CHECK OUT NANO WHITMAN’S MUSIC AND WEBSITE 

nanowhitman.com

I was recently introduced to Nano Whitman and his music by Tracee Perrin   (my dear friend and Lhyme blogger) and I had to immediately feature him on LHYME. 

Nano graduated from Harvard University with a degree in music composition. A life-changing trip in 9th grade to see The Who’s Tommy on Broadway had always stuck with him and inspired Nano to write a rock opera for his undergraduate thesis. Due to Harvard’s narrowly focused music program, he was forced to head across the river to The Berklee College of Music in order to find a mentor. Enjoying the best of both worlds, Nano completed and produced a performance of “Shine Like You,” a rock opera in two acts, collecting a Berklee experience and a Harvard degree.

The Philadelphia native relocated to Austin, TX in 2004 where he first gained attention as a solo artist. Currently, he has fully immersed himself in the heart of Austin’s thriving music scene through collaborations with many of the local talented musicians (including former Spoon-bassist Joshua Zarbo and renowned jazz singer Kat Edmonson). Now playing with his newly formed band, Nano’s live performances have been garnering a loyal following and have been highlighted by numerous e-zines and blogs including Big Western Flavor and The Austinist. A recent tour through the Northeast featured a sold out show Upstairs at World Café Live in Philadelphia and The Rockwood Music Hall in New York City as well as an appearance on NBC’s morning show, The 10! Show, in Philadelphia.

Nano’s song, “28,” won first prize in the 2010 Billboard World Song Contest for Americana/Folk. “28” also was awarded second place in the Singer/Songwriter category of the 2010 International Songwriting Competition, largely thought of as the premier songwriting competition in the world with over 15,000 entries. His song, “Break It On Your Own Time” has twice been chosen as the Song of the Day on Austin’s NPR affiliate, KUT. Nano’s “Gone On” received airplay as the Philly Local Pick on WXPN, Philadelphia.

After fully funding an extremely successful Kickstarter campaign earlier this year, Nano was able to journey out on the road and play a tour of the Northeast. During his tour, he was able to sell out shows Upstairs at World Cafe Live in Philadelphia and The Rockwood Music Hall in NYC. As part of that campaign, Nano also was able to complete his debut full-length album, I Leave On the Light. Embracing the collaborative nature of Austin, Nano enlisted the help of well-known local greats including Producer Lars Goransson (Blondie, The Cardigans, Fastball), former longtime Spoon bassist Joshua Zarbo, jazz chanteuse Kat Edmonson, and other amazing players.

It is with great pleasure to have Nano Whitman and his wonderful talent of classically trained original music be our Featured Artist this week on Lhyme…Now, on to the Flavor Explosion….

We recently asked Nano Whitman a little bit about his favorite foods and food really inspires him..it s what helped inspire today’s Flavor Explosion..and here’s what he had to say…

i am deeply obsessed with tacos.  Barbacoa tacos, to be specific.i like dishes with savory and sweet.  devils on horseback are figs stuffed with gorgonzola and wrapped in bacon.  they are the truth…the first food to make me cry in pure joy was fatty tuna.

 

For today’s Flavor Explosion I took inspiration from one of Nano’s favorite foods , Bacon Wrapped Figs Stuffed with Gorgonzola Cheese. Instead of making an exact replica of this dish, I decided to take a different spin on it that is just as yummy and crowd pleasing with a stronger Italian influence of Sottocenere al Tartufo and Prosciutto instead of Gorgonzola cheese and Bacon.  The cheese I decided to use , Sottocenere al Tartufo is a semi-soft truffle cheese aged in ashes from Venice , Italy..its flavor is very smooth and silky. I decided to keep the Italian motif going with wrapping each fig with  Prosciutto, and when I went to the grocery to get Figs I realized they were out of season so I decided to go with dried organic Figs for a much more concentrated flavor.

 

NANO WHITMAN’S PROSCIUTTO WRAPPED POPCORN FIGS
Ingredients
– One 3 ounce package of sliced AUTHENTIC Italian Prosciutto
– 4 ounces of Dried Organic Black Mission Figs
 .5 lb. of Sottocenere al Tartufo 
– 3A Standard Cookie Sheet
Non-stick pan spray 

Directions
1) Preheat the oven to 350 F
2 ) Cut your cheese into small cubes and flatten the dried figs with your fingers to make them wider.
3) Slice your Prosciutto into thin strips so that you can wrap your figs.
4) Place a cheese cube on each flattened fig and wrap with your Prosciutto.
5 ) Bake for 5 minutes and then Broil for 1 minute.
6 ) Allow to slightly cool for about 5 minutes and serve.
FLAVOR EXPLOSION 🙂