Throwing a party? Here are some Kentucky Derby-inspired recipes

Planning a party to celebrate the Kentucky Derby take a lot of time and effort. Having the right recipes can make or break it. Here are some recipes that can get the party started. 

Bites

The Kentucky Hot Brown (Recipe courtesy of The Brown Hotel)

Ingredients

• 2 oz. Whole Butter
• 2 oz. All Purpose Flour
• 8 oz. Heavy Cream
• 8 oz. Whole Milk
• ½ Cup of Pecorino Romano Cheese
  Plus 1 Tablespoon for Garnish
• Pinch of Ground Nutmeg
• Salt and Pepper
• 14 oz. Sliced Roasted Turkey Breast, Slice Thick
• 4 Slices of Texas Toast (Crust Trimmed)
• 4 Slices of Crispy Bacon
• 2 Roma Tomatoes, Sliced in Half
• Paprika
• Parsley

In a two‑quart saucepan, melt butter and slowly whisk in flour until combined and forms a thick paste (roux). Continue to cook roux for two minutes over medium‑low heat, stirring frequently. Whisk heavy cream and whole milk into the roux and cook over medium heat until the cream begins to simmer, about 2‑3 minutes. Remove sauce from heat and slowly whisk in Pecorino Romano cheese until the Mornay sauce is smooth. Add nutmeg, salt and pepper to taste.

For each Hot Brown, place two slices of toast with the crusts cut off in an oven safe dish – one slice is cut in half corner to corner to make two triangles and the other slice is left in a square shape - then cover with 7 ounces of turkey. Take the two halves of Roma tomato and two toast points and set them alongside the base of the turkey and toast. Next, pour one half of the Mornay sauce to completely cover the dish. Sprinkle with additional Pecorino Romano cheese. Place the entire dish under a broiler until cheese begins to brown and bubble. Remove from broiler, cross two pieces of crispy bacon on top, sprinkle with paprika and parsley, and serve immediately.

Makes 2 Hot Browns

CJ's Peachy-Jalapeno Blue Cheese Bourbon Burger (recipe by C.J. Daniels)

This burger was a semi-finalist for the 2019 Kentucky Derby Burger Challenge. Even though C.J. didn't win, he wanted to share this burger recipe with grillmasters alike! 

CJ’s Peach-Jalapeno Burger

• 1 lb. Ground Beef
• 2 tbsp. Granulated garlic
• 2 tbsp. Granulated onion
• 1 tbsp. Black Pepper
• 1/2 tsp. Salt (or add more to taste)
• 1/4 cup Breadcrumbs
• 1 large egg
• 1 8oz. Canned Peaches in Syrup
• 2 medium Jalapeno peppers
• 1 large sweet Vidalia Onion
• Crumbled Blue Cheese (optional)

Directions:

Mix beef, garlic, onion, black pepper, breadcrumbs and egg in a separate bowl. Mix well and set aside. You can also mix in 4oz of blue cheese crumbles or save it for toppings.

In a food processor, add canned peaches with syrup and jalapeños. Pulse for desired chunkiness. Pour this on the burger mixture and mix a second time.

Place burger mixture in the fridge for 1 hour to allow ingredients to set. (for best results, overnight).

Slice onions and place burgers on top. Cook burgers about 7 minutes per side or until internal temperature reaches 160 degrees.

Salt your burger when placing them on the grill! 

Peachy jalapeno bourbon-infused aioli (bottom layer)

1.5 oz of Woodford Reserve

1 cup of  greek yogurt

2 jalapeños

1.5 cups of peaches diced

Mix all ingredients together until you get a smooth texture. Place in a dish, wrap and place in the fridge for 1 hour or 24 hours for best results.

Peachy-jalapeno bourbon sauce

2 cans of canned peaches

1 cup of light brown sugar

3 jalapeños diced

2 oz. of Woodford Reserve

2 tsp of cornstarch

2 tsp of water

In a saucepan, place canned peaches and allow them to come to a slight simmer. Next, add jalapeños and brown sugar and allow to simmer. Mix cornstarch and water, place in the jalapeño-peach mixture and simmer at low heat. Turn off heat and add Woodford Reserve and stir slowly.

Stacking the burger

Toast your buns. Place Aoli on the bottom layer with a piece of green leaf lettuce. Next, add burger and onions caramelized in the skillet. Finally, spread PJB sauce on the top portion of the roll. Enjoy!

Optional: to turn up the peachy flavor, toss burger in bourbon sauce or simmer in low heat and serve.

