The Super Bowl is fast approaching, and whether you are interested in football or not (personally I am more excited about Super Bowl Sunday because it means Puppy Bowl on Animal Planet), one thing that brings us together as a nation on this day is our appreciation of potluck snack foods.
Image courtesy Flickr/Jenn_Egg recipe here
A note for the party host
Hosting a Super Bowl party can be nerve-wracking. You have to provide food for a lot of people, who are going to be in your house for a long time, probably drinking beer and - one hopes - getting excited for the game. Super Bowl parties are not a reserved affair. This is a loud, raucous time. Which is to say, food is going to get spilled. Sorry: deal with it.
This is probably not a good time to set out your best stemware. Paper plates and red plastic Solo cups are kind of the order of the day, at least at most of the Super Bowl parties I have been to. Maybe in the posh neighborhoods they use champagne flutes and Wedgwood plates.
Image courtesy Flickr/DJ Speiss
This is also not the time to even try to eat healthy foods. Set out a plate of crudites if you insist on it. But let's be honest, no one's going to eat any of them. You're going to be tossing them into the compost at the end of the day. But hey, if it makes you feel better, then go for it.
The closest thing to "healthy" food at your basic Super Bowl party is a dish of celery sticks and Bleu Cheese dressing, to pair with the Buffalo wings. Speaking of which, let's start there!
Image courtesy Flickr/rick
Buffalo Wings
Buffalo wings are one of the mainstays of Super Bowl parties. Tangy, spicy, and ridiculously messy. These babies will be responsible for the use of at least one entire package of napkins.
In the abstract, Buffalo wings are a terrible party food: they get sauce all over you, your hands, and your face, they spill easily, and you end up with a gross plate full of gnawed-on chicken bones. But here we are.
It's not too hard to make your own Buffalo wings, but no one's going to look askance if you order out or buy them pre-made. I personally think the difference between homemade and pre-made Buffalo wings is negligible.
The most important thing about Buffalo wings - and I can't stress this enough - is that you have to provide Bleu Cheese and/or Ranch dressing as a dip. I have been to parties where there was no dip for the Buffalo wings. It was embarrassing, and also kind of a travesty.
Recipes:
- Baked Buffalo Wings
- Restaurant-Style Buffalo Wings
- Anchor Bar Buffalo Chicken Wings (the original Buffalo wing)
Image courtesy Flickr/Snapperwolf*
Nachos
Oh nachos. Talk about a case of "overpromise and under-deliver." The problem with nachos is that once they have sat out for more than 10 minutes, they cool off and turn gloppy and disgusting. The cheese gets rubbery and the chips get soggy. It is sad.
Your best option here is to stagger your nacho delivery. Take the amount you were planning on serving and divide it in half, or maybe into fourths. Instead of making one big batch of nachos, make a new batch at the top of every hour (or whatever).
Alternatively, you could try baking single-serving small plates of nachos on demand.
Image courtesy Flickr/Lake Mead Imagery
Chili
Chili is another staple of Super Bowl parties, which is too bad, because you get that many people in a room and feed them chili and make them hang out for five or six hours and guess what happens. Guess.
The best strategy for chili is to use a slow cooker. It will take about 8-10 hours for your chili to be ready to serve, so if your party is going to start at (say) 3PM, you will want to start the slow cooker going between 5 and 7AM.
Protip: mix everything together the night before, throw it in the crock, and put it in the fridge. Then all you have to do in the morning is pull out the crock, drop it in, turn it on, and go about your business. (Or back to bed. I don't judge.)
Recipes
Image courtesy Flickr/DixieBellCupcakeCafe
Dessert
If you're going to have your guests bring a dish, lean heavily towards assigning them the desserts. For one thing, desserts rarely require prep work. They probably won't need much in the way of fridge or oven space (one hopes). For another thing, you won't be eating them first thing, which means if someone shows up late, it's not the end of the world.
Brownies, cake, cupcakes, and cookies are always a good choice here. That way at least one thing at your party will be easy to serve, eat, and clean up after!
Main image courtesy Flickr/acaben
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