How to Impress Your Friends with Insane Super Bowl Food Creations

The commercials. The halftime show. The office betting pool. The copious amounts of beer and pizza. These all are quintessential parts of the Super Bowl.

Oh—and there’s supposedly a football game, too. Cool.

Arguably the biggest sporting and TV event of the year, Super Bowl traditions render this American ritual an official holiday on the calendar. If you’re not hosting a watch party, chances are you’re attending one, and the food and drink will be as central to the event as a strong satellite signal. In fact, the USDA says we eat more food on Super Bowl Sunday than any other day of the year, excluding Thanksgiving. While there’s nothing wrong with making it easy by ordering a bunch of pizzas—after all, Americans ordered around the area of 12.5 million pizzas last Super Bowl—or bringing over chips and dip, you should aspire this year to make your Super Bowl food contributions the Instagram-worthy talk of the town.

The key to get everyone ooh-ing and ahh-ing and snapping pictures is to either create an amazing visual display or devise the most calorie-laden bomb in the world. That being said, it’s not just about making the world’s most loaded nacho tray or going super avant-garde with a mega sushi boat. Your contribution still needs to be football-themed, whether it’s dyeing everything team colors or fashioning foods into stadiums, helmets, or footballs.

Where to start, though? Unsurprisingly, the internet is chock full of photos of football-themed buffets, so much so that you could easily get overwhelmed by the sheer number of choices or get discouraged because you’re just not that artistic. Or have that much free time. Luckily for you, I’ve pulled together a curated sample of the best creations out there to get your imagination going, and provided some time-saving alternative recipes to inspire you to make this the Best. Super Bowl. Party. Ever. Just remember to take a picture before everyone digs in.

Inspiration #1: The Snack Stadium

Football Snack Stadium

Game Day Style

A mega snack stadium is like the Lombardi Trophy of football food creations, and there are a lot of them out there. This one’s a winner for the sheer height without the need for cardboard retaining walls. It’s especially functional as you can slowly dismantle the stadium wall’s french bread outer layer to eat the guacamole, black bean, and spinach dip inside. Extra points for the ingenious use of cheese for the stadium lights—isn’t the Super Bowl an evening game, after all? If you don’t have the time, money, or energy to build such a behemoth, create a stadium with walls and fans made of anything dippable—bread, baby carrots, whatever—and build it only one layer high. Now you’ve got your local suburban stadium, and there’s nothing wrong with that.

Sandwich Stadium

Instagram

Prefer to make your stadium a meal instead of a snack? It’s hard to tell how tall this monster is, but it impressively has more than just chips and dip: Hoagie retaining wall, mini pizzas in the stands, pigs in a blanket, and more. Pity the poor guest who would show up with salsa and a bag of chips to this party.

Jello Shot Stadium

Kegworks

This may be easier to put together than a food snack stadium, but I hope whoever designed this one has a lot of people at their party or it could get dangerous. Then again, a host could get creative and put non-alcoholic Jell-O in there…or pudding…or cupcakes… hmm, the ideas are endless. Get the recipe.

Edible Football Stadium

A Cozy Kitchen

Does the thought of even attempting one of the above stadiums make you break out in a cold sweat? Then this football stadium is perfect for you, along with the rest of us who have jobs and lives and budgets. With easy assembly materials you can be assured that after your modest party of ten people leave, all of the food will be gone, too. Get the recipe.

Inspiration #2: The Giant Cheese Ball

Pepperoni Pizza Football Cheese Ball

Mom on Timeout

Nothing says “I hate my arteries” quite like a football-sized ball of cheese. And there are a lot of jumbo cheese balls out there. Cheese is so malleable, when put together the right way it’s easy to mold into a football shape. This one takes the delicious ridiculousness a step further and encrusts the entire thing in pepperoni. And that’s after the cheese is mixed with bacon. It’s like a triple-cheese pepperoni pizza without the crust. If you’ve got guests fighting over whether to get a pepperoni or cheese pizza, this will satisfy them both. The best news? It’s easy to make. Get the recipe.