Burgoo (Recipe courtesy of Maker's Mark/Chef Newman)

Ingredients

• 6 oz. raw bacon, diced
• 1 boneless turkey breast, diced
• 2 lb. diced chuck roast or other beef roast
• 1 lb. diced lamb stew meat or lamb shoulder
• 1 lb. smoked bbq pork shoulder
• 1 lb. smoked chicken, meat only
• 3 white onions, diced small
• 2 heads celery sliced thin
• 4 carrots, peeled and diced small
• 3 oz. (2 shots) Makers Mark® Bourbon plus more for garnish
• 1 qt. Kentucky Wonder beans or other flat, Roma-style green bean
• 2 lb. fresh-dug new potatoes
• 6 ears of corn cut from the cob
• 1 head of cabbage chopped
• 1 lb. of lima beans
• 2 lb. diced tomatoes
• 8 qt. chicken stock
• 1 cup Maker’s Mark Gourmet Sauce (or other bbq sauce)
• Worcestershire sauce
• Salt and pepper
• TABASCO® sauce

Directions

1. Use a large, thick-bottomed pot. The key to great burgoo is to simmer slowly over a long time. The thicker the pot bottom, the less likely you are to scorch anything.
2. At medium-high heat add the diced bacon. When it starts to render and release fat, stir. Remove bacon when crispy and reserve.
3. In batches, sear the diced beef, lamb and turkey until golden brown. Remove meat, keeping the fat in the pot.
4. Add onion, celery and carrot and stir well. Pour in the Maker’s Mark and stir to deglaze any bits sticking to the bottom of the pan. Cook for 5–8 minutes until vegetables soften.
5. Add chicken stock and bbq sauce and bring to a simmer. Once simmering, add only the seared meat back to the pot and cook over low heat for 3–4 hours or until all meat is tender.
6. Add all remaining vegetables and the smoked pork and chicken to the pot and cook for another 1–2 hours.
7. Constantly stir and taste your burgoo. Season with salt, pepper, Worcestershire sauce and TABASCO® sauce as you go.
8. Once all vegetables are tender and broth tastes good, let burgoo cool completely (at least overnight, but a few nights is even better) Rewarm slowly in another thick-bottomed pot and taste for seasoning.
9. To serve, ladle burgoo into a large soup bowl and top with a splash of Maker’s Mark on top as garnish. It will add an incredible aroma and flavor.

Prep time: 15 minutes / Cook time: 4-6 hours / Total time: 4 hours and 15 minutes. Makes 12-15 portions

Chicken wings grilled and glazed (Recipe courtesy of KentuckyDerby.com)

Ingredients

• ¾ C Smoked Paprika
• 1 C Salt
• ¼ C Blk. Pepper
• ¼ C Brown Sugar
• ½ C Onion Powder
• ¼ C Garlic Powder
• 2 ½ C Canola Oil
• 8 lb. Whole Bone-In Chicken Wings
• Parsley; Chopped – for Garnish

Preparation

1. Combine all dry ingredients in a mixing bowl to create seasoning
2. Coat wings with oil; once coated season wings generously
3. Place on hot grill for 6-8 minutes, flipping wings every 3-4 minutes
4. Take off grill and place in a 400 degree F oven until golden brown & crispy
5. Serve on platter; garnish with chopped parsley

Drinks

Good drinks during a party are a must. They keep the conversations flowing along with the food.

C.J.'s Peach-Pomegranate Bourbon Tea (Recipe by C.J. Daniels)

Ingredients

• 16 Black Tea bags
• 3.5 quarts of water
• Peach-Pomegranate simple syrup (Directions Below)
• Sugar to taste
• 2 cups (or more) of 90.4 proof Woodford Reserve bourbon

Directions

1. Place tea bags in the kettle and allow to boil until the kettle whistles. Set aside and allow to cool. 
2. Prepare your simple syrups. Use 5 large sweet peaches and 1 1/2 cups of pomegranate seeds. Add in 2 cups of sugar and 2 cups of water. Stir frequently and bring to a slight boil. Allow to cool and then strain into a pitcher. 
3. Pour in tea and stir, mixing with the simple syrup. You may want to add extra sugar for desired sweetness. 
4. Add in Woodford Reserve....if you like more bourbon, add it! 
5. Optional: Garnish drink with pomegranate seeds and grilled peaches with a light glaze of honey! 

The Kentucky Oaks Lily (The Official Drink of the Kentucky Oaks)

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 oz. Finlandia® Vodka                         
• 1 oz. Sweet and Sour Mix
• 1/4 oz. Triple Sec
• 3 oz. Cranberry Juice

Preparation

Once the ingredients are mixed, place the pinkish cocktail in an Official Oaks Lily® glass (stemless wine glass) with crushed ice, add a straw and garnish with a blackberry and lemon wedge.

The Old Forester Mint Julep

Ingredients

• 3 oz Old Forester Mint Julep
• 0.75 oz Simple Syrup
• 8-10 mint leaves
• 3 mint sprigs, for garnish

Preparation

Pack mint julep cup with crushed ice.  In a mixing glass, combine bourbon, syrup, and mint leaves.  Lightly bruise mint leaves with a muddler, strain contents into julep cup.  Garnish with 3 generous sprigs of mint.

*Make sure to slap mint. Make sure to insert straw into ice near mint.

RELATED: How to make a mint julep (VIDEO)

RELATED: $1,100 cocktail worth going down the Rabbit Hole for

For more Derby-inspired dishes, cocktails and other recipes, click here.