Patty Cake With Roger Rabbit (#92)


This month's movie was Who Framed Roger Rabbit, a PG Disney film from 1988 with some pretty adult themes of infidelity, alcoholism, and murder that probably wouldn't fly in a modern PG Disney film. This was a film that I had seen and loved as a child, but it definitely hits different as an adult.

For dinner, I decided to lean into the theme of "Patty Cake." I did some research online to see if patty cake was a real thing. What I discovered is that the nursery rhyme was not based on a particular food item, but rather on an old process of making bread. Apparently back in the day, a town or community might have a large communal oven rather than every household having their own. So, as different families were baking their bread, they would mark their loaf to identify it from the others. They might do this with a symbol or with their initial.

Since patty cake does not appear to be a real food item, I decided to invent my own. As I think about the nursery rhyme, the identifying characteristics of patty cake is that it is flat and also marked with a letter. I decided that for my reimagining of the patty cake, I would combine sausage patties with pancakes and make something that was more savory than sweet.

Pattycakes

Patty Cakes

This is a starter recipe that you can customize in lots of different ways. Essentially all you need is a simple pancake batter, sausage patties, letter shaped cookie cutters, and an assortment of herbs and spices. The idea is to make a pancake that is not super sweet and 

Ingredients:
simple pancake batter
pre-cooked sausage patties
letter shaped cookie cutters
savory herbs and spices for flavor

Steps:
  1. Make a simple pancake batter. It doesn't matter too much about the recipe that you use. I would avoid anything that is labelled as sweet or fluffy. The goal is for the batter to be the base that seasoning will be added to so it doesn't need much flavor on it's own yet. If your recipe calls for sugar, I would ignore that step, and if it asks for butter, I would substitute with olive oil.
  2. With your letter cutters, cut out pieces of sausage to match the initials of you and your guests. I made two for each person, because I expected people to go back for seconds. Many of them did.
  3. With the left over pieces of sausage, tear into small crumble size pieces and mix a bit into the pancake batter. You can decide how much you want to use to add texture and flavor without overdoing it. Now is also when you can add other herbs or spices to your batter. Green onions is a simple addition that works well. Peppers or something with a bit of spice will pair well with the sausage. One way to go would be to add the same sort of ingredients that you would typically put on an omelet. Alternatively, you might decide to go with ingredients similar to the ones used in your sausage. As you are adding your ingredients, heat up a pan and test a little bit at a time to see if it is hitting the way that you want it to.
  4. When you are ready to make your pattycakes, it couldn't be more simple. Place a letter shaped sausage piece face down in a preheated pan and pour the batter overtop of it until it is the right size for the pancake you want. Watch for bubbles as it cooks. When the bubbles stop popping, flip your pattycake and cook the other side. Serve warm.

Overall, I think my concept was successful. I do think that when I made it, I could have gone heavier with the spices and seasonings though. If I was to remake these, I would add chopped peppers and maybe even cheese to go with flavors closer to an omelet.

For dessert, I was inspired by the Dip, a green liquid featured in the movie that was a mixture of paint thinners capable of killing a toon. I wanted to have a sweet green sauce that we could dip like a fondue. Here's what I made:

Roger Rabbit Dip Fondue

Roger Rabbit Dip Fondue Recipe

This recipe is essentially just a white chocolate fondue dyed dark green. You could dip anything into this. To minimize my prep time, we used animal crackers to represent the toons. Alternatively, you could make cookies and use cookie cutters to cut them into fun "toon" shapes. Of course, you could also do more traditional things like fruit if you wanted.

Ingredients:
1 pint heavy cream
1 stick butter
4 12-oz packages of white chocolate morsels
green and black food coloring

Directions:
  1. Heat butter and cream in saucepan. Stir well until everything is melted and mixed thoroughly.
  2. Bring to simmer and then reduce heat and stir in white chocolate until melted.
  3. While chocolate is melting, you can start adding food coloring. Start with the green food coloring. Stir well. If you only use green, you will end up with bright green dip. The dip in the film was a dark green. The get this look, you will need to add a little black food coloring as well. Be careful. A little black food coloring goes a long way so only add a little at a time and stir to see how dark it got before adding more.
  4. Transfer dip to a fondue pot if one is available or keep it on the lowest heat setting to keep the chocolate warm without burning. Serve with cookies, animals crackers, or fruit. You may need to stir the dip before serving to make sure it hasn't separated.

Overall, I would say that the evening was successful. The pattycakes could have been seasoned more, and I could have had more options available for dipping, but there isn't anything else I would change. In addition to the food, I had some whiskey based cocktails available that I made with my Bartesian. The most popular drinks of the night were the Whiskey Smash, Old Fashioned, and Mint Julep. I chose to focus on whiskey drinks because whiskey is featured prominently in the film.

If you like these ideas, or you have some of your own to add, please drop your thoughts in the comments.

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