Long-lost Thanksgiving recipes from American artists discovered

Just in time for Thanksgiving, a Smithsonian Institution archivist has stumbled upon a treasure trove of culinary and visual art history. In a dusty storage room, a box mislabeled “The Finer Porcelain for Trustee Dinners” held a trove of recipes, cooking notes and holiday menus from some of the United States’ most renowned artists. From Andrew Wyeth’s cornbread to Mary Cassatt’s account of baking cakes with her mother, these records are published in one for the first time Hyperallergic exclusively that a Smithsonian spokeswoman said she hopes that “for the love of God, we are all given something else besides politics to talk about at the dinner table.”

Editor’s Note: After some discussion, we decided not to include John Baldessari’s recipe below because it consisted only of the phrase “I will eat turkey no more” written 58 times in cursive on the back of a placemat.

Andrew Wyeth’s Forlorn Cornbread

Mix cornmeal, buttermilk and egg and bake in a cast iron skillet. The result should be a dry, austere bread that evokes the arid landscapes of New England and challenges the bucolic vision of rural America. Eat alone, in melancholy silence, as you crawl across a barren field.

Mary Cassatt’s Thanksgiving Cake to Bake with Mom

Is there anything sweeter or more steadfast than a mother’s love? As I write this, the smell of pumpkin and spices fills the air – Mom and I are baking a Thanksgiving cake together! She insists on showing me her way of crimping the edges of the crust, even though I don’t think my hands will ever be able to do it as well as hers. She is the essence of tenderness. It’s humbling how she – NO, MOM, I didn’t forget the nutmeg. YES. YES. OK. PLEASE DO NOT TOUCH THIS. What an incomparable joy to enjoy these special moments together and create memories that will stay with us forever. It is the maternal bond, not the romantic expression, through which we connect with our true self, so that we – I TOLD YOU, I HAVE NO COUNSEL WITH LORD. WEATHERBY’S SON. Yes, I know he’s a pretty good gentleman. I WON’T DIE ALONE, WHY SHOULD YOU SAY THAT??? What is that smell? I SET AN OVEN TIMER. WHAT DOES THAT MEAN? SOMETHING IS BURNING. HELLO????? MAMA???!!

Richard Serra’s Tilted Cranberry (1980)

Purchase a 120-foot, heavily rusted tin can of cranberry jelly. Cold roll the sides of the tin to create a gentle curve on both sides before removing from the tin. Test the doneness by checking whether the shape is sufficiently aggressive and imposing. Hollow a central cavity into the jelly and experience the intimacy and claustrophobia of the cranberry from within.

---

Edward Hopper’s Diner Dinner

The streets of New York City are deserted, only the lit windows can be seen from these deserted streets. Since you don’t have a family to celebrate with, you head for the weary’s final respite – dinner. It’s just you, two travelers and the man behind the bar. You order a cup of black coffee and a piece of cake for dessert.

Jackson Pollock’s Gravy

Place a white tablecloth on the floor and drizzle, pour and drip the sauce directly from the saucer with sweeping gestures that demonstrate your manly bravery. To be safe, take a sip or two of vodka. When the guests arrive, blame your wife for the chaos. Later, ask her to help you sell the stained fabric as a painting and watch as she single-handedly launches your artistic career.

---

Donald Judd’s minimalist food

Submit specifications for your Thanksgiving dinner to an industrial manufacturer, including careful instructions for sourcing equal-sized sweet potatoes and stacking them evenly on the wall, as well as a diagram of a turkey supported by a metal pipe. Serve your guests while bragging about how you spent all day in the kitchen.

Ansel Adams’ Sublime Potato

You can’t improve potatoes. You can only reveal your impression of the potato or its effect on you. The photographer should strive for the pure and unadulterated potato to capture its majesty and rich tonal range so that man can feel awe of the potato and, as a result, reflect on its relative insignificance in the overall system of the universe. Potato.

Georgia O’Keeffe’s Inconvenient Cabbage

Halve the cabbage and arrange the sections sensibly. When asked to pass the dish, comment loudly, “How sensual this cabbage looks today” and note that it “reminds you of something, but I won’t say what.” Allow awkward silence to ensue.

Deconstructed Green Bean Casserole by Alma Thomas (Bird’s Eye View)

Inspiration can be found everywhere in nature, even in the humble green bean casserole. First, distill the dish into its essential components and then arrange them in a concentric circle. Consider the transcendental possibilities of vegetables. Matisse never could.