Professor Butter Beard and the “other Starry Night”
“Moon river, wider than a mile
I'm crossing you in style some day
Oh, dream maker, you heart breaker
Wherever you're goin', I'm goin' your way”
- Johnny Mercer, 1960
Zelma Valentine Campbell, my paternal grandmother, was born in 1907 on Valentine’s Day. She married Wilmer McClellan on April 28th, 1928, moved to Mogadore, Ohio, and raised two boys in the “Big House” on Mogadore Road. I close my eyes and I am right there. Picking the first June strawberries in the family garden, learning to ride my two-wheel “banana” bike on the circular gravel driveway, watching “Bewitched” on the scratchy sofa while “Gramma Mac” made popcorn and knitted yet another pair of slippers, and baking my first chocolate chip cookies with Gramma sitting at the Formica kitchen table watching my every move, and spill, and burn.
But most of all, I can see and hear her playing her prized organ in the front parlor. She had first learned to play the instrument back in Illinois as accompaniment to the silent movies showing in the town theater and loved sharing those stories as if reliving a fabulous dream. I would sit beside her on the organ bench and sing along, full voice, pretending to reach the foot pedals, as she played her favorite song, “Moon River” as performed by Audrey Hepburn in the 1961 film “Breakfast at Tiffany's.” That song became the symbol of our connection and love, and to this day, it transports me every time to a place right beside her.
“Two drifters, off to see the world
There's such a lot of world to see….”
And then I discovered Vincent’s painting. The “other Starry Night.” The one on the river, full of vibrant energy, yet calm. Where the only people present in the composition are two colorful figurines of lovers in the foreground, and, despite its sparkling stars, the sky elicits a sense of tranquility. My grandmother’s “Moon River.”
After seeing no artistic success in his native Netherlands, Vincent decided to join his art dealer brother Theo in Paris in 1886. Unfortunately, the artist’s time in the French capital was equally futile. “It seems to me almost impossible to be able to work in Paris, unless you have a refuge in which to recover and regain your peace of mind and self-composure,” he wrote in a letter to Theo in 1888. “Without that, you’d be bound to get utterly numbed.” In pursuit of this “peace of mind,” Vincent headed south, landing in the idyllic commune of Arles.
He painted “Starry Night Over the Rhône” from the bank of the Rhône, one of the major rivers that wander through Europe. This spot proved ideal for Vincent, as he had grown increasingly interested in the effects of light—particularly, the artificial illumination of gas lamps at night. To evoke the movement of the stars’ energetic twinkling and glimmering reflections, he employed his characteristically swirling and energetic brushstrokes.
When painting “Starry Night Over the Rhône,” however, it was not brushwork that preoccupied the artist; it was color. He explains the extent of his tonal attention in a letter to Theo: “The sky is aquamarine, the water is royal blue, the ground is mauve.” He continues, “The town is blue and purple. The gas is yellow and the reflections are russet gold descending down to green-bronze.” His personal dream of flying colors.
A few months later, just after being confined to a mental institution, Vincent painted another version of the same subject: “Starry Night,” in which the violence of his troubled psyche is fully expressed. Trees are shaped like flames while the sky and stars whirl in a cosmic vision. On days like these, I prefer the earlier version - filled with Prussian blues, ultramarine and cobalt. Where the city gas lights glimmer with an intense orange reflected like perfect memories on the water and the miracle of stars sparkle like gemstones.
“We're after the same rainbow's end
Waitin' 'round the bend
My huckleberry friend…”
Over time, my vision of Vincent’s two figurines of lovers has magically transformed into my Gramma Mac and me, walking arm-in-arm along the bank of the moonlit river, while eating one of her favorite treats – a “Tin Roof Sundae” with plenty of vanilla ice cream, chocolate sauce, salted peanuts and, if really decadent, a few mini marshmallows. Today, I baked another interpretation: a vanilla bean brioche, layered with creamy peanut butter, roasted peanuts and dark chocolate, then twisted into a bun like the river itself as it flows over the ancient stones near its banks. I break into one, still hot from the oven, share a nibble with the Nelster, and am immediately transported back to the comfort of sitting on the organ bench alongside my Gramma Mac. Happy “Zelma Valentine Day” to us all.
“…Moon river and me.”
Peanut Butter and Chocolate Brioche Buns
12-14 Buns
One recipe of “Professor Butter Beard’s Brioche”
Filling:
1 ½ cups roasted and salted peanuts
1 cup mini-chocolate chips
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 cup smooth peanut butter
1) Prepare one batch of “Professor Butter Beard’s Brioche,” easily searched within the blog’s recipe section. Set aside for the first rise.
2) Make the filling: In a food processor, pulse the roasted peanuts into a coarse grind. Five or six pulses will do the trick – you don’t want to create peanut flour! Pour the nuts into a medium bowl and set aside 4 Tbsp to use later. Add the mini-chocolate chips, cinnamon and smooth peanut butter to the bowl and use a spatula to combine into all the ingredients. Set aside.
3) Preheat your oven to 400 degrees and line two baking sheets with parchment.
4) On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough into a large rectangle, about 1/3” thick. Using your fingers, spread the peanut butter mixture in an even layer on the dough. Fold the dough in thirds like a letter. Gently press the dough and roll into a 10-8” rectangle. Using a sharp knife, trim ½” off the short sides of the rectangle. Cut the dough into 12-14 strips.
5) Lightly pull one dough strip, cut side up, to be about 14” long. Shape the strip into a figure eight by curling the right side away from you towards the center, then curl the left side towards you and tucking the ends in the gaps. Turn the bun over and place on the prepared sheet. Finish all the buns, placing 6-7 on each sheet pan. Sprinkle the tops of the buns with the set-aside peanuts. Let rise for 15-20 minutes.
6) Place both sheet pans in the oven, close the oven door and reduce the heat to 375 degrees. Bake for 12 minutes and then rotate the pans, top to bottom and front to back. Bake for an additional 8-10 minutes until beautifully golden.
7) Cool the buns on the sheets for 10 minutes to set the chocolate and then remove them to wire racks to cool to just warm before serving.
