Munch the movies: hosting a dinner party movie screening

Ever watched a movie and thought, damn that looks tasty... 

...I'll have what she's having?

Well now, you can

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Welcome to the first edition of our new series DINNER AND A MOVIE. In this series, we will show you recipes to eat along with your favourite characters, as you host epic dinner party movie screenings. With timecodes to remind you when to serve each dish, and table dressing ideas to set the scene, you can create an immersive cinematic experience at home. You are cordially invited to munch the movies.

In this episode, we are chewing on Danny DeVito’s classic 90’s adaptation of Roald Dahl’s MATILDA. We picked Matilda as our first movie of the series because it encapsulates everything we are passionate about: great film and great food. 

You can find the written recipes here, but if you haven’t watched the episode yet, make sure to head over to our YouTube channel and check it out. There, we show you the recipes step by step so they’re easy to digest (wink wink, nudge nudge). 

It’s time for the ultimate family friendly foodie film. Now say that three times fast. 

THE TABLE:

To create a truly immersive experience for your guests, the production design should spill off the screen and onto your dining table. We don’t advocate for selling a kidney to buy enough props to open an Ikea but one or two little nods to the movie beautifully set the scene and create a memorable experience. We went for…

Red ribbons to tie the napkins, like those Matilda wears in her hair

Toy newts in the water glasses are a great talking point and memorable but inexpensive party favour. But be clear, it's not a salamander, it's a newt.

Bud vases of wildflowers to evoke memories of Miss Honey’s cottage. Using bud vases is a brilliant way of making a bunch of flowers stretch, instead of having an ordinary bunch in one vase, you can split it over half a dozen mini vases spread across the table, it looks more impressive and costs the same!

Books piled on the table as decoration couldn't be more on brand, and you get bonus points if you can include Moby Dick.

THE MENU    

Starter:Canapes

Matilda gets off to a flying start with three food moments in the first couple of minutes. To tantalise the taste buds from the off, we’ve created a spread of canapés for the starter course, with a nod to each of these references: spinach, tomato soup and pancakes. 

SPINACH AND FETA BITES
TOMATO SOUP
BITE SIZE SHORT STACK

Served as the film begins

CLICK HERE FOR THE RECIPES

Main: TV Dinner

“Right now we are eating dinner and watching TV”. So meta. You can’t really tell what the Wormwoods are eating in this scene but it’s on a TV tray and it’s got pineapple rings. So we’re taking that and running with it… 

BAKED HAM AND PINEAPPLE SLICES   

Served at 18 mins 30 secs

CLICK HERE FOR THE RECIPE

Dessert

We round off this watch along feast with the most iconic munching moment from Matilda… Miss Trunchball’s Bruce’s epic chocolate cake. 

BRUCE’S CHOCOLATE CAKE  

Served at 37 mins

CLICK HERE FOR THE RECIPES