::::sigh:::: So I wasn't looking forward to this one. I really wasn't. I had only seen this movie once. I love movies, and I hadn't seen this one much to my shame, so I finally watched it. Maybe it was all the hype, but I was really disappointed. I didn't remember much about the movie except my impression of it. I thought it was silly and I really didn't care how it turned out. Could have also been my mood. If I'm moody, any movie can suck. But a resolution is a resolution, so I made myself watch it. We're off to Morocco!
Tonight there was a recipe in Movie Night Menus!! Yay! I was thinking at least I didn't have to come up with dinner to go along with a movie I didn't like. So on the menu was Roasted Eggplant Tangine and to drink a French 75. Now I just had to make it vegetarian and alcohol free. The only meat product that was in the recipe was chicken stock, so I just replaced it with vegetable stock. Easy enough. I'm also not a big fan of eggplant. Instead of regular eggplant I bought white eggplant because it is supposed to be less bitter than regular old eggplant. The recipe was pretty simple and fast. I got to use spices that I had but never used before. I like buying spices for some reason. As for the French 75 weeeellll, that was a toughy. I just replaced it with Sprite. The recipe sounded like a lemony fizzy sweet drink, so that is what I was able to come up with. Sprite is still very very bad for me. So I was splurging. I can hear my doctor screaming at me right now. Bah. I wanted a dessert too, so I looked up Moroccan desserts. Turns out they're pretty healthy and simple. There was no way that I had the skill to make baklava(YUM), and I could find any at the moment. Plus the Sprite was bad enough. So I choose a strawberry yogurt recipe. Really simple. Strawberries, vanilla yogurt, sugar, and vanilla extract. You just mix it all together and then let it macerate for a while. Easy! I also found out that almond cookies are a common dessert, and we ordered Chinese food last night, so I was able to get my hands on them. Do Chinese almond cookies count?
Here's my beautiful dinner. Sprite(Yep that's Theta Bara on a highball glass. I am even cooler than you thought, right?), roasted eggplant tangine, strawberries and yogurt, and almond cookies.
(And depression glass)
The movie. I was in a pretty good mood tonight. I made dinner and it looked just beautiful and smelled even better. And I was getting to have pop! Which I never ever get! So there was much to look forward to! I went in with a good attitude. This time around surprised me. I let myself get into the story and the acting and the mood created by this film. Yes, it is a bit dramatic. Ok, really dramatic. It's like close-up land. There are so many close-ups! Ingrid Bergman is stunning, so I understand why the director was so determined to capture every angle of the amazing face. She looks so pretty crying One tear trickling down her cheek. So elegant. And her voice. It's like velvet. I want her to tell me anything.
She's so lovely.
Now for Bogie. Boy did I learn to appreciate Bogie in this film. He was so able to convey his pain. It was really wonderful. Again, tons of close-ups but his face was so emotive. It really was wonderful. I've always loved Bogie, I think I love him a little more now. He was a real actor in this film and I forgot it was Bogie.
Lookit this! Watch him crack. It's just amazing.
I'm so glad that I had the opportunity to give this movie another chance! I really really enjoyed it this time around. It's beautifully shot. The acting, particularly from Bogart, is truly wonderful. The story line is simple but interesting. Even the soundtrack is good. Thank you Sam!
So how did dinner turn out? VERY GOOD! I was so proud of myself. I had to add a little more salt, but heck I'm American, we like salt. The eggplant turned out perfect. The spices were just right. I would totally make this again. It was so filling, Even I was only able to eat half of my dinner. Hope it reheats well! It was a very rich heavy meal, so I understand why it was paired with a sweet drink to counterbalance it. You need that contrast with this since it was a one dish meal. The dessert turned out really good as well. It was nice and light and not too sweet. I don't think it needed the sugar or the vanilla extract. It would have been just fine with the strawberries and vanilla yogurt. I think. The important part was letting it macerate. That really helped the flavors blend. And the cookies? Didn't taste Chinese at all! ;-)
Another great night! So happy I did this!
Love,
Olive
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