and they're off!

my dad owned a racehorse when i was a kid. my first house was on secretariat lane. i cannot believe it took me so long to throw a party to celebrate the kentucky derby. you know, wear seersucker and fancy hats and drink mint juleps while betting on horses?! so exciting.

and, well, a themed party needs very specific food.

the mint juleps.
i had never had one before last week, much less made one. i don't typically drink a lot of bourbon, which, by definition, must come from kentucky, by the way. but, i knew i could make anything for which there is a recipe. i even watched a video.

1. make simple syrup ahead of time. boil 1 cup sugar with one cup water until it is a syrup. seal in a jar. refrigerate. it can be kept for a week or so. i also made mint simple syrup by adding some mint extract, but you can throw fresh mint in the jar as well.
2. take 4-5 mint sprigs and put them in the bottom of a glass. at the kentucky derby, they use silver julep cups.
3. add one oz. of the simple syrup and muddle it with the mint.
4. add ice. it should be crushed as fine as possible.
5. pour 2 oz. of bourbon over the ice. the official bourbon of the derby is woodford reserve, which, of course, we had just for the occasion.
6. add more mint for garnish.
7. drink.
   

benedictine.
these treats are practically cucumber sandwiches, except that they have a fancy spread to make them stand out. after i made this recipe, i put it on organic peasant bread with slices of cucumber, but you could also dip vegetables in it.

1. peel and seed a large cucumber.
2. chop a small onion.
3. process in food processor.
4. add 1 package of cream cheese and a tablespoon of mayonnaise and a dash of salt and little green food coloring. process. i know the food coloring sounds weird, but all of the recipes i researched called for it.
5. spread on bread.
   

derby pie.
i cheated here by buying a pie crust. there are only so many hours in a day! the official derby pie recipe is trademarked, so i used this one. it was pretty good, but i don't really like pecans (which just happens to be the "official state nut" of texas).

in terms of the "official" derby food, that's really it. but i also made miniature pineapple and cherry cheesecakes with vanilla wafers in the bottom. we drank pimms with iced tea and/or lemonade. i created some special mint lemonade for michelle. yes, the pregnant one. she's pretty special so she gets her own cocktail. there was also homemade hummus and fancy cheeses and chips and crackers. and chocolate-covered strawberries (compliments of april and adam). and other fancy pastries (compliments of renato and baked). i can't remember what else.

it was lovely. it might become an annual affair. except that next year, i want to go to the actual event.