Chocolate Chip Football Cheese Ball

Mom Endeavors

Have enough savory foods? Go for the dessert cheese ball. Instead of tangy cheese, this one is based in sweeter cream cheese. And since for some reason the cheese can’t be appreciated on its own, this one is also encrusted in a topping: chocolate chips. Nilla wafers serve as utensils. Get the recipe.

Inspiration #3: Anything Else Shaped Like a Football-Related Thing

Handheld Football Seven Layer Dip

Cupcake Project

Truthfully, anything football-shaped will win you at least a pat on the back from your guests for creativity. The recipe for this compact football-shaped dip says you should cut into it with a fork and knife, but go for gluttony gold and just chow down on it like a sandwich. Between the seven layers of crunchy cornmeal, the black beans, refried beans, and more, this will impress your guests and put them into a food coma all in one fell swoop. Their diet can re-start tomorrow. Get the recipe.

Chocolate-Covered Football Strawberries

Plain Chicken

If you’re going for a more elegant football theme than just plain gluttony, chocolate-dipped strawberries are a winner. It’s super convenient that the strawberries are already sort of football shaped, so all you need to do is dip and decorate. Get the recipe.

Football Stadium Cookies

Bake at 350

If you’re been making a lot of football-shaped things and are tired of staring at oblong foods, or just want an easier shape, these stadium cookies are for you. Use store-bought shortbread cookies or make your own. You could even go crazy and make a giant cookie with every yard line drawn out. Sprinkles, icing, and square corners: It’s a recipe for success. Get the recipe.

Salted Beer Soft Pretzel Footballs

Hungry Happenings

Beer? Pretzels? Beer pretzels? Winner. Amazingly, these nifty looking football-shaped pretzels are only made with four ingredients, and you don’t even have to make the dough from scratch. They’ll take you a bit of time, but it’s a fun hand-held themed food that will impress your guests. Get the recipe.

Watermelon Football Helmet

Watermelon.org

Okay, fine, I’ll put something healthy in here, though it’s an anathema to Super Bowl traditions. Fill with whatever fruit you like. You’ll need strong carving skills, but the result will be centerpiece worthy. Luckily this recipe has a how-to video to help you along. And hey, at least it’s not shaped like a football. Get the recipe.

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Will Virtual and Augmented Reality Change the Food Industry?

Daydream Labs

You’re probably sick of hearing about how virtual and augmented reality will be the next big thing. Headlines declaring its revolutionary ascent have seemed excessive and hyperbolic, but you’ve got to admit this new technology has a lot of potential to shift how we’re able to perceive the world. (Even if it’s yet to have a mainstream moment beyond Father John Misty rhyming “Oculus Rift” with “Taylor Swift.”)

One unexpected area that AR and VR could have a major impact is in the food industry. And believe it or not, your kitchen may already contain some creepily fascinating augmented and/or virtual experiences.

Play with your food

Marketers are already tapping into your ability to interact with basic household foods in a more playful, even game-ified way. Take cereal, for instanc. Nestlé managed to print an AR game on 26 million cereal boxes, featuring characters from the children’s movie “Rio.” By utilizing a webcam, players can try to feed a cartoon bird by tipping their hand to fill a bowl. Sounds like a recipe for spilling to me!

Walmart and Kraft have also joined forces to create scannable labels featuring tips, recipes, and contest entry forms to meet country singer Brad Paisley. (I guess he really likes cheese singles? )

And in a far creepier twist, the Treasury Wine Estates has a line of 19 wines, each of which feature a criminal on the label. Their latest app allows you to bring those convicts to life. Because sure, who doesn’t want to be taunted by a notorious murderer while under the influence?

These may all seem like short-term marketing gimmicks—and they definitely are—but at the consumer level, it’s the most direct way for customers to engage with products, in hopes of increasing brand loyalty. However there are most significant implications for AR and VR in the culinary world, beyond  interacting with the ghost of criminals while sipping merlot.

Actually learn a culinary skill

VR could be an incredibly easy way to streamline employee training in the food industry. From learning how to operate fancy coffee machines to mastering the art of noodles, virtual reality can actually teach you real-world skills. Software engineers at Daydream Labs are already helping people perfect their espresso pull and tech company Klip Collective has helped train employees at Philadelphia’s Honeygrow restaurant chain using some fascinating devices.

