Friday, May 14, 2021

Cuisine & Screen: At Home, Part 39

Y'all - it has been a MINUTE! I hope you're still hanging in there and doing your best to enjoy the "warmer" temps. I'm eager to share some upcoming posts on local restaurants and events, as things slowly creep towards normalcy. But in the meantime...I hope you continue to enjoy reading these at-home posts as much as I enjoy writing them!

CUISINE
This post pays homage to my boo, who singlehandedly cooked a show-stopping Oscars dinner for my mom and me. I had been bugging him for months to make his famous White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake, and finally, my Oscar wish came true. Unfortunately, his secret is no longer safe - it's actually a recipe from Taste of Home! It's absolutely delicious and you won't be able to stop eating it. It's super luscious, rich and thick - it calls for 4 (yes, 4) blocks of cream cheese - and I like that the crust is reminiscent of a shortbread, not that tired graham cracker crust crap (I love alliteration). Get your stretchy pants on and  get the recipe here!


TO DIE FOR.

SCREEN
Léon: The Professional - I know, I know, I am SUPER late to the game on this one. But boy am I glad I finally made it to the game. This film reminds me of a Quentin Tarantino movie - really great music, cool cinematography, eccentric characters - I absolutely loved it. Léon is a hitman who finds himself caring for 12-year-old Mathilda (played by the utterly phenomenal Natalie Portman). He begins training her to become his protégé, and their relationship is surprisingly heartwarming. Gary Oldman slays as the villain (no surprise there). Must see!!

We Need to Talk About Kevin - Yowza. This is an incredibly unnerving and disturbing story about a woman dealing with the aftermath of raising a son who commits a mass murder at school. From childhood, you can feel the tension between Eva (Tilda Swinton) and her son Kevin (played exceptionally well by Jasper Newell, ages 6-8, and Ezra Miller as a teen). The film itself is jarring and not easy to watch - extreme close-ups, disorienting shots - but that just contributes to these characters' states of mind. It was an excellent film, but it's hard for me to recommend.