Super Bowl Party Recipes

Super Bowl Party Recipes and Inspiration

Whether you’re hosting a Super Bowl party, attending one, or keeping it low key at home, here are some fun recipe ideas to help you enjoy the Super Bowl. 

Food Recipes:

 Chips and Dips Bar: Have a variety of dips to serve with assorted chips, crackers, and fresh vegetables. Serve a few of these classic recipes, as well as fresh salsa and guacamole.

Frank's RedHot Buffalo Chicken Dip I haven't made this dip before but I found the recipe a few weeks ago and I'm excited to try it out this year. 

Chili's Queso photo from lecremedelacrumb.com

Chili's Queso (Slow Cooker Version) This dip is another one I haven't tried yet but I've had Chili's queso and if this is anything like theirs, it'll be delicious!

Ro*Tel Famous Queso Dip  An easy option if you still want a queso dip but don't want to go to a lot of effort. Give it a whirl. 

This spicy sausage dip was one of the first warm chip dips I ever had. My cousin gave me this recipe a few years back and I love when I have a good excuse to make it. Yum yum. 

Spicy Sausage Dip:

1 1lb package of Hot Jimmy Dean Sausage

1 can of Ro*Tel tomatoes with green chilies

2 8oz bricks of cream cheese

1 cup sour cream

     Cook and crumble sausage. Mix all ingredients in a slow cooker and heat until warm. Serve warm.

Nacho Bar: For a twist on the chips and dips bar, instead, set up a nacho station with all the fixings for loaded nachos. Let your guests help themselves to plate after plate throughout the game. Fixings can include taco meat, nacho cheese, shredded cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, green peppers, jalapenos, onions, olives, salsa, guacamole, sour cream, Tabasco sauce, and ranch dressing. Serve the meat and nacho cheese in slow cookers to keep it warm.

Finger Foods: If you’re looking for some awesome finger foods to enjoy during the big game, look no further. Here a few fun recipes to try.

If you love mall pretzels, you'll love these Soft Baked Pretzels even more. I double this recipe when I make it because one batch just isn’t enough. Feel free to make them into pretzel bites, and shorten the baking time. Also try variations of Parmesan cheese, cinnamon sugar, get creative!

Photo from www.keyingredient.com

Mini Corn Dog Muffins are the perfect finger foods and they're just so adorable. I make these for dinner whenever I catch hot dogs on sale. If you love corn dogs but want to avoid all the preservatives in store bought ones, well, these are for you. You're welcome. 

 I recently experienced the deliciousness of  CrockPot Bacon-wrapped Lil’ Smokies. I mean they're little, and wrapped in bacon, what's not to love? These were a big hit on Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve, so why not for the Super Bowl too right?

Last year a friend brought these awesome flavored saltines to work along with the recipe. They were saltines with a kick so I made them for the Super Bowl. Since then I've had many requests to make them again. Here's the recipe. 

Alabama Fire Crackers:

1 and 2/3 cup vegetable oil (or olive oil for healthier option)

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp onion powder

½ tsp black pepper

2 1 oz envelopes of ranch dressing mix

3 TBSP crushed red pepper flakes

1 16.5 package of saltine crackers (4 sleeves)

     Put the vegetable oil, garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper, ranch dressing and red pepper flakes in a 2 gallon zip lock bag. Seal the bag and use your hands to thoroughly combine the oil and spices. Add crackers to bag, seal and turn the bag over to cover with the spice mix. Let the bag sit for about an hour, then turn over again. Repeat several times until the crackers are well coated. Allow the crackers to sit overnight. Then remove the crackers from the bag and eat. *If you want to make a non-spicy version of this you can eliminate the crushed red pepper flakes. I have also halved this recipe before and done half with the red pepper and half without. 

