Perhaps you're throwing an Oscars viewing party to commemorate the 92nd Academy Awards this Sunday night?
Sure, popcorn is the universal movie snack, but might we suggest some more unique items for your party menu?
In honor of the nine Best Picture nominees, we came up with some suggestions for food and drink pairings that relate to each film.
Most of these items were mentioned in their respective films in some fashion. For others, we took a little more... creative interpretation, shall we say?
Either way, ranked in order of aperitifs and appetizers to dessert, here are our picks for your party menu!
"Ford V Ferrari" _ Budweiser beer
In a movie deeply entrenched in product placement, from very frontward facing Coca-Cola bottles, to the literal title of "Ford" and "Ferrari," there's lots of inspiration for your food and drink choices. But I'm gonna go with a classic Budweiser beer, a very quintessential man's man beverage in the "Ford v Ferrari" universe.
As your guests trickle in, invite them to predict the winners. Then, to kick off your Oscars evening, raise a cold bottle of Bud for a celebratory toast as British driver Ken Miles (Christian Bale) does in the movie! Just don't drink and drive.
"Jojo Rabbit" _ Bread and grapes
Allow us a minute for a brief explanation. "Jojo Rabbit" strikes a delicate balance between the dangerously naive worldview of a boy in the Hitler Youth and the reality of that universe _ that is, Nazi Germany in the dying embers of World War II. Scarlett Johansson, as Jojo's mother (who is hiding a young Jewish girl in the family's attic), is relentlessly upbeat as she tries to repel her son from the Third Reich. The film goes for a gut punch when Jojo is forced to reconcile these worlds.
The conflict manifests at the dinner table _ supposedly neutral ground, like Switzerland, Johansson's character suggests. Saying she's not hungry, Jojo's mother elects to "chew on these grapes," swigging some red wine around her mouth. On Jojo's plate, the grim reality: plain toast, all of which Jojo scarfs down to spite the girl in the attic.
So start your party with some grapes. And no, you don't have to offer your guests plain toast. Take some artistic liberties and conjure up some tasty bruschetta instead. We dug through the ol' recipe archives and came up with this bruschetta recipe.
