Two of the biggest food days (excluding Thanksgiving and the December holidays) of the year are coming up-- Super Bowl Sunday and Valentine's Day. I've read that the big national pizza chains (Papa John's and Domino's) do their biggest business on this day (followed by Halloween-- interesting!) and I know that La Rosa's is always super busy, too. This is about the time of year when magazines are covered in chips, dips, "manly" food (who deems a food manly or feminine, really?) and crowd pleasers. I am not having a Super Bowl party this year, but I'll be attending one. We're each supposed to bring a snack, and since the hostess always teases me about things like, "Gee, Julie, did you raise the chicken on your fire escape? Churn the butter yourself?" I can't just buy some salsa and chips and call it a day. Terry suggested chicken wings, but I think that might be a little difficult to transport-- I don't want them to get mushy or greasy or over-sauced in the 20 or so minute drive to the party. This is sad, because I do make decent wings.
Right now, I'm considering a couple of recipes. Googling "super bowl recipes" is sort of frightening: it seems like everything involves Velveeta, Cheez-Whiz, bottled barbecue sauce or a really obnoxious football theme. I'm leaning towards a dip-- maybe a Reuben dip (very simple: fresh sauerkraut from Kroeger's at Findlay, some good corned beef, some cream cheese, shredded Swiss, warmed and served with rye crisps. Very New York (most of us will be rooting for the Giants) and pretty tasty. I was also thinking about doing chicken satay-- easy to eat, tasty, and different. Do any of you have any suggestions?
Then, of course, there's Valentine's day. I've enjoyed working on a friend's ad campaign for a restaurant that is doing an "anti-Valentine's", playing great break-up songs and lots of drink specials. I'm sort of anti-Valentine's myself: in past relationships, V-day has been forgotten, plus I've been stood up with, broken up with, and had a close family member die on Valentine's. Terry (being a guy) isn't terribly fond of it either, so we're boycotting things like chocolate and flowers (why buy them at twice normal retail?) and restaurants that double their prices and... well, we're not sure what we're doing. I think I'm going to make sure we both enjoy it and it will probably involve cooking, but I can't spoil the surprise because Terry reads this (hiya, Sweetie!). I'd definitely appreciate meal suggestions for this one, too!
3 comments:
The appetizer I've brought lately to great success is vietnamese fresh spring rolls. Nice and light, tasty, and different :) You can find all kinds of recipes online for various varieties. Guess it all really depends on the crowd. I'll be bringing candied bacon if that says anything about the crowd at the party I'll be going to ;)
Candied bacon is an EXCELLENT idea-- the group I'm going with has pretty varied tastes. They'd like the spring rolls (another great idea!), but they'd probably forever mention "the super bowl party where Julie brought candied bacon". I've been thinking about making bacon brittle... I think I have an idea!
Depending on the number of people expected, there is always chili. It's not a side by any means, but you'll impress the host and the guests. And it's great superbowl food. Olive tapenade with french bread is delish too. Let me know if you want a recipe! awww booo Anti-Vday. I am in a relationship and enjoy the day for what it's worth. Love, hugs and kisses and lots of delicious food at The Golden Lamb. You ought to try it, their food that is.
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