Bourbon balls not your thing? Try a Derby Pie instead, a fudge-sweet chocolate and nut confection invented at Prospect, Kentucky's Melrose Inn. Traditionally served around Derby time, the treat typically calls for walnuts or pecans and a splash of Kentucky bourbon. The Inn's former owners, the Kerns, have been trying to protect its rights to the name "Derby Pie" by filing various lawsuits over the years - even Bon Appetit was no match for the Kerns, losing the right to print recipes using the name in 1987. So if you're looking for a good recipe you may need to try searching "chocolate chess pie" or "Kentucky bourbon pie" or "Thoroughbred pie" instead.

Epicurious has a nice-looking one, for a "chocolate pecan chess pie." I'm planning on making two a little later, to take to a Derby party this afternoon. Now, all I need is a giant hat...

Lisa, over at My Own Sweet Thyme, has a lovely post with a recipe about her aunt's "brownie pie" - supposedly her aunt once worked for the Kerns and was afraid of being sued!

Is there a less appetizingly named food than the 'Hot Brown?' Louisville, Kentucky's culinary claim to fame doesn't look like much either - an open-faced turkey sandwich topped with bacon and smothered in Sauce Mornay (Béchamel with cheese), it resembles nothing so much as a junkyard covered in a layer of dirty snow, bits of this and that sticking out from the off-colored drifts.

The inelegant Hot Brown was born at downtown Louisville's thoroughly opulent Brown Hotel, supposedly whipped up from kitchen leftovers after a 1920s dinner dance, when hungry flappers fell upon the chef like a pack of wolves. If you're looking for an easy treat for your pre-Derby lunch, check out the original recipe on the Brown Hotel website. Feel free to substitute ham for the bacon, or add tomatoes, onions, etc.

Did you know that there's an official Kentucky Derby recipe for the Mint Julep? This is the drink that you down as you watch the horsies fly by. It also helps if you wear a big hat.

It's called The Early Times Mint Julep, because it uses Early Times Kentucky Whiskey. You probably don't have Silver Julep cups at home, so I'd use something else.

Also after the jump is a video on how to make an alternate version of the Mint Julep.

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Mint juleps (and anything else with whisky) are Kentucky Derby staples, but if you're not a big drinker, or are acting as designated driver, you might feel like you're missing out when it comes to celebrating the "run for the roses." There are plenty of non-alcoholic "mocktails" that you can mix up so you won't be left out of the party. These two recipes are both from the LCBO Mocktails recipe section. The first is a non-alcoholic Mint Julep variation, which is both appropriate and refreshing. The second drink is known as the "Derby Mocktail" and is a fruitier, more colorful Derby choice.

Mint Mocktail

Derby Mocktail

Fill a cocktail shaker with ice. Add all ingredients, shake and strain into a hurricane glass filled with ice. Garnish with a maraschino cherry.

[Recipes and Image LCBO]

It's only fitting that the cookbook of the day ties in with the fact that one of the most famous sporting events in the world is going on this afternoon. I'm referring, of course, to the Kentucky Derby, so today's cookbook is the Kentucky Derby Museum Cookbook. The book was first published in 1986, but remains popular today. It is packed with recipes for Kentucky favorite dishes, as well as with Derby party ideas. There are too many recipes in the 250+ page book to name them all here, but the illustrated tome includes plenty of both classic and creative home cooking and they are all recipes that cooks turn to again and again. The most famous recipe from this book is probably the one for the Kentucky Derby Museum Pie and, if you want to give it a try, you can find it here.

The Kentucky Derby, in its 132nd run, takes place this Saturday at Churchill Downs in Kentucky. It's called the "run for the roses" because of the huge floral wreath that is draped over the winning horse. This cocktail is called the Crown of Roses, after that very wreath. Though the mint julep is the classic Derby drink, there is no reason not to branch out and try something new on Derby Day this year. The Crown of Roses is more colorful and much fruiter than a julep, but still has the classic (and traditional) Derby whisky in it.

Crown of Roses

1 oz. Crown Royal whisky
1/2 oz. amaretto
1 oz. pineapple juice
1/4 oz. cranberry juice
3 dashes Angostura bitters
1 maraschino cherry (garnish, optional)

Fill a cocktail shaker with ice and add all of the ingredients. Shake well, then strain into a chilled cocktail glass and add garnish.

[Image Barnone Drinks]

We've seen mint juleps here on Slashfood before. There's a mint julep flavored soda and the 132nd Kentucky Derby will serving ooh-la-la $1,000 mint juleps on Derby Day. If you'll be betting on watching the races from home, you can mix up a proper mint julep at your own home bar. But first, a little bit of historical trivia, or trivial history.

The mint julep, though most popularly associated with the Kentucky Derby, wasn't invented by some bartender mixing drinks track-side. The cocktail was first appeared officially in 1803 when it was described as a "dram of spirituous liquor that has mint in it, taken by Virginians in the morning." However, the mint julep's history may go back even a century before that to the early 1700s. Mint juleps today are made with Bourbon, but the first mint juleps were likely made with rye whiskey or rum (in which case, doesn't that make it a mojito?!?!).

To make a mint julep, start with a silver cup, which is frosted over. If you don't have a silver cup, a regular tumbler is fine. Some recipes call for a simple syrup, and others have mint leaves muddled with granulated sugar. If you're using granulated sugar, muddle fresh mint leaves in the bottom of the glass with 1 tsp. sugar. Add crushed ice, the pour in 3 oz. Bourbon.

If you plan ahead, you can prepare the simple-syrup version of the mint julep. Bring equal parts sugar and water to a boil and completely dissolve sugar. Add a handful of mint leaves to the syrup, then chill syrup overnight. To make the mint juleps, place crushed ice in glass, add 1 Tbsp. of the chilled mint syrup, and pour in 2 oz. Bourbon.

Here's a trivia question: In which state is the Kentucky Derby held?

Unfortunately, if you said California, you're wrong. It's Kentucky!

The Kentucky Derby takes place tomorrow, May 6 at Churchill Downs, and with the run for the roses, many other long-standing traditions will be observed. Lovely ladies will be sipping on mint juleps and if you're lucky, you'll get to eat a slice of Derby Pie. But be warned, just because the pie is made with chocolate and pecans and served on Derby Day doesn't mean you can call it a Derby Pie.

Derby Pie is a registered trademark of Kern's Kitchen. The pie was created as a specialty pastry in 1968 at the Melrose Inn in Prospect, Kentucky. Today, Kern's Kitchen is the only company that can bake and sell the pie as "Derby Pie."

On May 6, the Kentucky Derby will be pouring $1,000 mint juleps for the first 50 people to lay down the cash. The money will go toward a charity for retired racehorses.

Mint juleps have been synonymous with the Kentucky Derby for decades. Race-goers traditionally sip the drink from silver or pewter cups. The $1000 mint julep will be served in a gold-plated cup with a silver straw. The mint is from Morocco, ice from the Arctic circle, and bourbon from one of the state's finest producers, Woodford Reserve.

Now all they need to do is serve a $10,000 slice of Derby Pie.

[Photo Woodford Reserve]