What to make for a 1920's-themed party?

[hollyd]

Kind of a flapper, speak-easy themed shindig. I'm pretty sure everyone will be bringing liquor, so I thought maybe food would be best.
But what to make?

[aguacate]

There's a spiced cashew recipe in one of the Barefoot Contessa cookbooks. It's basically cashews, rosemary, cayenne pepper, brown sugar, and butter tossed together and roasted for a bit. Delicious with cocktails. (easy to transport too).

[hollyd]

sold. Sounds perfect. Thanks everyone!

[missyp]

I make that all the time and people go wild. Not sure how 1920s it is, though.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/in...

[cinnamon girl]

yes both she and Nigella have included it in books and shows . . . it originates at the Union Square Cafe and appeared in their cookbook about 10 yrs earlier before Ina Garten's. It's their bar nut and they do it with mixed nuts which might be more 20s-ish? On the other hand, fresh herbs didn't become widely available till the 80s (besides parsley, maybe chives).

[hollyd]

ok. I should have mentioned it's not my party. So I'm looking for something portable.

[Diane in Bexley]

I think it would be funny to fill your bathtub with something light pink aka Bathtub Gin - you could float some small candles or lilies in it. Would be pretty decoration

[shaogo]

Such fun!

Before looking at all the links, all I could think of was Oysters Rockefeller -- and chicken hash (a' la "21").

@chef chicklet: I *love* cream of celery soup. I've also prepared celery as a Thanksgiving side-dish, cooked a' la carrots vichy, then buttered.

[Gio]

http://www.foodtimeline.org/fooddecad...
Scroll down to:
"Popular foods and snack fare"
Actually, the whole page is a hoot and v. informative.

[alkapal]

hollyd, here is a great resource from the "food timeline." http://www.foodtimeline.org/fooddecades.html#1920s

oh, it's wonderful to explore!

and i linked on the l.a. public library menu search, and searched for 192* and "american" in the appropriate fields. http://www.lapl.org/resources/en/menu_collection.html there are such fun results, with some menus and "images" of menus that you could reproduce for your party!

here's an example: http://dbase1.lapl.org/images/menus/fullsize/b/13769-inside2.jpg
from l.a.'s ambassador hotel, done for demille and pathé.

the airport inn in glendale had a much more down home menu: http://dbase1.lapl.org/images/menus/f...

~~~~~~~
one thing that's standing out, i'm seeing lots of "tomato cocktail" or tomato soup starters, and also -- olives.

~~~~~~~~~
from the timeline:
>>>"""Speakeasy menus & Great Gatsby Dining
The menu you seek depends upon the type of speakeasy you hope to recreate. The finest New York clubs (Twenty One, Stork, Embassy, Simplon, Surf, Yale, and 51 1/2 East Fifty First) all served meals comparable to the best hotels. The speakeasy of the *common man* served less than stellar food. The draw, obviously, was the booze...which (by many accounts) wasn't all that good either. Wealthy young people often skipped the stuffy hotel restaurants, preferring to patronize new Chinese food restaurants and trendy cafes.
[.........].

If you are trying to recreate the menu/ambiance of a speakeasy on par with the famous "21 Club" ask your librarian to help you find these books:

21 : Every Day was New Year's Eve : memoirs of a saloon keeper , H. Peter Kriendler, with H. Paul Jeffers. c1999.
"21": The Life and Times of New York's Favorite Club, Marilyn Kaytor (includes some menus & recipes
)21 Cookbook: recipes and lore from New York's fabled restaurant, Michael Lomomaco with Donne Forsman. c1995.""<<<<

[Gio]

LIke minds Alka.... didn't see your post when I hit reply.... sorry!

[chef chicklet]

Seems like celery was another veggie prepared in a variety of ways.

[cinnamon girl]

holy cow, alkapal! That's impressive. I love the foodtimeline site. Thanks!

Who would have thought that peanut butter cups have been around since 1923?