Snacks
Entrees
Drinks
Dessert
The below are suggestions for thematic food to serve while watching the Academy Awards on Sunday, March 2. All are inspired by the nine movies nominated for Best Picture, and I’ve linked to recipes where possibly needed. Why? Because brainstorming party food based on pop culture themes is one of my favourite things to do.
When possible, I’ve taken food right out of the movies (in 12 Years, Solomon uses a twig and blackberry juice to write a letter to his family; in Her, Samantha leads Theodore to a slice of cheese pizza at the fair, etc.). Other times, I’ve chosen things that encapsulate the spirit of the movie (floating fruit for Gravity; gold coins for The Wolf of Wall Street). And when neither of those are possible, I’ve suggested cuisine inspired by the setting of the movie (samosas/sambusa from Somalia for Captain Phillips; fondue from the seventies for American Hustle, etc.)
Enjoy! And check out the rest of the nominees here.
(If you use any of my suggestions, please let me know! It would make me so happy.)
Hug a pen today.
Starters/snacks
Crisps with goat cheese, blackberries and honey* — 12 Years a Slave
Sambusas (also known as “samosas”) — Captain Phillips
Mains
Cheese pizza — Her
Tex-Mex (e.g. nachos, fajitas, quesadillas) — Dallas Buyers Club
Fondue — American Hustle
Just wait until it cools a bit.
Desserts
Jello mould with floating fruit — Gravity
Chocolate gold coins** — The Wolf of Wall Street
The strawberries are Sandra Bullock. The kiwis are George Clooney.
Drinks
Guinness — Philomena
More/any alcohol — Nebraska
*When I make this, I’ll probably replace the crisps with much simpler baguette slices.
**I realize this is a Canadian thing. I don’t know if people in other countries have anything similar. Jelly bean dollar bills? I just don’t know.
Oscar parties without thematic food are lame. But thinking up a whole menu can be difficult (especially if you haven’t seen the movies), so here are a few suggestions for inspiration. [If you actually make any of these, please send me photos. Thank you.] I also did this last year, for the sake of reference.
Hors d’oeuvres
Spam musubi (it’s really popular in Hawaii, I swear) [The Descendants]
(Mini) hot dogs (sorry for all the animal flesh so far) [Moneyball]
Baguettes and cheese (preferably cut into whimsical shapes) [Hugo]
Cocktails
Mint Juleps (or one of these other drinks popular in the 1920s, just don’t actually make it in a bathtub) [Midnight in Paris]
Main Attractions
Brazilian BBQ (cooked WELL) [Bridesmaids]
HDLT sandwiches (horse, (komodo) dragon, lettuce and tomato… no? okay, yeah, no.) [War Horse, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo]
Broccoli (maybe this recipe, whatever; no one will get it anyway) [The Tree of Life]
Dessert
Black-and-white cookies (hand them out silently and while tap dancing) [The Artist]
Fortune cookies (make your own, with your own fortunes!) [Kung Fu Panda 2]
Chocolate pie (for the love of god, don’t put shit in it; it’s on the record that I said ‘don’t’) [The Help]
Serve with tea and cigarettes [Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy]
Then say you prepared everything while crying and being melodramatic. [Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close]
Zalina Alvi 