By recreating all sorts of scenarios and locations, often from under the hood of a helmet, chefs and amateurs alike gain access to a variety of situations they might encounter and can adapt accordingly. They can also practice these skills in a low pressure, digital environment, gaining confidence on their way to preparing an actual meal.

Home cooks can also get in on the action. Augmented reality is shockingly effective at showing what food should look like in ways that go beyond photograph. For example, if you’re baking a cake, how tall should it be? And what should the layers actually look like from a scaled perspective? This is where Romain Rouffet comes in. He’s a self-professed “3D scanning enthusiast” who has captured every layer of a banoffee (banana and toffee) pie in three dimensions.

Banoffee recipe
by R0m1R
on Sketchfab

Viewers can click and drag their mouse around to view the delicious dessert from every angle, ensuring their versions come out just as evenly. The same technology can also be used to help estimate more realistic and healthy portion sizes. Here’s hoping it’s only a matter of time before all recipes are accompanied by such augmented, in-depth models.

When can we taste VR food?

While we can’t eat virtual food just yet, Patrón will still give you a tour of their hacienda. You can explore their estate and the Tequila-making process with their new app. Con: no buzz. Pro: no hangover!

Also the world’s most expensive restaurant does offer VR broccoli for a mere $2,000. I’m not sure what stage of late capitalism blowing two grand on fake vegetables qualifies as, but I’m sure it’s being worked into the next season of “Black Mirror” as I type this.

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Easy Mexican Chicken and Rice Soup

This is my mother-in-law’s chicken soup. She is of Mexican descent and her soup is held in high esteem in our household.

As soon as the cold weather arrives, this soup goes into the weekly rotation. We never get tired of having it on the menu!

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Sheet Pan Pizza with Roasted Cauliflower and Greens

I’ve played around a lot with homemade pizza over the years — making this dough and that dough, trying thin crust pizzas on a baking stones and the backs of baking sheets, baking pizzas for one and pizzas for four.

But sheet pan pizza is my new best friend! And it can be yours, too.

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No-Knead Whole Wheat Pizza Dough

This no-knead pizza dough is laughably easy. Just whisk flour, yeast and salt in a bowl, add water and stir. Let rise, covered, overnight, and make your pizza. That’s it.

My recipe is based on the no-knead bread recipe originally developed by Jim Lahey at the Sullivan Street Bakery in New York City. Here, I’ve added whole wheat flour to up the nutritional value and modified the amounts to make a dough that’s perfectly proportioned for making sheet pan pizza.

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What Is the Difference Between Balsamic and White Vinegar?

Vinegar is seemingly everywhere these days: Red wine vinegar hiding in salad dressings, balsamic vinegar reduced into a glaze for your steak, a shot of apple cider vinegar for whatever ails you, and white vinegar sprayed onto windows for that streak-free shine. Umpteen types line store shelves for your shopping pleasure, making home cooks fret as much about the best vinegar for their next cooking adventure as they do about which salt is best for seasoning.

It’s super easy to fall down the rabbit hole of each individual vinegar varietal as well. What’s the difference between the $100 and $10 bottles of balsamic? Is white wine vinegar the same as white vinegar? Here, we’ll help dig you back out of the rabbit hole with an easy how-to guide to differentiate between two of the most popular types of vinegars: balsamic and white.

What is balsamic vinegar?

Shutterstock

At its core, balsamic is a grape-based vinegar. Despite its deep, reddish-brown hue, balsamic is made from pressed white grapes, called must, which are traditionally Italian grapes such as Trebbiano. In the most classic Modena style, the must is boiled down to a thick syrup then put into wooden kegs to age. Each year the syrup is transferred into successively smaller kegs as moisture evaporates, concentrating the flavor even further. These traditionally made and highly regulated balsamics age for a minimum of 12 years, but some are aged for 25 years and there are even those that are aged for up to 100! The final product is a thick, viscous syrup with a concentrated flavor — not the kind of thin balsamic that you would pour over your salad. These curated liquids are designed for either drinking straight or drizzling as a finish over foods such as risotto and fruits. They are also the kind that pack quite the punch in your wallet: A bottle—which you can identify by the description “Aceto Balsamico Tradizionale” and a D.O.P. stamp certifying its quality, style of production, and origin—can cost upwards of $100 for three ounces.

