Super Bowl Sunday Simple Snacks

We're in for another great year of football. Which teams are going to stick it out and make it to the biggest game of the year? Only time will tell. The New York Giants beat out the New England Patriots in a close game this past season in 2012. Last year, Super Bowl Sunday 2011 saw the Green Bay Packers beat the Pittsburgh Steelers 31 to 25. It was an exciting game and a bit disappointing to Steelers fans (our family is a Steelers family). The Packers did an awesome job and the win was well deserved.

Super Bowl Sunday 2010 between the New Orleans Saints and the Indianapolis Colts was February 7th, 2010. The best of the NFL came together and hashed it out in front of millions of fans. The New Orleans Saints won the game to become the Super Bowl Champs for 2010. This game and all the playoff games for that matter, are the best times to gather with friends and family and get your game on by whipping out your favorite snacks.

Men and woman of all ages will be glued to their recliners and couches enjoying a good ol' favorite past time, American football. What about those Super Bowl commercials! That's the best part of the football game. Great commercials usually make their debut on Super Bowl Sunday. Look for them this year and check out the past great commercials below. The commercials are great and so is the game, but the best part of the Super Bowl Sunday is having friends and family over. You need to be prepared for hungry fans. Keep it simple and you're sure to be a success.

Every year at this time millions of guys and girls will meet at family or friends will sit back and watch the Saints and the Colts go head to head. The winning team of the Super Bowl, and their faithful fans, get bragging rights for the entire year. More snacks and munchies will get eaten in those few short hours than anybody should eat in a week. But, it's the biggest football day of the year. Fottball fans gather, and for those who aren't that serious about football, they'll be there for the snacks and the commercials and the fun of it all. So what kind of snacks should you whip up on Super Bowl? Luckily, it doesn't have to be super expensive. It's a big game day, but the snacks can be simple and easy to make and enjoy.

Of course, the buffalo wings and the chips and salsa are a given for any gathering where football fans just want to grab a plate, fill it up and get back to the important game. An estimated 11 million pounds of potato chips will be consumed on Sunday. That's only part of the incredible 34 million pounds of snacks that will be eaten before, during and after the big game. You don't have to go all out and spend a fortune, keep things simple. Put bowls or trays of finger snacks in and around the television viewing area. This way everybody can just grab a handful of their favorite snack and not have to take their eyes off the game. Instant replay is nice, but the live action is what it's all about.

Snack mixes, pretzels, wheat thins, crackers and cheese are good choices for simple snacks. Offset all the salty snacks with a few sweet snacks. Who doesn't love chocolate? Throw some candy kisses in a bowl. Also, the miniature chocolate candy bars are always popular. Any sweet candy will round things out. Candy is always a nice change from all the salty snacks on game day.

Don't forget about the healthy eaters. If some game watchers are still keeping to their new year's resolution, have some carrots and celery and low fat dip available. Get some low-fat chips, some fat-free ranch dip, and a vegetable tray. No need to crash a diet. There are always alternatives. Non-dieters can help keep calories down, too. On average the normal football fan will consume 1200 calories of food on Superbowl Sunday.

The kids are going to be playing football themselves running around and working up an appetite. Bake up some cupcakes and frost them with the colors of the teams. Sprinkle on some small candies and there you have it, another simple, yet satisfying snack for all to enjoy. Use your imagination and mix up your snacks. You want a few snacks that are salty, a few that are sweet, and a few that are for the health conscience. There should be at least one main item, like pizza. The pizza will tie everything together as the main dish. Did you know that frozen pizza is the number one purchased item at the grocery store for Super Bowl Sunday? No time to cook, call your local pizza place.

Add a few cold drinks to the grocery lists and your Super Bowl party is complete. You'll find a lot of people will snack during the game and hang around the tube when the commercials come on. These days the commercials on game day have become big business. It's great fun to watch the commercials. Most of the commercials are showing for the first time and businesses pay millions of dollars to their air time. If the past Superbowl commercials are any indication of the future ones, don't rush out the room so quickly when there is a break in the football action. After all the preparation, sit back and enjoy the atmosphere of the biggest football day of the year.

On Super Bowl Sunday, if you're throwing a party and having people over, you'll want to go all out and have a variety of foods and drinks, but you'll want to keep things basic and fun so everyone, including yourself, can get in on the fun and action.

Keep things simple and use paper plates, plastic eating utensils, napkins and plastic cups. Provide a variety of beverages and an assortment of goodies. Have an ice chest available and plenty of cool drinks and ice on hand. Don't forget the bottles of water and any adult beverages.

Photo and Recipe courtesy of About.com

If you love Buffalo wings, you will love this dip. All the flavors from one of America's favorite appetizers come together in a no-muss hot dip. Use canned chicken, rotisserie chicken from the deli, or your own leftover cooked chicken. Serve hot with celery sticks, crackers, veggies or all three. This could not be easier to throw together and tips are included for microwave, slow cooker, and tailgating.

