Today is the first Friday in March, which means it’s time for A Fork & A Flick Friday. It’s when once a month I sit back and enjoy a movie and allow myself to be fully immersed in it with an inspired dish. This month I was a bit torn with Oscar Sunday having just passed and St. Patrick’s Day around the corner. Then it came to me, I could select a 2016 Oscar nominated film that sheds light on Irish history in America, all through a romantic drama that unfolds like a Victorian novel. Brooklyn is exactly my cup of tea made to perfection when it comes to the kind of films I enjoy the most.
The Film Brooklyn
Brooklyn is a 1950’s profoundly moving immigrant story, revolving around Eilis Lacey, played by Saoirse Ronan. Lured by the promise of America, Eilis departs Ireland and the comfort of her mother’s home for the shores of New York City. She becomes one of the many young Irish immigrants navigating her way through 1950s Brooklyn. The initial shackles of homesickness quickly diminish as a fresh romance sweeps Eilis into the intoxicating charm of love with an Italian American, Tony.
The film beautifully depicts Eilis’s uncomfortable crossing, her loneliness and alienation in her new world, how she finds her own way and finds romance, and what happens after she’s called back to her old home—away from the place where she’s been working so hard to make good. Her vivacity is disrupted by her past, and Eilis must choose between two countries and the lives that exist.
This film is still currently playing in theaters, so if you haven’t watched the Oscar nominated film for three Academy Awards: Best Picture, Best Actress, and Best Adapted Screenplay, you still have the chance to do so on the big screen. I on the other hand, chose to sit in the comfort of my own home and watch it with a simple purchase on Google Play. What a wonderful prelude to St. Patrick’s Day! I would even recommend it as a St. Patrick’s Day film to watch, if you are looking for one.
A Fork & A Flick Friday – Irish Coffee
When it came to picking a dish to compliment this movie, there was an abundance of scenes where food met life. Eilis gets lessons from her roommates in eating spaghetti, and then there is the family dinner at Tony’s home. There are many meals at the boarding house including the pie that Mrs. Kehoe serves to the girls over a discussion about Eilis’s first trip to Coney Island. The excursion to Coney Island presented plenty of old fashioned cotton candy to salivate over.
For me, one of the most emotional scene is when Eilis decides to go back to Ireland while sitting in the restaurant with Tony. It evokes a craving for warmth and soothing, and that made me think about a good cup of Irish Coffee made with the finest ingredients and quality whiskey. Irish Coffee is just perfect to curl up with and watch this film as we peek into the lives of Irish immigrants after World War II.
Irish Coffee
Ingredients
3 tbsp. whipped heavy cream
1 tbsp. brown sugar or soft brown muscovado
2 oz. Irish whiskey
1 cup freshly brewed hot coffee
Nutmeg, to top optional
Method
Pour piping hot coffee into warmed glass until it is about 3/4 full. Add the brown sugar or muscovado and stir until completely dissolved. Blend in Irish whiskey. Top with the whipped heavy cream by pouring gently over back of spoon. Sprinkle with nutmeg if you desire.
