The Ultimate Football Foodie Super Bowl Recipe Guide for Steelers-Packers Party 2011

It’s been a ton of fun going through the 28 Days of Super Bowl Recipes, but as we head into final stretch of Super Bowl party prep, let’s go back and look at some of my absolute favorites over the past few years. (You’ll be able to the tell the old recipes by the low-def picture quality.)

All of the recipes below are ones I’ve made multiple times for multiple parties and have gone over well with guests. Many of them can either be made — or at least prepped for cooking — ahead of time, which is important when you need to be focused on football and not your food. If you root around the archives some you’ll find some cocktails and beer recommendations, but aside of the Suffering Bastard, I’ve gotten away from doing football and beer recommendations so you’re on own there. Buy a beer that says “Stone” “Dogfish” “Bell” “Lagunitas” or “Pliny the Elder” in its name.

For the record, I thought about dividing this up into four separate posts; Dips and Salsas, Main Dish, Nibbles and Sweets. But then I thought, why bother? It’s just me and my little corner of the world. There’s no ad space here. No need for clicks. No SEO manager. I can make this post any size I want. If this post was on HuffPo or the Daily Beast or Uproxx, you would have to sort through 25-plus pages just to get the Bacon Bourbon Popcorn.

Not here. Here we believe in long, clock eating drives and scrolling.

Which gives this post the right claim “ultimate” in the title.

Here we go.

Dips and Salsas

Hot Pastrami Reuben Dip

Fresh, thick pastrami with melted cheese and a Russian-style dressing.

Creamy Hot Hoagie Dip

Created after finding nothing but cold, antipasta-styled hoagie dips. A proper hoagie is baked!

Chipotle Black Bean Hummus

Spicy, smokey chipotle and black beans. Lovely.

Buffalo Chicken Dip

Why mess with all of those chicken wings?

9-Layer Ranchero Dip

The dip I make for every Super Bowl party. Bacon, beans, guacamole, cheese. Nothing better.

Homemade French Onion Dip

Forget salty powdered soup mix and sour cream. Caramelize your own onions for a real treat.

Hot Pizza Dip

Cheese, sauce and toppings; all your favorite parts of the pizza.

Smokey Cowboy Caviar

Beans, black eyed peas, roasted peppers with a touch of cilantro and liquid smoke.

Mixed Fruit Salsa and Blueberry Salsa

Sweet and hot, a break from the same old tomato salsa.

Main Dishes

Spicy Peanut Butter Honey Chicken Fingers

Chili powder, cayenne mixed with peanut butter and honey in buttermilk for an amazing coating.

Blue Cheese Pierogies in Buffalo Sauce

Blue cheese, Monterey Jack cheese in tender homemade pierogies sauteed in hot sauce. My EGOT-worthy entry for 2011.

Sfincione, Sicilian Christmas Pizza

Deep dish pizza where the cheese melts under the sauce.

Chicharrones de Pollo

Caribbean style chicken marinated in rum.

Shredded Chicken Mole Frito Pie

A twist on Tex-Mex Frito pie, chicken chili is slow cooked in complex mole sauce.

Kielbasa Beer (Tomato-less) Sloppy Joes

Chopped kielbasa stewed with peppers, onions, mustard and beer served on a soft roll.

Buffalo Chicken Wontons

Crispy wonton wrappers are filled with spicy chicken or cream cheese for a sports bar classic.

Coffee & Pepper Glazed Chicken Drumsticks

Rum, molasses, honey vs chile, ginger, garlic and coffee.

Nibbles

Bacon Bourbon Popcorn

Stadium caramel corn grows up.

Choricitos al Vino (Spanish Chorizo in Red Wine Sauce)

Spanish tapas instead of the same 1970’s cocktail weenies.

Pizza Stuffed Mushrooms

Creamy pizza bites that can be prepped ahead of time.

Cheddar Herb Kettle Chips

Avoid the salt of flavored chips by tossing and  plain chips in herbs and cheese.

Arrogant Bastard Beer Battered Mashed Potato Balls

Inspired by Stone Brewery’s Bistro Spud Buds.

Stuffed Peppadews

Snappy peppadews stuffed with feta, capers, olives and herbs.

Ham & Cheese Pretzel Bites and Beer Floats

Baked pretzels stuffed with ham and cheese served with jalapeno mustard.

BLT Bites

Mini-BLT’s without the hassle of bread!

Salted Honey Roasted and Pecans

Home roasted pecans for freshness you cannot find in a can. (And much cheaper!)

Citrus Marinated Warm Olives

Olives. That’s all you need.

Parmesan Crisps and Blue Cheese Potatoes

Parmesan quick bread goes perfectly with beer and snacking.

Rosemary, Chives and Cheddar Biscuit Bites

If I ever open a locals joint, this will be our bar nibbles.

Pro Bowl Pretzel Bread

Soft, chewy pretzel bread will spoil you for all others.

Sriracha Fried Pickles

Thick, hot pickles in a light beer batter to temper the heat.

Sweets

Mint Julep Jelly Shots

Just another excuse to have bourbon at the party.

Maker’s Mark Manhattan Mini-Cupcakes

Did I mention having bourbon at the party? Yeah. Have two. Bourbon baked chocolate cake with a Manhattan beat into the icing. Topped with a cherry, of course.

Chocolate-Peanut Butter Chip Pretzel Cookies

Salty, sweet and crunchy. The only cookie I’ve found that goes with beer.