Award-winning shower with movie menu

I'm hosting a wedding shower next week and thought, since it's Oscar month, when the best films of 2010 are honored, that it might be fun to plan the shower around the theme of love and marriage in the movies.

In thought provoking, award-winning films, food is never just food. It has many connotations. A great food scene is often the most memorable moment of a movie. The joy on a young woman's face as she rushes upstairs, clutching a bag of groceries to make dinner for the man she's always loved (The Way We Were) or the shocked face of a dismissive wife, sitting with her husband at her perfectly set dining table, when he suddenly hurls a plate of asparagus across the room because she won't listen to him (American Beauty).

Chocolate has been called sinful because folks feel if something tastes that good; it has to be bad for you. On the contrary, pure dark chocolate is not only blissful; it tops the list of vitamins, minerals and the glorious feeling you get when you taste something so spectacular that suddenly, all's right with the world. And what marriage can't use a spoonful of that?

In the whimsical film, Chocolat, Vianne (Juliet Binoche) is not only a master chocolati�re; when a customer enters her shop for the first time, she can always guess their favorite flavor. And, as soon as she gives patrons a bite of the heavenly confection, they pour out their hearts, confessing pent up frustrations and unrealized love. When Roux (Johnny Depp) enters the shop and she offers him her best creations, he shakes his head to them all, and then, later, he shyly confesses he doesn't even like candy; it's the soothing hot chocolate he craves. Is it his contrariness, his honesty, or that thing called chemistry? Whatever comprises it, the pair fall in love right before our very eyes.

When hosting a wedding shower that pays homage to love and marriage in the movies, the key is careful planning. Make a checklist with every minute detail, including a shopping list and a timeline of what to do when, with a timeline starting one week before the party and an ho�r-by-hour listing of activities the day of the party.

I've included a few recipes to get you started, but come up with ideas from your own favorite movies and find recipes on the Internet. Have music from the movies playing as the guests arrive. Posters from the films are easily available and make festive decorations.

Clementine Soup

Inspired by The Aviator

2 tablespoons butter or vegetable oil

1 1/2 cups sweet onion, sliced

1 two-pound butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cubed

1 cup potatoes, peeled and chopped coarsely

2 cups carrots, peeled and cut in circles

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon coriander seed, crushed

1/2 teaspoon cumin

2 tablespoons flat leaf parsley, chopped

1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme

5 to 6 clementines

Zest of 2 clementine and more for garnish

4 cups vegetable or chicken broth

Salt and white pepper to taste

In a large saucepan over moderate heat, heat butter or oil. Add onion; saute until translucent, about 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in squash, potatoes, carrots and salt. Add coriander seed, cumin, parsley, thyme, zest of 2 of the cl�mentines and chicken broth. Increase heat; lower to simmering. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes or until vegetables are tender.

In a food processor puree mixture in batches until texture is velvety. Stir in the juice from the clementine and gently reheat. Taste and add more salt and pepper, if you wish. When serving, sprinkle more clementine zest on top.

Serves 4.

Mayan Hot Chocolate

Inspired by Chocolat

1 chili pepper, cut in half, seeds removed

5 cups light cream, whole or nonfat milk

1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise

1 to 2 cinnamon sticks

8 ounces bittersweet chocolate OR

3 tablets Mexican chocolate, cut into 1/4-inch pieces

2 tablespoons sugar or honey, or to taste

1 tablespoon almonds or hazelnuts, ground extra fine

Add chili pepper to 2 cups boiling water. Cook until liquid is reduced to 1 cup. Remove chili pepper; strain for stray seeds, and set aside. In a medium size saucepan, combine cream or milk, vanilla bean and cinnamon stick. Heat over medium flame until bubbles appear around the edge. Reduce heat to low; add chocolate and sugar or honey; whisk occasionally until chocolate is melted and sugar dissolves.

Turn off heat; remove vanilla bean and cinnamon stick, stir in ground almonds or hazelnuts. Add chili pepper infusion, a little at a time, making sure the flavor isn't too strong. If chocolate is too thick, thin with a little more milk.

Serves 6.

[Author Affiliation]

Beverly Levitt is a writer who lives in Los Angeles.