Classic Shrimp Cocktail and Ocean's Eleven for #MovieandMunchies

Welcome to Movies & Munchies!

We're a group of foodie bloggers (and some Instagrammers) who love watching movies with our foodie goggles on and then get inspired to whip up something delicious!  Our first movie together is Ocean's Eleven starring Brad Pitt, George Clooney, and so many others.

I enjoyed this movie the first time I saw it and knew that I would love doing a post and munchie based on this film.  If you haven't seen it in a while, let me remind you about the movie.  It's a Warner Brothers movie rated PG-13 released in 2001. The plot goes like this:  Dapper Danny Ocean (George Clooney) is a man of action. Less than 24 hours into his parole from a New Jersey penitentiary, the wry, charismatic thief is already rolling out his next plan. Following three rules: Don't hurt anybody, don't steal from anyone who doesn't deserve it, and play the game like you've got nothing to lose. Danny orchestrates the most sophisticated, elaborate casino heist in history. In the movie Rusty Ryan (Brad Pitt) is eating or drinking something in almost every scene he's in.  Around the 45 minute mark, Ryan enjoys a shrimp cocktail.

It's said that during this scene Rusty eats approximately 40 shrimp while shooting the scene. That would be ok by me, as a shrimp cocktail is one of my all-time favorite foods.  In the scene, however, the dish switches from a plate of shrimp to a glass of shrimp back to a plate.  Tiny little continuity error here.

A little sidebar here:  I had my first shrimp cocktail at a little family-owned restaurant in Macon, Missouri called the Gaslight.  Instantly in love.  But the best shrimp cocktail I ever had was at St. Elmo Restaurant in Indianapolis.  The restaurant is still there and it is still the best I have ever had.  This restaurant has earned the James Beard Foundation "American Classic" honor and is actually a fabulous steakhouse.  I can't go there without having a shrimp cocktail and bean soup.  I add the cocktail sauce to the soup to kick it up a notch.  This sauce is fiery, so if that isn't something you can handle, don't get it. It was hot for me, and I adore it!

Before the restaurant's cocktail sauce hit the market, my husband and I would mimic the sauce the best we could.  We'd use a jar of cocktail sauce and add in one tablespoon of prepared horseradish.  Not horseradish sauce, mind you, the real deal.  Straight horseradish.  We'd add bits to the sauce until it hit that "clean your sinuses" stage where we knew it would be just a tad spicier after sitting a bit.  We always made the sauce about an hour before we were going to eat it, to give it time to meet and greet the cocktail sauce.  Near perfection.  (the original sauce is perfection.)  We like to use Tiger shrimp when available, but we are not above using shrimp we find on sale.  We like the firm texture of a larger shrimp the best.  Served on ice, this is the single best munchie on the planet.

If you'd like to join us in Movies and Munchies, here's all you need to do.

Here's how to participate (first ask to join the Facebook Group)

1. Watch the selected movie of the month (check the events tab in Facebook.)

2. Whip up something inspired by the movie (it could be a food seen in the movie, inspired by the setting of the movie, something a character said, etc - be creative!)

3. Blog (or IG) your recipe, making sure to include a link to the host's invitation post.

4. Drop a link to your post on the title thread found on the event page!

Here's how to host:

1. Check the master list for month availability.

2. Tag one of the admins with your suggestion (it does not need to be a food-centric movie or a popular movie - we're all about branching out and finding inspiration in unexpected places!)

3. Create an event with all pertinent information

4. On the first of the month, write up an invitation blog or IG post & drop the link in the event.

5. At the end of the month, blog or IG a recipe round-up using the links collected in the title thread. 

Later in the month, I will post all the participants in this month's event, so you can see what other recipes the movie inspired.  It's going to be a good time.  You should join us.