Photo from www.lifeloveandsugar.com

Treat Recipes:

 Cookie Bar: If you're hosting a Super Bowl party, have your guests bring a plate of cookies to share, then contribute a few different cookies of your own. When everyone shows up, you should have a  nice variety of cookies to choose from. Here are a few great cookie recipes.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Footballs Although this isn't my go-to cookie dough recipe, how cute are these?! Maybe I'll follow this recipe and see if I like this cookie dough better, because it's definitely cuter!

www.vintagerevivals.com

Swig Sugar Cookies These sugar cookies are delicious. If you haven't tried them yet... you need to. Now. I pinned this recipe a few years ago and one day when I needed an excuse to make something sweet, I made these. I shaped them into sharks because it was Shark Week on Discovery Channel. They tasted much better than they looked. I'm not an artist, but man, I sure can find and follow a good cookie recipe.  

My brother-in-law makes these delicious no bake cookies and nails them every time. The family is always asking him to make these whenever we're in need of a treat. They are creamy, chocolaty goodness and one more reason I'm grateful I married into the family. If you're thinking of making these for the Super Bowl, can't you just imagine how adorable they would be shaped into little footballs with a tiny bit of white frosting for the laces? Adorable huh? Now go make them. Don't worry, I won't tell anyone if you decide to make a "practice" batch now, and another one for game day.

Tanner's No Bake Cookies 

2 cups sugar

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup milk

4 tsp cocoa

Measure into a 2 qt saucepan. Stir to a boil for one minute only. Remove from heat and add 3+ cups oatmeal, 1/2 cup peanut butter, 1 tsp vanilla. Drop onto wax paper. 

Hot Chocolate Bar: Just because Christmas season is over, that definitely doesn't mean it's too late to have hot chocolate. It's still cold out there so treat yourself to a cup of hot chocolate. Put hot water in an insulated cooler like this and not only will it keep the water warm, but it'll match the game decor. Have a few different kinds of hot chocolate mixes to choose from and toppings galore! Toppings to use in the hot chocolate bar can include mini marshmallows, flavored marshmallows, crushed mints, hot fudge, caramel syrup, whipped topping, cinnamon, chocolate chips, M&M's. Use candy canes, cute straws, or Pepperidge Farm Pirouttes as stirrers. 

Other Treats: If you're not the biggest fan of cookies, sweat not, I've got you covered. Here a few of my favorite non-cookie treat recipes. 

My little sister LOVES these easy s'more treats, and I know why. They are delicious. If you like cereal, and chocolate, and marshmallows, well, you're in for a treat. (See what I did there?) Okay, sorry about the corny joke, not sorry about the delicious recipe. Golden Grahams S'mores. Check it out. 

Another great treat for game day is Chex party mix. There are SO many varieties of Chex Party mixes out there. With so many recipes to choose from, what better source than the Chex website itself? They've got Red Velvet Chex Party Mix, Chex Mexican Mud Buddies, Spicy Chipotle Chex Mix. I mean there are a lot to choose from. Whatever mood you're in, sweet, salty, daring, traditional, they've got it. Head over to their site to find your new favorite Chex Party Mix.  

Pretzels, pretzels, more pretzels

Is any football game complete without pretzels? I'd like to think it's not, but in case you find yourself wondering, this honey glazed pretzel recipe will make your mind up for you. I've had this recipe since my second grade teacher gave it to my family and it's a fun one to break out every now and then. Even my picky oldest brother likes it, and if he likes it, you know it's a keeper. 

Mrs. T's Honey Glazed Pretzels

8 cups small pretzels

2 Tbsp margarine or butter

1 Tbsp light corn syrup

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 Tbsp honey

1/8 tsp baking soda

    Combine butter, corn syrup, brown sugar, and honey. Melt in microwave for 1 minute. Stir in baking soda. Pour in a thin stream over pretzels in larger microwavable bowl, stirring to coat lightly. Microwave uncovered on medium heat 3 to 4 minutes. Stop to stir the pretzels twice, making sure to stir up coating that may be on the bottom of the bowl. Place on baking sheet that is covered with wax paper. Break apart and store in airtight container. 

