Breakfast at Tiffany's- Iced Coffee with Amaretto

Thinking about other books to review this month, I decided to do a look at books that have been made into movies since that was one of the main reasons I chose Gatsby. In most cases I try to read the book first, but that doesn't always happen- especially with older movies. Case in point is one of my favorite movies- Breakfast at Tiffany's.

I remember watching it with my mom and being completely swept ay by Audrey Hepburn and how glamorous she was. I loved the way she made a sleep mask and earplugs look like high fashion. I kind of wanted to find a bath tub that I could cut in half and fill with pillows to use as furniture. Not sure I want to do that any more, it wouldn't really fit with our decor,and it probably wouldn't be a comfy spot to stretch out and read. That's pretty important to me.

Naturally with those images in my head, I pictured Audrey and George Peppard the whole time I was reading the book, which is probably not fair to either version of the story. Like many book to film adaptations, the story had to be changed in order to be more easily accepted by a wider audience. The book is grittier than the movie, I think that's pretty well established.

Holly Golightly is a fairly polarizing character. You either find her endearing or annoying. For me she's endearing. Yes, she's most likely a hooker, yes she's naive to a point where it's to her detriment, but there's a hopefulness in her character that I appreciate even if to some it comes across as delusional.

If I were to know her or someone like her in real life, she'd probably drive me crazy. In the context of the book however, I feel differently. I find myself getting caught up in her exploits, getting entranced by the idea of gallivanting all over the world and simply reinventing an identity when the current one no longer fits the image you have in your head of who you want to be or who you are becoming. It's the stuff of daydreams, and somehow this character has the ability to make those daydreams real. Is that me being overly idealistic? Maybe, but I feel like that's kind of the point.

Why not search for something better? Why not try to evolve into an improved version of yourself when you have the chance? Semper ad meliora- Always towards better things.

When selecting a drink to go with this novel, I found the most inspiration from the title, and admittedly from the opening scene of the movie where Audrey stands with her coffee and Danish looking into the windows of Tiffany's. It's this moment that perfectly captures that dreamer spirit of hers. The base of the drink is coffee, as I'm sure you would have expected even if you hadn't read the title of this post.

Iced Coffe with Amaretto
Brew some coffee- for this drink I chose French Vanilla
Add ice to a glass, pour coffee over ice
Add 1-2 oz Amaretto
Fill the rest of the way with cream

Had I been thinking about it, I would have waited to stir the drink until after I'd taken the picture. All in all, it came out a little sweeter than you'd expect- which I think is a result of the French vanilla mixing with the almond flavors of the amaretto. Just like Holly- probably not for everyone, but this would work just as well with regular coffee.