Movie Menu Theme Night: Big Night

Big Night is one of my favorite movies, if not for the amazing food, then maybe for the fact that it's the kind of ensemble cast movie where you find a young, gaunt Marc Anthony playing a dishwasher/busboy with hardly any lines. You quickly end up rooting for the two protagonists, brothers and restauranteurs Primo and Secondo (imagine naming your children First and Second...), as they struggle to keep their restaurant alive in an American town that just doesn't seem to appreciate their authentic Italian recipes.

Without a penny to spare, they decide to put everything they have left into one last big meal. They invite the local press, all of their friends and Louis Prima, and prepare an extravagant meal that their guests would remember for a lifetime. You'll have to watch the movie yourself to find out what happens on their Big Night, but I recommend doing it with some good Italian home-cooking, good friends, and a lot of robust red wine.

To create your own Big Night feast, invite a group of your most passionate friends -- 8-10 people would be perfect. Prepare a playlist for your evening with classics by Louis Prima, Tony Bennett, Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra. Have your guests bring a bottle of Chianti or Sangiovese and you'll have plenty of wine to keep the party going well into the evening. To add extra oomph to your theme night, you could impose a gentle dress code based on the still shot from the movie above --- floral dresses, coiffed hair and red lipstick for the ladies (Minnie Driver and Isabella Rosellini are so glamorous in this movie!) and jackets and slicked hair for the gents.

For your menu, pick some easy Italian dishes that you can prepare ahead of time. One of the brilliant things about the menu that Primo and Secondo served was that their main course was prepped well in advance, so both brothers could enjoy the evening with their guests. Bruschetta and antipasto are easy to prepare as your starter, and even doing something as simple as a lasagna (you can dress it up a little and make it even more special by making a white lasagna) will be a satisfying and easy accompaniment to this movie. If you are very brave, you could timpano. The recipe calls for layers of prosciutto, pasta, meatballs, cheese, bechamel, and the result looks exactly like it sounds: like a large drum of Italian deliciousness. Try it with this timpano recipe from Mario Batali.

Serving simple affogato is a great way to end the evening. Just put a scoop of your favorite gelato in a heat-proof glass (I would recommend chocolate or hazelnut gelato), drown it in coffee, and top with a generous dollop of whipped cream. It's a nice sweet treat to end the evening, very easy, and the caffeine will help keep the fun going for a few hours of dancing to your playlist of Italian crooners late into the night.

I'd love to hear how your Big Night theme party turns out!