I have never been to the Derby, and in truth really have no desire to go, but I love the idea of the Derby and I always enjoyed planning a fun party-style menu with my mother, even if the only people at the party were my mother and father and brother. We would plan nibbles and watch the build-up to the race, then stop everything to watch the race. My mother, my younger brother, and I were all born in years that produced a Triple Crown Winner (Citation, Affirmed, and Secretariat). We all have a vested interest in the series of races, though my younger brother always pulls against a Triple Crown Winner, as he would really like Affirmed to the be the last horse that was able to achieve the feat. Usually I pull for a Triple Crown Winner, but it depends on how I feel about the horse, jockey, and trainer, and some years I categorically do not want a winner. I do, however, always hope that Secretariat's race records stand. My mother feels much like I do, that it depends on the horse, trainer, and jockey as to whether or not there should be a winner, though she has no feelings whatsoever about Secretariat's records.
Here in Australia, the race does not get the kind of coverage it does in the US. I am not sure if that is because they have their own Triple Crown, and "Race That Stops a Nation," or simply because the race is run in the early hours of Sunday Morning. Whatever the reason, I miss my Derby Day traditions, and I miss the coverage of the race. (The Melbourne Cup is just not the same.)
This morning I was awoken by a phone call from my mother, asking of I had found a place to watch the race, and since I had not, they offered to stay on the line so I could listen to the race over the phone as my mother and younger brother watched it live. It was almost as good as being there, almost.
After listening to the race and waiting for the official results and payout amounts to be broadcast, I got up and prepared to test a new recipe for cookies (Peanut Butter S'Mores Cookies). I prepped the cookies and then got to thinking. There was no reason why I could not have my Derby Day party here with my husband, just the same as I would have at home. It was a cool rainy day here, which apparently was the same as the weather in Louisville. My party fare had to reflect the weather and the meal I had planned for the evening was perfect!
So I went ahead with my planned meal (vegetarian chili, cornbread, ranch-style sour cream topping, and the peanut butter s'mores cookies) and had my Derby Day. About 2:00 pm here I found a YouTube video of the race and watched it. Damn! My mother said it was a sloppy track, but that track was way beyond sloppy. The official track surface condition for the race was sloppy (a track saturated with water; standing water visible), but I am not so sure that surface was not slow (a track wet on both the surface and the base). You'd think that sloppy would be worse than slow and muddy would be worse than sloppy, but the officials didn't ask for my opinion on track conditions. (More's the pity.) But that surface was terrible. If I had been betting, I am damn sure I would have found the best mudder in the race and placed my money on that one to show. (I only ever place bets to show and even then it's the minimum bet; I'm a terrible gambler.) It was a good run race, if a messy one. And the track conditions ensured that Secretariat's race record was in no danger of being beaten this year.
The rest of the day was spent doing some laundry, catching up on US television downloaded via iTunes and making dinner. My chili was made-up as I went along because the ingredients were originally scheduled to be a chicken & cornbread panzanella- or fattoush-style salad, so I had to kind of switch them up on the fly. The chili was made from an onion, a green pepper, and garlic that had been sweated out in a mix of olive oil and butter, and to that I added two tablespoons of tomato paste, a can of diced tomatoes, and a can each of ranch-style beans and garbanzo beans, both undrained, as well as two cups of vegetarian broth and a seasoning blend of chili powder, cumin, ground coriander, dried oregano, salt, and a bit of sugar (I find that canned tomatoes always benefit from a pinch or two of sugar added to the mix). After the mix had simmered for about half an hour, I added a cup and a half of frozen sweet corn kernels (roughly the equivalent of a can of corn) and simmered for another 20 minutes to half an hour. What resulted was a great chili, if I do say so myself.
I served the chili with fresh from the oven sweet cornbread and a dollop of sour cream mixed with a homemade ranch seasoning blend (as Hidden Valley Ranch Dip Mix is unavailable in Australia; and frankly Newman's Own Ranch Dressing is a poor substitute for traditional ranch dip). It was a very good dinner indeed.
My cookies were very good. I based them on a recipe I found online, but made a few tweaks to make them more like traditional s'mores and less "fancified and pretty" for show. The biggest difference I made was to put the chocolate drops under the marshmallow rather than frosting the marshmallow with melted chocolate drops. I really wanted to have the marshmallows get the toasted tops that come from baking them (like in a traditional sweet potato casserole). I should have left the cookies in the oven a bit longer to toast the marshmallows further, but I was afraid of overcooking the cookies and having the marshmallows running off the bases and puddling on the parchment paper.
The day ended with a fresh from the UK episode of Dr. Who and starting a brand new book (Dying by the Sword, a Musketeers Mystery by Sarah D'Almeida). On the whole it was a great Derby Day. And it has made me want to plan a similar celebration for the Preakness and Belmont Stakes, the remaining Triple Crown Races -- Come on Orb!!!!
(My Derby Day Peanut Butter S'Mores Cookies)
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