Welcome to the Georgetown Lombardi Arts & Humanities Program (AHP) newsletter. In this week's newsletter we are pleased to announce that the Arts and Humanities Program artists-in-residence have returned to the hospital. Also, artist-in-residence Jennifer Wilkin Penick shares her favorite butternut squash recipe that is perfect for fall.

Artists Return to MGUH!

Artist-in-residence Anthony plays violin for patients in Lombardi Clinic. Photo by Julia Langley.

Artist-in-residence Karen and MGUH staff member Thomas. Photo by Abigail Perelman.

“The music is back,” and “I’m so glad to see you,” are two of the joyful exclamations heard multiple times in the past week by Karen Ashbrook, hammered dulcimer player and Anthony Hyatt, violinist. They are both Arts and Humanities Program musicians-in-residence at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital.

Karen and Anthony returned to the hospital to play live music for patients, medical staff and visitors for the first time since the pandemic began in March, 2020. Since then, the AHP has been a virtual program, with musicians visiting patient rooms via iPads delivered and monitored by staff in the Palliative Medicine Department, an AHP partner. Other AHP services, including stretch breaks, yoga, expressive writing, visual and fiber art, migrated online via courses listed on Eventbrite.

There is no substitute for the real thing, however. From staff members who said that live music felt like “a return to normalcy,” to patients reporting, “it’s so relaxing,” to visitors requesting “elevator music” played between floors, Ashbrook and Hyatt’s music brought smiles, sighs, thanks, and thumbs up signs throughout the hospital.

The AHP looks forward to welcoming more artists back in the coming weeks.

Karen playing music in a busy hospital unit. Video by Abigail Perelman

Butternut Squash Risotto Recipe

AHP Artist-in-Residence Jennifer Wilkin Penick and her husband Barksdale harvest butternut squash from their community garden in DC's Glover Park neighborhood. Barksdale says that there has been a bumper crop this year, so they have been trying recipes that use butternut squash. Below, Jennifer shares her favorite recipe for Butternut Squash Risotto.

Ingredients:

1 medium yellow onion, chopped

1 cup risotto rice (arborio, carnaroli, or vialone nano)

chicken stock -- around 4 cups (or vegetable stock, heated and kept at a simmer)

2 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp butter 

1/2 cup white wine (optional)

10 sage leaves (8 chopped fine and 2 left whole)

3 cups small-diced butternut squash

1 cup grated parmesan 

Serves: 4 t o 6

Preparation:

• In a good-sized heavy bottomed pan over medium-low heat, sauté onion in 2 Tbsp olive oil and 1 Tbsp butter until onion is slowly caramelized (around 20 minutes). Add 8 chopped sage leaves (about 2 Tbsp) during last 5 minutes of cooking.
• Meanwhile, sauté (or oven-roast) diced butternut squash, along with a couple of whole sage leaves, in 2 tablespoons of olive oil until just tender (about 10 minutes). You will have about 1-1/2 cups once it is cooked.
• Add rice to onions, stir to mix, and cook for a few minutes.
• Add white wine (if you are using it) and cook until most cooks off.
• Add the hot broth, a 1/2 cup or so at a time, stirring occasionally (not constantly!). Once an addition of broth has been mostly absorbed, add another 1/2 cup. Continue and, after about 15 minutes, stir in the cooked diced butternut squash.
• Continue to cook at a simmer, stirring occasionally, until the rice is al dente (soft but still firm; the risotto will continue to cook when you take it off the burner). It usually takes about 25 minutes for the rice to be done from the time you start putting the broth in. Be sure to taste it occasionally and add salt to taste. 
• When it is done, remove from the heat. Stir in the last tablespoon of butter and a 1/4 cup of the parmesan cheese.
• Now serve it up, sprinkle more parmesan on top, and dig in!

Notes: 

I have heard people say that they can't make good risotto. Risotto technique is not complicated but it is essential that it is made just before you sit down to eat it. As risotto cools (and even more when it is reheated), more of the starch that makes it creamy is released and it starts getting gluey.

If your risotto is quite thick in consistency and you prefer your risotto more "loose" (soupy), just add a bit more vegetable stock or water.

This recipe is gluten-free, and can be made vegan simply by omitting the butter and parmesan cheese. It is also quite flexible. If you use more or less squash, sage, or wine, it will still be delicious.

Leftover risotto reheated in a microwave or stirred on the stove can get very mushy. What I like to do is heat just a bit of oil in a non-stick skillet and "fry" the leftover risotto as if it were a pancake. This produces a nice crispy outer crust that doesn't let the rice inside get mushy.

The Georgetown Lombardi Arts & Humanities Program (AHP) promotes a holistic approach to healthcare for patients, caregivers, physicians, nurses, staff members, and students through the use of music, dance, expressive writing, and visual arts. These therapeutic modalities are normally provided throughout the MedStar Georgetown University Hospital in Washington, D.C., and online through Eventbrite courses. The AHP is a program of the Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center.