hitchcock party — chapter 2
something’s cooking
Every good Hitchcock party needs a menu. Ours came with soup, wassail, bread, and a few suspiciously named dishes. We’d gone to the trouble of turning the house into a Hitchcock fever dream, so naturally, dinner needed a part to play, too.
There’s something satisfying about feeding a crowd. The chopping, the simmering pots, the last-minute adjustments. Then the doorbell rings, the guests arrive, and eventually everyone gathers around the table. For a while, the only mystery is what’s in the soup.
We made everything vegan and gluten-free, with the idea that everyone should be able to pull up a chair and eat together. Nothing too precious, nothing too complicated. Just a little theatricality, a lot of food, and something warm to share.
warmth is something we create
field notes
01 — the sausage vanishes
A vegan take on Zuppa Toscana, with potatoes, kale, Italian sausage, and a creamy broth. The sausage is plant-based, the soup is gluten-free, and the whole thing disappears remarkably quickly. Some mysteries solve themselves.
The food got its own Hitchcock treatment. The Sausage Vanishes. The Warm Thirst Trap. We gave the dishes names, made signs, and committed to the bit. Because if you're going to invite people into a house full of suspense, you might as well give them something to read while they're waiting for dinner.
02 — menu with a motive
03 — something spicy on the stove
Wassail on the stove, spices in the air, something warm in everyone's glass. The bourbon is optional; the atmosphere isn't. It's an easy drink to make for a crowd, and a good reminder that hospitality doesn't have to be complicated. A pot, a few ingredients, and people to share it with will do nicely.
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