But fear not: As your supermarket shelves will show you, there are more affordable and versatile options at your disposal. Reach for a balsamic with an I.G.P. label, which is also certified as balsamic but not under the same strict regulations as a D.O.P. batch. I.G.P. balsamics are still made with grape must, but aren’t aged the same way and probably also have either a little wine vinegar to increase the acidity or other additives, such as thickeners or coloring agents. To see how pure your bottle is, simply check the label: If grape must is the only ingredient, you’ve got a high quality, more pure bottle. Vinegar on the label is okay, but if it’s listed first before the grape must, then your bottle is less pure and probably has a more sharp, tangy flavor. In any case, your I.G.P. bottle is what you’ll want to use for salad dressings, stews, reductions, and other common balsamic uses. You can easily create a rich balsamic syrup by reducing a cup of I.G.P. in a saucepan over a long slow simmer.

What is white vinegar?

Shutterstock

If you were to walk in a stranger’s house and guess one type of vinegar they might have in their pantry, white vinegar would be a safe bet. A great vinegar to use from pickling to cleaning, white vinegar can do quite a lot. Be careful though: Many people will confuse white vinegar with white wine vinegar, which aren’t the same. White wine vinegar is made from…wait for it…white wine. Easy! However, white vinegar is made with acetic acid, which is derived from grain or grain alcohol. Simply diluting the acetic acid with distilled water results in a sour vinegar with a very high acid level ranging from 4% to 7%. Unlike balsamic, which has many different versions, white vinegar is white vinegar. The only difference would be in the strength of the acid, but that’s not anything you would notice while cooking.

Because of its strength, you’ll need to be careful how you use white vinegar. Remember, this stinky liquid is strong enough to clean counters and scorched pans. Unlike balsamic or white wine vinegars, white vinegar is not the stuff for drizzling in large quantities over your food. It balances well by using just a few drops to cut down on sweet flavors in foods like ketchup and barbecue sauce. However, if you have a large bottle that you want to use at once, pickling or fermenting will be your jam. In the end, these great varieties of vinegars, along with all of their brethren, are not only useful staples in the pantry but also the star of many recipes.

Balsamic Vinaigrette

Elizabeth Rider

Most of the time when someone says the word “balsamic,” you instinctively want to say “vinaigrette.” It’s the perfect ingredient for an effortless, healthy topping that once you make it at home, you’ll never want to buy the store stuff again. Balsamic vinaigrette is also super customizable: For this recipe, if you don’t have a great quality balsamic you may want to increase the honey; if you prefer it tangier increase the balsamic or add a little lemon juice to make it bright and tart. Use whatever herbs suit your fancy to make it your own. Get the recipe.

Balsamic Poached Pears with Vanilla Ice Cream

Cake Boss Baking

This delicious, delicate dessert is a marvelous demonstration of how something as tangy as vinegar can go well with a dessert. Poaching the pears in balsamic gives them both a gorgeous hue and the deep flavor of subdued sweetness all in one. Top with a little ice cream and you’ll impress whomever you serve it to, even if it’s just yourself. Get the recipe.

Balsamic Glaze

Add a Pinch

It seems almost criminal to put a recipe for balsamic glaze because it’s so simple it’s barely a recipe. However, if you need some guidance, this one works quite well. Use a better-than-average balsamic to cook down, and if you don’t want it too sweet you can actually make it without the honey. My favorite is to drizzle it over caprese (tomato, basil, and mozzarella) skewers for dinner parties, but this goes great over desserts, fruit, salmon…well, pretty much anything you can think of. Get the recipe.

Balsamic Marinated Grilled Flank Steak with Bell Pepper Relish

This juicy steak is a quintessential example of how balsamic can make an excellent marinade without rendering the food overly bitter or tangy. The marinade, elevated with brown sugar and marjoram, is easy to whip up before letting the steaks soak for a half hour. Remember to save some marinade for the relish. Get our Balsamic Marinated Grilled Flank Steak with Bell Pepper Relish recipe.

