Last week, I recalled my first foray into a themed Oscars dinner, from 2019. This was well before the blog and everyone really got a kick out of it on my personal Facebook page; so, I decided to do it again in 2020. But, people started asking me ahead of time what I was going to be making and I may have started panicking. With expectation comes a bit of pressure. So, I decided to watch as many of the best picture nominees I could, or at least for those which I had no earthly idea what to do.
The only movies I didn’t see, before the big night, was Jojo Rabbit and Ford vs. Ferrari (finally saw this in 2023; was ok). While the prior year was free-wheeling, I dove into making a meal of dishes inspired by the movies themselves last year. Here were the methods of my madness...
Ford v. Ferrari - When there’s such a thing as a cocktail that’s called “Fast Car”, you don’t really need to watch a movie for inspiration. You just ride with the synergy.
Little Women - This was a lovely time period movie that I took my daughters to see in the theater. While there was some baking, and a large feast, I decided to go along with the New England theme and made up this “Orchard House Salad” composed of greens, Concord grapes, and lobster. It was as delicious as the scenery in the movie.
Marriage Story - Having gone through a recent-ish divorce, this movie hit a bit close to home. I thought Kylo Ren did a fantastic job capturing the rage that just simmers below the surface when going through something tragic. I was having a problem coming up with a dish. I thought they said they were ordering from Mayonnaise - watched the scene over and over and they were saying Manny’s (a fictional deli), but someone got a BLT, I think...it’s been a while. Anyway, I made a BLT from the divorce settlement scene.
Jojo Rabbit - As mentioned above, I had not seen the film prior to the Oscars, but I’d heard lots of buzz and can confirm it is a sweet, but dark, and poignant film. The main premise is that one Hitler Youth tries to come to grips with his family hiding a Jewish girl, in his house, right in the middle of WWII. Needless to say, he was very confused. I liked what I read about how it was a clashing of two distinct worlds and I plated in the same manner. Two vegetable items meeting head-to-head. What you may not know is that this dish is also a Jewish-German dish. I loved that the cabbage was hiding the contents within its layers, much like the family was hiding its secret from the dangerous world, just outside their front door.
Parasite - This film is spectacular and very much deserving of winning Best Picture. My early-on favorite was 1917, but this movie had absolutely everything you are looking for in a film; it’s a super-film. If you have not seen this movie, you are seriously missing out on a great piece of work. I don’t want to say much about about what happens in the movie, but there is a scene where a woman is ordered to make Ramdon and she asks to no one: “What the hell is Ramdon?!” Ramdon, you see, is not an actual dish, rather, an amalgamation of Ramen and Udon. I researched the flavors and combined the two myself, with some beautiful wagyu, and this was a deeply satisfying dish.
The Irishman - One line I loved from the movie was “I paint houses”, which really meant “I spray the walls with people’s blood when I shoot them”. De Niro’s character also delivered cuts of meat and there were a few scenes in a steakhouse, so I got a nice rib-eye and made Bistecca Imbianchino (Housepainter’s Steak). I made a very thick red sauce, took a large spoon, and heaped it toward the plate to make a splatter emblematic of blood.
Joker - I cannot tell a lie. I absolutely HATED this film. It offered nothing: no ideas for food, no enrichment, no nothing. I’m not a huge fan of superhero movies, as it is, but this was just dull and lame and really boring, outside of the Joker’s crazy appearance. So, I decided to try and transpose the craziness of the face to the plate. It’s the first time I’d done something like this - still not quite sure how I feel about it. It was also the first time I used squid ink, so there’s that.
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood - What a great throwback film and dive into the crazy, imaginative mind of Quentin Tarantino. My fiance, having lived in LA for a brief stint, noticed they were eating at iconic Musso & Frank. I did a little research, and one of their popular side offerings is truffled macaroni and cheese...say no more!
1917 - This film had some amazing cinematography - it won that award instead of best film - and there is a nice human moment at the end of a frantic and heart-pounding scene. Two soldiers come across a picturesque field in the French rolling hills and meander into an orchard where some cherry trees had been needlessly destroyed. It’s parts of films like these which I enjoy the most (showing brutality through an otherwise serene setting), and one of the soldiers goes on about cherries and then they get to a barn where there is some fresh milk from a cow. So, with France, cherries and milk, how could I not make a Cherry Clafoutis. It was a lovely end to an evening celebrating some truly fantastic films with just as equally delicious food.
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