I hope you found some great new recipes to try! 

What I Wish I Would've Known About Postpartum Recovery

As a first time mom, I did all the studying I could in hopes of being better prepared to face the challenges that come during pregnancy, labor and delivery, breastfeeding, and caring for a newborn. I read What to Expect When You’re Expecting. I downloaded the “What to Expect When You’re Expecting” app and consulted it daily. I read every paper my doctor gave me at my prenatal checkups. I took the classes offered at my local hospital. I listened to all the advice I got from other mothers. I pinned about seven different hospital bag checklists from Pinterest and I had my bags packed as soon as I knew what to put in them.

I remember telling my husband that perhaps I should make a list of what to grab when it’s “go time” so I wouldn’t forget them when it was time. This list would have things like my toothbrush/toothpaste, makeup, makeup remover, deodorant and all those little toiletries I couldn’t really pack yet because I still needed them every day. My sweet mom knew how worried I was about this so she even made me a “Birthday Bag” that contained all those little things and many of the things women say you might want during the hours of labor and your hospital stay. I thought I was as ready as I would ever get.

In all my preparation I even searched articles like “10 Things I didn’t Know About Pregnancy,” “What No One Tells You About Labor”. In all honesty, I had an awesome pregnancy with very little sickness and even fewer complications. My labor and delivery were also awesome and I had an experience that most first time moms would probably hate me for.  The one thing I wasn’t nearly enough prepared for postpartum recovery. I even had padsicles in the freezer awaiting my return from the hospital. Oh how I wish I would have searched for articles warning me of what no one else had about postpartum recovery.

So let’s get down to business. What I wish I would’ve known about postpartum recovery:

1.       You’ll still be waddling: At eight and nine months pregnant you’ll be waddling around with that cute, oversized basketball under your shirt and you’ll get the excited and sympathetic smiles of others when you’re out in public. After that cute oversized basketball finally makes his appearance, well, you’ll still be waddling. The difference is you’ll finally be able to see your toes again and when you can see your toes and you’re still waddling, people won’t give you that sympathetic smile anymore. Instead, they’ll stare at you as if you’re a maimed duck that just needs put out of its misery.

2.       Abdomen muscles are useless: In the hospital, I became so frustrated because it was so difficult to sit up.  I remember getting mad at myself and thinking, “What’s wrong with you? You just dropped an eight pound child out of your stomach and you act like it’s still so hard to get around!” But seriously, it was still a feat and was for a few more weeks. Those abdomen muscles you used to be so fond of are now stretched out, loose, weak, and probably resemble the tentacles of a jellyfish. This makes it so hard to sit up on your own and to even move your legs. Every time I had to readjust to get comfortable, or get up to go to the bathroom my husband or the nurses had to come swing my legs off the side of my bed, and pull my arms to help me sit up. Until those muscles have a few weeks to recover, it is still tough stuff.

3.       It hurts! If you had a vaginal delivery and any sort of tearing… It hurts. Not just when the delivery and tearing happen, but I mean afterwards. It hurts to laugh. It hurts to cough. It hurts to sneeze. It hurts to sit in the car. It hurts to even look at a wooden barstool or metal chair, let alone to try sitting on it. It hurts to wear jeans or any other restrictive pants until that swelling goes down. It just hurts.

4.       You’ll still look like you’re pregnant: I actually was prepared for this and had heard that after delivery your stomach wouldn’t immediately go back to normal. When I packed my hospital bag the list I consulted said to pack a loose fitting outfit to come home in since you will probably still be the size you were around your sixth month mark. I was prepared for that, however, I was NOT prepared for my twin brother commenting about my bathrobe hardly being able to zip closed, while I was still in the hospital. It did feel good to know though that he was equally as unprepared for the slug in the gut he got immediately following his remark.

