June 1937,Tate, London, © Angela Verren Taunt

Piet Mondrian, Composition in White, Red, and Blue, Staatsgalerie, Stuttgart, © 2012 Mondrian/Holtzman Trust

In a preview from Royal Academy of Arts Magazine, the author writes,

“Mondrian || Nicholson: In Parallel invites a comparison of Mondrian’s achievement with Nicholoson’s. Piet Mondrian was on of two artists who, in the years about 1915-20, took painting into the realm of pure geometric abstraction, in which there was no longer any apparent reference to observable reality.”

Piet Mondrian, Picture No.111, Fondation Beyeler, Riehen, Basel, © 2012 Mondrian/Holtzman Trust

Ben Nicholson, Still-Life- Greek Landscape, The British Council, © Angela Verren Taunt

If you’re unable to attend the exhibition, or if you see it and want to take it home, Paul Holberton Publishing has produced an accompanying book, similarly titled Mondrian || Nicholson: In Parrallel.

“This book accompanies an exhibition at the Courtauld Gallery, London, that will be the first to offer a comprehensive account of the parallel artistic paths charted by Mondrian and Nicholson during this remarkable decade. It will bring together an extraordinary group of paintings and reliefs to show how each artist was driven by a profound belief in the potential of abstract art to attain the highest aesthetic and spiritual power.”

1. Chocolate: The Definitive Guide (only 5 copies left!)

The secret of the uniquely, irresistibly seductive quality of chocolate, according to Sara Jayne-Stanes, is that it is the only substance to melt at blood temperature.

Another view of its attraction is indicated by the scientific name accorded it by Linnaeus: Theobroma, food of the gods. Chocolate is a loving homage to this extraordinary substance by one of Britain’s finest professional chocolate makers.

2. The Maud Allan Affair

Maud Allan, the famous exotic dancer was destroyed by the infamous libel trial brought by charismatic British Member of Parliament, and pilot, Noel Pemberton-Billing.In this wonderfully written book, Russell James charts her rise and fall from the days when she saved the 1908 London Olympics from failure to the outrageous miscarriage of justice of her trial which knocked the dark days of the First World War off the front pages of the national newspapers.

3. The Six Wives of Henry VIII

The story of Henry VIII and his six wives has passed from history into legend – taught in the cradle as a cautionary tale and remembered in adulthood as an object lesson in the dangers of marrying into royalty. The true story behind the legend, however, remains obscure to most people, whose knowledge of the affair begins and ends with the aide memoir ‘Divorced, executed, died, divorce, executed, survived’.

4.  Anne Boleyn

Although Anne Boleyn is perhaps the most engaging of Henry VIII’s Queens, but biographies usually concentrate on the period after she became a lady in waiting at Henry VIII’s court. This is the only book to tell the forgotten side of Anne early life and loves, written by the author of the best-selling Mary Boleyn: Henry VIII’s Favorite Mistress. For her he would divorce his wife of some twenty years standing, he would take on the might of the Roman Church and the Holy Roman Empire; he would even alienate his own people in order to win her favor and, eventually, her hand.

COMING SOON:

In honor of Accession Day, here is traditional British recipe from The Constance Spry Cookery Book. Its new edition is expected to be released before the end of this month.

Beefsteak and Kidney Pie

675g-900g/1½  – 2lb beefsteak cut in a thick piece
salt, pepper
1 Tb chopped mixed herbs, parsley predominating
225g/8 0z Ox kidney
2 shallots, finely chopped
seasoned flour
water
flaky pastry
a little good stock

1. Slice the steak in small, even stripes about 3 inches long by 1½ – 2 inches wide.
2. Flatten them out on a wet board, season each piece with salt, pepper, chopped shallots, and herbs.
3. Cut the kidney in pieces, removing the core, and lay a piece on each slice of meat.
4. Roll up and lightly roll each piece in seasoned flour
5. Pack, not too tightly, into a pie dish. The rolls should fill the dish and rise in a slight dome above it.
6. Fill the pie dish three parts full with water and cover with flaky pastry.
7. Put into moderately hot oven to bake (425°- 450° F) until pastry is well risen and a good brown, about 30 minutes.
8. Lower the heat (375° – 400°), envelop the pie completely in a piece of wet grease-proof paper, and continue cooking gently for a further 1 – 1½ hours
9. Before serving, remove the top of pastry decoration and full up with a little good, hot stock.

If the pie is to be eaten cold, it is a good plan to use, in place of water, some good jellied stock, or alternatively a little gelatin may be dissolved in the liquid used to fill up the pie after cooking. Additions to the filling of this pie may be hard-boiled eggs, quartered, sliced, or whole, or sliced mushrooms. It is not essential to roll the steak in the way described; it may simply be sliced, rolled in flour with the sliced kidney, and put in the dish with herbs and seasoning. But whatever the method, do not pack the pie too tightly or the result will be dry.

Thanks to Paul Holberton Publishing, parts of these galleries have been captured and documented in two outstanding books: Glass and Limogues Painted Enamels and Masterpieces of European Arms and Armour.