Easy Refrigerator Pickles

Gimme Some Oven

Love pickles? Don’t understand canning? Fridge pickles are for you! Using cucumbers, white vinegar, dill, and just a few other ingredients, you can turn cucumbers into pickles in your fridge in just a matter of days. Be sure to use canning salt, feel free to add sugar or red pepper flakes to sweet or sour them up, and enjoy anytime you choose. Get the recipe.

Vinegar-Based Carolina Slaw

The Spruce

If you’re into tangy slaws, or just want to lighten up on calories by avoiding mayo-based ones, a white vinegar-based slaw is just what you need. The acidity of the vinegar adds tang to the sweet ingredients and gives a little something extra to the veggies. This recipe adds a unique flavor with the celery seed addition. Enjoy as a side (with the fridge pickles, of course) to any dish, or top on pulled pork or tacos. Get the recipe.

Salt and Vinegar Roasted Potatoes

The Wholesome Dish

When I crave savory foods, nothing satisfies nearly as much as salt and vinegar chips, or dumping a bunch of malt vinegar on a pile of fries. Here, you get the same flavor in a homemade dish with fewer calories and preservatives. Apple cider vinegar works well here too in case your bottle of white vinegar runs out. Get the recipe.

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How to Make an Herbal Tincture

The word tincture has been used since at least the 15th century as a Middle English term derived from the Latin word tinctura, which means the act of dying or tingeing. Tiny, colorful bottles of tinctures are sold at virtually every lifestyle, health and wellness store, and farmers market but while the word itself might be popular in today’s health-conscious conversations, let’s explore what a tincture actually is.

Tinctures have been used for thousands of years throughout the world. They are essentially herbs, seeds, bark, flowers, or other botanicals that have been extracted in a highly concentrated form in a liquid which is usually alcohol, vinegar, or vegetable glycerine.

Tinctures are typically used for medicinal purposes but are also ingested to lift the spirits, calm the nerves, or encourage a good night’s sleep. They are typically diluted in another liquid such as tea or water or a few drops are placed with a vial directly beneath the tongue for quick absorption into the bloodstream.

Tinctures can be expensive but they are easy to create at home and make wonderful gifts for the health-conscious people in your life. Once you understand how to make a tincture, the recipe possibilities are endless. It’s interesting to explore how the combination of various herbs and botanicals contribute to good health and wellness, following the path of the ancient tincture enthusiasts who came before.

Shutterstock

Here’s how to make an herbal tincture at home.

1. Select the liquid you will use. It should either be a neutral alcohol such as vodka or Everclear that is at least 80-proof or for a nonalcoholic option, use organic apple cider vinegar. The reason for the higher proof alcohol is to prevent the herbs that are used from molding.
2. Sterilize a 16-ounce glass jar with a tight fitting lid by washing it with soapy water, rinsing well, and then heating it in an 200 degree Fahrenheit oven until dry.
3. Select the herb combination that you will be using. Coarsely chop the herbs in order to bruise them. This step will encourage the release of flavor and essential oils.
4. Fill the jar two-thirds of the way with fresh herbs. If you are using dried herbs, fill the jar halfway full because dried herbs are more potent.
5. Pour the alcohol or vinegar over the herbs until the jar is filled to the lid ring, making sure that the herbs are completely submerged to prevent mold or decay.
6. Screw the lid on tight and set your jar in a cool, dry place for two weeks for the infusion process to work its magic. Be sure to label and date the jar for reference. Every day or two, give the jar a vigorous shake to encourage the infusion.
7. Line a strainer with either a double-layer of cheesecloth or a clean linen towel and set it over a clean bowl large enough to hold all of the liquid.
8. Pour the tincture into the strainer and press the herbs gently to remove excess liquid and oils. The leftover plant material makes excellent compost.
9. Line up darkly colored glass bottles that preferably are fitted with droppers. The bottles should be dark to prevent natural or artificial light from spoiling your tincture.
10. Top a bottle with a funnel small enough to fit into its mouth and carefully pour enough tincture into it to reach about a half-inch from the top in order to prevent spillage once the dropper is placed into the bottle.
11. Repeat the process until all of your tincture is bottled.
12. Label and date each tincture and store them in a cool, dry place. They make excellent gifts!

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