By Jenny Hammerton
(October 8, 2023)
Are you ready to sprinkle some stardust around your kitchen?
From the earliest days of Hollywood, movie stars shared their favourite dishes with fan magazines, syndicated newspapers and cookbook compilers. I’ve been collecting these film star recipes for around 25 years, and my stash now numbers over 8,000. I’m gradually cooking my way through them. Some of the results are wonderful, some are inedible, but I always get the feeling that the glamour of tinsel town is rubbing off on me when I am elbow-deep in singing cowboy chilli or mashing up some glamour girl guacamole.My favourite star in the Hollywood firmament is Joan Crawford, and luckily she loved to share snippets of her foodie life with her fans. This book offers over 30 things Joan liked to eat, many of which she undoubtedly made herself. She often said how much she enjoyed cooking. She loved planning and preparing meals for friends, her maid, and more than anyone, for her husband or squeeze of the moment.
Some of these recipes are lovely for romantic dinners à deux; others are genius if you are entertaining a crowd, and some are just perfect for luxurious dining all on your lonesome. So enjoy some gracious living Joan style. Pop on a hostess gown and some coordinating jewellery, line up a post-prandial classic movie and cook up some Crawford specials. They are accompanied by a vast collection of great Joan photos. You will see a sampling of both recipes and images below.
I will be hosting an international Mildred Pierce Dinner and a Movie Watch Party on Sunday 22nd October at 7pm British Standard Time (to check what time this is wherever you are in the world, try World Time Buddy).
The menu will be Joan’s Meatloaf, Coleslaw, Danti-Chips and a special Joan Crawford cocktail. Details of how to join the watch party, recipes and a video demo will all be sent out to my Dinner and a Movie newsletter subscribers or can be found here.
I only recently discovered this cocktail, and I have made a little demo video for you all. Come on into the Silver Screen Suppers Kitchen for a chit-chat about Joan and Mildred Pierce.
Here’s the cocktail book I was talking about in the video – Bottoms Up by Ted Saucier – published in 1962.
Jenny Hammerton: Many years ago, in a dusty stamp and postcard collectables shop, I stumbled upon a vintage movie star cookbook from 1931. This chance find would change my life as I decided to start cooking like my idols.
Manic collecting began, and my celebrity recipe archive now numbers over 8,000. I probably won’t live long enough to try all these dishes, but I plan to give it a good go. Movie star recipe successes (and failures) have been documented on the Silver Screen Suppers website for over 18 years.
I’m a graduate of the UEA Masters in Film Archiving course and have worked in film archives for over 20 years. I adore my job and am currently working with the British Movietone cinema newsreel collection.
If you cook a dish from this book, I would love to hear how it turned out. Also, I get a real kick from seeing photos, especially when they include pets looking lovingly at the food! There’s a contact form on the Silver Screen Suppers site.
So many stars and their recipes Silver Screen Suppers
Monthly Dinner and a Movie newsletter
Facebook – Silver Screen Suppers
Twitter – @silverscreensup
Instagram – @silverscreensuppers
“Eat Like the Stars” columns on EatDrinkFilms.
Murder, She Cooked episode guides and recipes
Links to my books
eatdrinkfilms.com 