Prep Time: 0 hour, 5 minutes

Cook Time: 0 hour, 20 minutes

Ingredients:

8 ounces cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup blue cheese or ranch salad dressing

1/2 cup any flavor Frank's RedHot Sauce

1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese or shredded mozzarella cheese

2 cans (9.75 oz. each) Swanson White Premium Chunk Chicken Breast in Water, drained OR 2 cups shredded cooked chicken

Preparation:

Heat oven to 350 F. Place cream cheese into deep baking dish. Stir until smooth.

Mix in salad dressing, Frank's RedHot Sauce and cheese. Stir in chicken.

Bake 20 minutes or until mixture is heated through; stir. Garnish as desired. Serve with crackers or vegetables.

Yield: 3-1/2 cups dip

Microwave Directions: Prepare as above. Place in microwave-safe dish. Microwave, uncovered, on HIGH 5 minutes until hot, stirring halfway through cooking.

Slow Cooker Method: Combine ingredients as directed above. Place mixture into small slow cooker. Cover pot. Heat on HIGH setting for 1-1/2 hours until hot and bubbly or on LOW setting for 2-1/2 to 3 hours. Stir.

Tailgating Tip: Prepare dip ahead and place in heavy disposable foil pan. Place pan on grill and heat dip until hot and bubbly.

Recipe Source: Frank's RedHot Sauce, reprinted with permission

Buffalo Chicken Dip Recipe Photo 2009 Frank's RedHot Sauce, licensed to About.com, Inc.

1 (15-ounce) package BUITONI Tomato Herb Parmesan Sauce

1/2 pound ground beef, cooked and drained

1/4 cup diced pepperoni

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

2 (8-ounce) packages refrigerated crescent rolls

Preheat oven to 350F (175C). Lightly grease baking sheet.

Combine sauce, beef, pepperoni and cheese in medium bowl.

Separate dough into 12 rectangles and press seams together. Spoon about 2 tablespoons filling onto dough along the long side of the rectangle. Roll the dough lengthwise, like a jelly roll. Cut each roll into 3 pieces. Place seam-side-down on prepared baking sheet.

Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, or until hot and golden brown.

Makes 36 appetizer servings.

Estimated Times

Preparation Time: 25 mins

Cooking Time: 15 mins

Nutritional Information Per Serving (1/36 of recipe): Calories: 120 Calories from Fat: 60 Total Fat: 7 g Saturated Fat: 2 g Cholesterol: 10 mg Sodium: 270 mg Carbohydrates: 9 g Dietary Fiber: 0 g Sugars: 2 g Protein: 4 g

Recipe and photograph are the property of Nestl & Meals.com, used with permission.

Use a simple sugar cookie reicpe or your favorite sugar cookie pre-made from the grocery store. Shape the cookie into an oval like a football. Bake as usual. When cool, frost with chocolate frosting, then add simple white lines to finish the football look.

Keep it simple here. You could make up a simple sugar cookie recipe or buy the refrigerated roll of easy to bake sugar cookie dough. Roll out the dough and stamp them with a football shaped cookie cutter. Once they are out of the oven and cool, decorate them with brown icing and a different color down the middle creating the lace on the football just like the professional football used in the game.

Found Photo on Flickr

Click here to check out this photo found on the internet. Credit here is to Glorious Treats on Flickr. Football Cookies Photo

Check out these great recipes below from BusyCooks at About.com. Just click on the link below and you'll see all these recipes and more. Make your Super Bowl party an event to remember. Go all out. Forget about the diet for a day. The guys won't mind as they'll be talking, yelling, and munching.

* Guacamole

* Rich Tomato-Cheese Dip

* Veggie Quesadillas

* Mini Pizzas

* Baked Artichoke Dip

* Barbecued Chicken Drummies

* Caramelized Onion Focaccia

* Beer Cheese Slowcooker Dip

* BLT Dip

* Buffalo Chicken Wings

* Spicy Crockpot Chicken Drummies

* Cherry Orange Snack Mix

* Layered Pizza Dip

* Layered Reuben Spread

* Layered Taco Dip

* New Buffalo Chicken Wings

* Original Chex Party Mix

* Original Original Chex Party Mix

* Crockpot Onion Meatballs

* Potato Skins

* Praline Cherry Munch

* Crockpot Snack Mix

* Sausage Cheese Balls

* Spicy Pecans

* Swedish Nuts

* Sweet And Sour Meatballs

* Gingerbread Caramel Corn

Whip up your favorite dip and chips and create a simple yet satisfying Super Simple Snack.

