Be Creative with Super Bowl Food on Game Day

On February 2^nd, 2014, Super Bowl XLVIII will take place at MetLife Stadium. The Seattle Seahawks will play the Denver Broncos, and you won’t want to miss it. As you’re planning your game day parties and gearing up for the exciting square-off, you may be concerned about what food you’ll serve. You’ll want to offer your guests a fitting and tasty spread of goodies.

Say you want to get away from the standard game day fair. Maybe you’re sick of the Buffalo wings and the mozzarella sticks and nachos. Of course, finger foods and appetizers are the perfect courses to serve, but what about something off the beaten path? If you’re looking for a way to spice up the classic wings, why not try a Buffalo Chicken Dip? It’s an easy, cheesy way to dip anything from veggies to crackers.

For another cheesy delight, you could try making a cheese ball shaped like a football. Try this recipe or use your own to make a football shape with Sriracha or sour cream laces.

Of course, there are other types of dips that you could try: layered dips or guacamole dips for chips, spiked salsas for adults only, or sweet dips for cookies and fruit. Be creative! If you’re going to do a standard dip, such as a marshmallow dip, why not dye it green and make icing yard lines, so it looks like a field? Or you could draw the number of your favorite player in the dip with icing.

What about desserts? You could try decorating a standard cake to look like a football field, complete with football shaped sugar cookies, green icing with white yard lines and little plastic goal posts (you could make these with straws or buy them at a specialty baking store). Or, you could use cupcakes to make the field, with little gummy bears as the players.

Want to do something more creative than nachos? What about a sweet Nacho Cheesecake, a cheesecake that actually looks like a bowl of nachos?

If you’re hoping to do more traditional nachos, why not also go all out? Beyond cheese and chili and salsa, there are onions, tomatoes , jalapenos and other peppers, black beans, and many other toppings. You could even sprinkle your delectable snack with some cilantro. If you’re a big meat eater, you could try bacon, shrimp, chorizo, or pulled pork on your nachos. If you’re more into different, creative types of veggies, try artichoke hearts, pico de gallo (way better than store-bought salsa), giardiniera (pickled veggies), roasted red pepper, or mixed herbs. Experiment with cheeses, from feta to blue cheese. You might be surprised and excited to come across the perfect combination of toppings.

Hopefully, you’ve gotten some new and exciting ideas for what to serve at your Super Bowl Party. Remember to be creative, have fun, and don’t be afraid to try something new!