Feeling at a loss on how to endure current world events, I’ve decided to do some cooking as a form of protest. I found this cookbook, Sirocco, at the Museum of Food and Drink (MOFAD) in New York City. The author, Sabrina Ghayour, is an award-winning British-Iranian chef. She specializes in Persian and Middle Eastern cuisine.

I made three recipes - to a varying degree of success. However, all three dishes have tremendous flavor.

Why I picked it up? Elizabeth Strout won the Pulitzer Prize for her novel Oliver Kitteridge in 2009.  The rich inner lives of the citizens of Crosby, Maine are told in and around the title character, Olive Kitteridge. 

Author: Elizabeth Strout
Published: 2008

Isamu Noguchi is a renaissance man. He is an artist that should be as well known as any of the greats, from DaVinci to Diego Rivera to Brancusi, whose work set him on a path. Noguchi’s story and passion is relevant and urgent now.

Visit the Noguchi museum in midwinter is to see the sculpture onto themselves. The peace and the vibe make this a four season museum and worthy of multiple trips. Noguchi work is also featured around the US, Mexico, Israel, Japan and several other countries.

A new exhibit, “Noguchi’s New York” opens February 4.