One of the top sports in America, football has come a long way from the rebelling college students who wanted to play a different type of game. With the introduction of the television (which greatly increased football's accessibility to more parts of the United States) and the merger of the NFL and the AFL, football games became the most-watched television program. The ratings were as big as the profits. The titanic flood of fan interest generated billions of dollars by the 1990s. These enormous profits eventually trickled down to the players' salaries.

If change was how football began, it is change that has kept the sport's popularity high. The rules governing football have continued to evolve throughout the years to generate fan interest. For example, rules enacted in the 1970s promoted the passing game while placing less focus on the running game. Passing became less risky, and the rule change altered the complexion of the sport. In 1994, a greater emphasis was drawn from field goals to the two-point conversion. The game of football will continue to evolve with the times and provide Americans and people all across the world with a fun and enjoyable athletic experience.

Source of data: Football.com

Superbowl Sunday is a great opportunity to have friends and family over for a day of munching on snacks prepared or purchased. Have a great recipe that you love to make during football season? Show it off with these cool set of Football Serving Bowls.

The History of Football:

Now, American Football originated sometime during the 19th century in England when a soccer player, frustrated at using only his feet to maneuver the ball, decided to simply pick it up and run with it. Although it was clearly against the rules of soccer, other players soon found the new way of playing soccer appealing and thus, the sport of rugby was born.

The new sport soon became a world-wide success that found its way into America by the mid-1800s. Played by many northeastern colleges, it was not long before Harvard University and Yale University met in Massachusetts in 1876 to formalize the rules to rugby that were similar to those in England. There were differences however: instead of playing with a round ball, the schools opted for an egg-shaped ball and the game's name was changed from rugby to football. To finalize the meeting, an organization called the Intercollegiate Football Association (IFA) was created to preside over the Americanized sport.

Football was still basically American rugby, much different from the popular sport we know today. Over the course of three years starting in 1880, Yale player Walter Camp eventually convinced the IFA to change a series of rules in football to create a game that is very similar to the one we know today. For his efforts, Camp is considered by historians as the father of modern football.

The Leather Heads are 10 Professional Teams by 1920

College football grew through the 1800's and was a league of its own until the beginning of the twentieth century when professional football teams began appearing. By that time, college sports fell under the newly-established National College Atheletic Association(NCAA) so the rules of professional football were derived from the collegiate organization's guidelines.

At the beginning of the 1920's there were more than 10 professional teams across the United States. Organizers from the teams decided to meet in Canton, Ohio to form the American Professional Football Association(APFA) which later became the National Football League(NFL). The NFL continued to change the rules of the game and the game of football began to establish itself as an all-American past time.

From the time of the NFL's establishment, football's popularity caught on with the general public. The games played by the Chicago Bears against teams like the Los Angeles Tigers and the New York Giants featured Harold (Red) Grange, the fresh-out-of-college rookie star who helped draw record numbers of fans into the stands. After the NFL divided into two divisions, the culmination of the best teams from those sections played the first NFL championship game in 1933.

As football became a favorite sport with Americans, many leagues followed the NFL in trying to establish their own franchises. The NFL's dominance was so pervasive that many leagues did not even last beyond four years. Under millionaire Lamar Hunt, however, the American Football League (AFL) was the only lasting follow-up league that was able to keep up with the NFL. Soon thereafter, both leagues fought to draft star college players, television contracts, and other perks generated from football's popularity. The NFL bested the AFL most of the time.

In another historic moment in football history, representatives from both the NFL and the AFL met in 1966 to agree on merging both leagues, but keeping the NFL name. Within the new league which actually began in 1970, two conferences were created that reflected the NFL's origins: the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference(NFC). From then on, the two best teams from each NFL conference were set to play a championship game (later named the Super Bowl. This practice started with the two champions from the NFL and the AFL.

After the Super Bowl is over and the house is picked up and things settle down, sit back and enjoy the Leatherheads movie and look back to the origins of the NFL and the football game as we know it today.

The character Jimmy "Dodge" Connolly is based on the life of Johnny "Blood" McNally who played for multiple NFL teams from 1925 to 1938. From 1926-1927 he played for the Duluth Eskimos and later won four World Championships with the Green Bay Packers. He is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. The film, in fact, is loosely based on the Duluth Eskimos of the 1920s and how they essentially saved the NFL. However, in the film, the team uses the name Duluth Bulldogs. This could be a reference to the Canton Bulldogs, which was the first NFL team and dominated the league in the 1920s. The University of Minnesota Duluth (UMD) mascot is also a bulldog, and their sports teams are known as "The Bulldogs."

In an interview on The Late Show with David Letterman, Clooney mentioned the plot is loosely based on George Halas's signing of University of Illinois football star Harold "Red" Grange. Grange was signed to a contract with the Chicago Bears in 1925, the day after his final game at Illinois.

The script was written by longtime Sports Illustrated columnist Rick Reilly and his former magazine colleague, Duncan Brantley.