5.       Stomach sleeping: still a bad idea. I love sleeping on my stomach, but when I first found out I was pregnant I knew it was only a matter of time until my stomach grew to the size of a watermelon making it impossible for me to sleep on it. In anticipation of that, I immediately forced myself to sleep on my side. As I neared my last few weeks of pregnancy I told my husband how excited I was to finally be able to sleep on my stomach again. Imagine my surprise to find out that my watermelon stomach was soon replaced by two cantaloupes above it instead. Not only was it still terribly uncomfortable to sleep on my stomach, but the added pressure on those cantaloupes can cause plugged ducts if you’re nursing. And plugged ducts….whew wee, give me back the labor contractions if I can avoid the pain of a plugged duct ever again.

6.       Hair shedding: I remembered hearing from cousins and other people that after they had babies they lost a lot of hair and that their hair used to be thick until they had babies. My hair is naturally super thick to begin with. In the first few weeks after having my baby when I didn’t immediately lose clumps of hair in the shower, I thought that this was maybe just another thing I wouldn’t have to worry about or deal with. Then I hit about the four-month mark after giving birth and BAM, I thought I was going bald for sure. I suddenly started leaving behind three times as much hair in the shower. The laundry came out of the dryer with hairballs in every load. And my vacuum, my poor poor vacuum, it has never seen so much hair. When I finally got around to my first haircut after giving birth I mentioned this to my stylist and she said that losing hair around the fourth month postpartum was actually pretty natural.

7.       Lingering linea nigra: To be fair, I had actually heard that this dark line that appears on some women’s stomachs during pregnancy can last long after they give birth. I had heard that for some women this line even lasts eight months after delivery. I had hoped that maybe mine would disappear somewhere around four months and that maybe I would be lucky. Well, my baby turned seven months old last week and I’m still sporting my linea nigra. Though I will add that it has faded and becomes less noticeable with each passing week.

WARNING: The following thing I wish I would have known, is perhaps a little bit questionable on who should read it. It is not graphic, but if you’re worried it might be too much information, skip number eight.

8.       Your hoo-ha will return to normal: I remember being so worried that after my little lady parts popped out an eight pound baby they would just never be the same, and that meant that life between the sheets wouldn’t be the same either.  I must say, I was sorely mistaken and sorely naïve about this aspect of recovery. Those little lady parts were built to withstand childbearing and when that child is born those little ladies get going right back to where they should be and they do a mighty fine job of getting back there. Maybe even too good of a job. I’ll leave it at that.

There you have it. The things I wish I would’ve known about postpartum recovery. If you know anyone who is pregnant share this with them in hopes that they will be a little more prepared than I was. Thanks for reading!

What I Care to Share

     Well folks, I finally did it. I started a blog. For a long time I was very against having a blog, even though I’m a writer. I didn't want to create a blog that was basically just a family journal for everyone to see. No one really needs or wants to know how many loads of laundry I did today, how long I spent at the grocery store this week, or what time my baby went to bed. I didn't see the point of writing a blog because I didn't feel like I had much of anything to say.

     Finally, that has changed. With a few more years under my belt and more life experiences, I finally feel like I have some things that I care to share. Now I’m not implying that you need to listen to everything I say, and I’m not promising that everything flowing from these fingers and onto my keyboard is golden, but I am promising to share the things I think others can benefit from. Some days that might be a recipe I’m in love with, other days that might be some advice parent to parent, life hacks, and things I wish someone had told me.  That is what this blog will be. It’s not another family journal, purely a mommy blog, or even just a cooking blog. It is what it’s called. What I Care to Share.

     A few of the articles you can expect to find in upcoming weeks include things I wish I would've known about postpartum recovery, recipes and recipe indexes I love, party ideas and themes, maybe even an interview with a lactation consultant.  These are just a few of the great things I’m excited to share with you. Check back in whenever you can because you just might find something you’ll be glad I cared to share.