These two titles have received positive attention and reviews. In The Times review Wallace masterpeices shine in new musueum catalogues, Huon Mallalieu writes,

“The recent appearance of two important volumes devoted to parts of the Wallace Collection could prove to be a watershed between the past and the future for [the academic catalogue]…Both titles are as beautifully presented and generously illustrated as they are well researched.”

Mallalieu continues on about Glass and Limoges, writing,

The Arms and Armour exhibit is composed of almost 2,500 pieces, making it the largest part of the Wallace Collection. In reference to Masterpieces of European Arms and Armour, Mallalieu writes,

Masterpieces of European Arms and Armour is also available as a boxed set which includes the book as well as a complete digital collection of European Arms and Armour.

The Spanish Line displayed approximately 100 works by artists covering the 16th to the 20th century. The Courtauld Gallery described it as ” the first substantial exhibition on the tradition of Spanish draughtsmanship.”

The exhibit has received positive reviews. Timeout.com says,

“The actual drawings are frequently engrossing. Pieces are arranged roughly chronologically – although it actually makes more sense to think of them in terms of their function, the vast majority not being ‘finished’ works in any sense.”

Pablo Picasso (1881-1973), Pigs, c.1906. © The Courtauld Gallery, London

From Painter’s Table,

“This exhibition allows the wonderful Prints and Drawings department to unleash some of its magic and display a mere fraction of their 3,000 strong collection.”

If you missed out on the exhibit or want to learn more, Paul Holberton Publishing has released their accompanying book entitled Spanish Drawings in The Courtauld Gallery: Complete Catalogue that features 500 illustrations from the exhibition.

Published by Grub Street Cookery, Oct. 2011

To give you a preview of the incredible ideas found in this book, we’ve provided the recipe for Hermé’s Miléna macaron.

We’d love to hear if you tried it and how it turned out!

Miléna Macaron – Mint and Raspberry

Makes about 72 macarons (or about 144 shells)

Preparation time: the day before, 10 minutes; the next day, about 1 hour
Cooking time: 25 minutes
Standing time: 30 minutes
Refrigeration: 2 hours + 24 hours for the macaron shells

Ingredients:
300g ground almonds
300g icing sugar
110g ‘liquefied’ egg whites
10g approx. mint green food colouring
½ g egg yellow food colouring
+
300g caster sugar
75g mineral water
110g ‘liquefied’ egg whites
fresh mint ganache
300g liquid crème fraîche or whipping cream (35% fat)
300g Valrhona Ivoire couverture or white chocolate
15g Get 27 peppermint liqueur
12g fresh mint leaves
120g ground almonds for the filling
About 40 fresh raspberries to finish
Chopped almonds
A few drops of carmine red food colouring

The day before, prepare the coloured chopped almonds. Wearing disposable gloves, mix the food colouring with the almonds. Spread them out in a single layer on a baking tray. Allow to dry at room temperature. Sift together the icing sugar and ground almonds. Stir the food colouring into the first portion of liquefied egg whites. Add them to the mixture of icing sugar and ground almonds but do not stir. Bring the water and sugar to boil at 118°C. When the syrup reaches 115°C, simultaneously start whisking the second portion of liquefied egg whites to soft peaks. When the sugar reaches 118°C, pour it over the egg whites. Whisk and allow the meringue to cool down to 50°C, then fold it into the almond-icing sugar mixture. Spoon the batter into a piping bag fitted with a plain nozzle.

Pipe rounds of batter about 3.5 cm in diameter, spacing them 2 cm apart on baking trays lined with baking parchment. Rap the trays on the work surface covered with a kitchen cloth. Sprinkle the shells with the coloured chopped almonds and set aside for 30 minutes until they form a skin.

Preheat the fan oven to 180°C then put the trays in the oven. Bake for 12 minutes quickly opening and shutting the oven door twice during cooking time. Out of the oven, slide the shells on to the work surface.

For the mint ganache. Remove the mint leaves from the stalks, then rinse and dry them. Chop them finely. Bring the cream to the boil then take it off the heat. Add the chopped mint and infuse for no more than 10 minutes without a lid. Strain the cream and retain the chopped mint. Blend it finely in the bowl of a food processor. Chop up the chocolate then melt it in a bowl over a pan of barely simmering water. Pour the hot cream infusion over the chocolate a third at a time. Add the chopped mint, the Get 27 peppermint liqueur and the ground almonds. Stir then spoon the ganache into a piping bag with a plain nozzle. Pipe a mound of the ganache on to half the shells. Gently press half a raspberry into the centre. Pipe another dot of ganache on top then cover with the remaining shells.

Store the macarons in the fridge for 24 hours then bring them back out 2 hours before serving (the same day or next day).

Make sure you don’t cover the pan of infusing mint leaves, and don’t allow them to infuse for more than 10 minutes to preserve the keen mint flavour in the ganache. Mint tastes of dried grass when it has been infused for too long. With its fresh raspberry in the centre, this macaron should be consumed within 48 hours of baking.