Kentucky Derby Party Tips
This morning we had the distinct pleasure of presenting Kentucky Derby party tips on Fox News Chicago! Being equestrian enthusiasts, we had so much fun planning this segment! We loved making all our ideas come alive on Fox with the help of some of our favorite vendors!
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Alex of Exquisite Designs created perfect Derby Day floral with hydrangeas, roses and tulips in primary colors. She used a silver champagne bucket Michelle won at a horse show and an antique trophy for the vases and it was so equestrian chic! Silver containers are the perfect derby day decoration because silver is a huge part of many equestrian awards, including the Kentucky Derby trophies given to the winning jockey, trainer and breeder. Alex also created a blanket of carnations that was inspired by the blanket of roses awarded to the Derby winner, which was our personal favorite! Just think of what that would look like as a runner!
We asked Phil Stefani Signature Events to make some very authentic dishes of Burgoo and Hot Brown, and after some research, they come up with tasty dishes! Burgoo, also known as Roadkill Stew, is a communal dish in the south, where each guest brings an ingredient for the stew. Hot Brown was created at the Brown Hotel in Louisville, KY, as an alternative for a late night ham and egg sandwich. Hot Brown is an opened face sandwich made with turkey and bacon, covered in mornay sauce. Tom, from Phil Stefani, also came up with a Mint Julep Margarita, which is perfect for this weekend, as Cinco de Mayo is on Sunday! Want to try this delicious concoction? It will be served at Phil Stefani’s 437 Rush on Friday and Saturday, and if you want to make it at home, here’s the recipe!
Mint Julep Margarita
Serves-10
1 cup of white bourbon (instead of tequila)
20 ounces of regular flavored margarita mix
2/3 cup fresh mint leaves
10 Cups Ice
Place all ingredients in a large blender on low until smooth, Serve immediately in a chilled margarita glass and garnish with a fresh mint.
No party is complete without sweets and Lillycakes went above and beyond to create some fabulous Derby treats of bourbon balls, mint julep bundt cakes and mini Kentucky Derby pies! Bourbon is, of course, a staple of the Derby and Kentucky, and Lillycakes’ bourbon balls were the perfect mix of bourbon and chocolate. We also loved the adorable mint julep cakes, because who can have enough mint julep on derby day? And the mini Kentucky Derby pies, which are chocolate walnut tarts, were adorable! We also featured Garrett Popcorn, which we served in the cutest little burlap bags from Paper Source. We simply stamped the bags with a horse and horseshoe stamp, and voila! An oat bag snack container!
One of our favorite parts of the Kentucky Derby is the fashion and Loreta Corsetti is the person to contact in Chicago when you are looking for a statement derby hat! She graciously lent us the most beautiful hats for the segment and it was all we could do to give them back, we loved them so much! As an award winning milliner, she has dressed quite a few ladies for the Derby, and we were drooling over her fabulous designs! Guaranteed to win the wearer any hat contest!.
[http://www.loretacorsetti.com]
Finally, Erickson Designs created the best place cards for a Derby party! With adorable jockey silks on them, the place cards doubled as an ice-breaker, with fill in the blank “If I were a racehorse, my name would be:” Michelle named hers “Piccolo Sogno” (little dream in Italian) and Sterling named hers “Sterling Reputation”. Peggy at Erickson Design also whipped up the lyrics to “My Old Kentucky Home” for guests to have on hand and sing along before the race!
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Check out the segment here and enjoy the race!
