Blog No. 284: Comedian Wanda Sykes, Colorful Food, Stephen Colbert's Musical Send Off

Comedian
Wanda Sykes

Photo courtesy Philadelphia Gay News. Click image for interview

Laughter truly is good medicine for the soul.

Wanda Sykes is one of my favorite comedians. I strongly recommend you take the time to watch this new film of hers Legacy, available on Netflix. It documents her performance at her alma mater: Hampton University and it is funny. We so need the comic relief right now and I am pretty sure you will get some good laughs out of it.

Wanda Sykes Illustration, courtesy RaLiz and RedBubble

Beautiful Colorful Salad

Have you ever seen such a colorful and aesthetically pleasing salad?

Radishes, cucumbers and oranges contribute to the beauty of this salad.

Recipe follows thanks to journalist Emily Nunn's The Department of Salad and Italian chef and cookbook writer Marcella Hazan:

MARCELLA'S COLORFUL SALAD, serves 6

INGREDIENTS:
2 Persian cucumbers or 1 large seedless
3 oranges
6 small radishes
1 avocado (optional)
12 fresh mint leaves
Sea salt
Juice of 1/2 a lemon
Extra virgin olive oil

INSTRUCTIONS:
*Slice the cucumber into thin disks and arrange on a serving platter.

*Peel the oranges by slicing the top and the bottom off of the orange and using a sharp pairing knife remove the peel. (Try not to leave any of the white pithy part.)
Slice the oranges and add to the platter.

*Slice the radishes into disks and add to the platter

*Slice the avocado and arrange nicely on platter.

*Tear the mint leaves in half and sprinkle them over the top.

*Sprinkle sea salt over the whole salad

*Squeeze lemon evenly over the platter and finish with a drizzle of good quality olive oil.

Voilá!

And here is another beautiful healthy choice--I personally love creating these rice bowls out of all kinds of ingredients. This one looked particularly appealing to me but you can literally put anything in there except the kitchen sink.

RAINBOW RICE BOWL

RAINBOW RICE BOWL

Your choice of protein
1 cup cooked Brown Rice
1/3 cup grated carrots
1/3 cup shredded red cabbage
1 avocado, cut into thin slices

PREPARATION FOR KALE:
1/2 cup chopped kale into small pieces.
Toast the sesame seeds lightly in dry frying pan, then add shredded kale to the pan
Add 1 tsp sesame oil and
1 tsp olive oil.
Turn the heat to medium and sautee for a few minutes until bright green and nicely cooked.
Add 2 tsp tamari and turn the heat down - cook for 1 minute to reduce the liquid then turn the heat off.
DRESSING
1 tsp. olive oil, 1 tsp sesame oil, 2 tsp tamari, 1 tbsp sesame seeds

Stephen Colbert's Send Off

The final send off from Stephen Colbert’s eleven year run on CBS (boycott CBS please) includes two back to back musical numbers: Jump Up by Elvis Costello and finally The Beatles Hello Goodbye, all performed by Colbert himself alongside Louis Cato, Jon Batiste, Elvis Costello, Paul McCartney and the Great Big Joy Machine. It ends in a giant singalong that involves the audience and the entire staff.

Painting of the Week

Pam Smilow Green Garden. mixed media on canvas. 50” x 80”. $8500

Charity of the Week:
Doctor's Without Borders

Book of the Week

About The Author
New York City based contemporary artist, Pam Smilow, began writing 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 Frank Matheis entitled The Sophisticated Innocence of Pam Smilow.