The first Sunday in February means its time for our annual Super Bowl party, this year featuring the upstart Atlanta Falcons against the dynastic New England Patriots.
Though offspring have moved on to college and beyond, our parties have not become more sophisticated as we still need tailgate-type food and games to help celebrate this pseudo-national holiday in appropriate style. Did you hear that Heinz is starting a commercial campaign to make the day after the Super Bowl a national holiday? Surely the NFL has enough clout to make that happen.
This year I look forward to sharing the hype with a few close friends in front of some very large screens and analyzing everything from what Luke Bryan and Lady Gaga will be wearing singing to whether the Falcon’s #1 ranked offense is able to fend off the Patriots #1 ranked defense. Pundits predict a high scoring game, while I anticipate high scoring calories from the heavy-laden serving table. After all, what’s a holiday without its traditional foods?
Food
I always like at least some of the edible offerings at my Super Bowl parties to reflect the teams’ and/or host city. When I think of New England food, lobstah rolls immediately come to mind. I’ll be trying Bon Appetit’s recipe this weekend and am keeping my fingers crossed that somewhere in RVA I can find New England style split-top hot dog buns.
Garden & Gun recently featured a Baked Pimento Cheese and Sausage Dip by Chef Vivian Howard. Even though she hails from North Carolina, if her recipe doesn’t scream Deep South, which I still associate with Atlanta, I don’t know what does (except maybe Ellen’s Pimento Cheese Grits via the Atlanta Ritz, which I am still seriously considering making to use as a dip for some jumbo shrimp).
As an Atlanta girl, Ellen immediately knew she’d be bringing a Coca-Cola Cake. Surely you know that the Coca-Cola Company rules ATL. I can’t wait to dig in to this chocolatey confection.
I’m counting on Texans jBr and sSn to bring some kind of homage to host city Houston. Tex-Mex, like these Tex-Mex Madeleines, always pairs nicely with football, but maybe we’ll be surprised with some Texas-style brisket or, even better, Margaritas.
Games
Hands down, the favorite side game at our party is my annual Super Bowl Bingo. Every year I compile a list of terms for a Bingo game that can engage all watchers of the Super Bowl, whether they know the difference between a holding penalty or an onside kick or are simply watching for the commercials. My 2017 version is no different.
Super Bowl LI Bingo Cards (2017) by The Gracious Posse on Scribd
To download and print the pdf, just hit the ↓ above.
Our other favorite game is Football Pool. Order today with amazon Prime to get it in time for Sunday’s kickoff. You can also pick one up at Party City or make your own. See my how-to description here.
Games require prizes, so do a little planning ahead. Our go-tos are lottery tickets. Everyone loves a scratcher surprise.
With neither of the teams I now root for playing in the big game, I am looking forward to just enjoying the spectacle of it all, along with our own food and games. In some ways that is even more fun than the stress of actually caring about the final outcome. So whether you have a dog in this year’s fight or not, Happy Super Bowl to you and yours!
February 2, 2017
