The Super Bowl, or Another Excuse to Cook and Have People Over

Since my interest in cooking skyrocketed a few years ago, I have taken advantage of many so-called "Cooking Holidays." These include, but are not limited to, Memorial Day, The Fourth of July, Labor Day, The Super Bowl, etc.

Don't get me wrong, I am an avid professional football fan. I've followed the Green Bay Packers since I was eight years old. My interest has waned slightly as of late, especially with a new interest in Major League Baseball and the Phillies, but I never miss a season of Fantasy Football, and I never miss a Super Bowl.

That said, the Arizona Cardinals seemed like the unlikely underdog of the year. So why not throw a party? Drew, Nate, April, and I got to cooking. Alex and two of her friends showed up and we drank and yelled at the TV and ate massive amounts of food. Since I lack a camera, other than my Mac, I will post pictures of what the food would have looked like if it had been photographed before eaten:

(All images are approximate and look more delicious than actual result)



Nachos were first. We baked them in the oven with some pepperjack cheese and had a side of salsa (store bought) and guacamole (home made). They were gone in about 10 seconds. The guacamole was probably the best turnout of the day, courtesy of Mr. Carsillo. We scooped out 2 avocados, a bit of diced onion and tomato, some garlic, lemon juice, cilantro, and some spices. I don't know why I never made this before, it was delicious.



Next, my Super Bowl staple, Buffalo Tofu Strips. I used to love buffalo wings, and a vegetarian Super Bowl would not be complete without SOME sort of buffalo something. So, I cut a block of tofu into strips and fried it in oil. Then I mixed BBQ sauce, Frank's Red Hot, Butter, and Sriracha Chili Sauce (A Kleeb kitchen staple). Poured this mixture over the tofu and baked it for about 10-15 minutes.



As you can see, the above image is breaded. After the fact, I would have breaded these strips, but they turned out okay anyway. Next time I definitely will.

Last, but not least, homemade Jalapeno Poppers. I made these once before with Alex Katos and they were delicious. I think I got overzealous this time and tried to bread them with flour. Basically, we cut the peppers in half and scooped out the middle and stuffed them with pepperjack cheese. Then I rolled them in milk and flour and then breadcrumbs. However, the flour did not solidify and we ended up with powdery, spicey, cheesy nonsense.

Here's what they would have looked like if we were successful



Anyway, we got loads of PBR and yelled at the screen and got really excited for the Cardinals (despite being a Pennsylvania native), but in the end Pittsburgh prevailed. You can't really dislike the Steelers though, they're a great team. And the winning touchdown was outstanding:



Anyway, it's time to crack down on this transcription. I'm working from home, and it's grueling, but this money will take me well into March. Maybe some film crew work after that? Hoping to get in as a sound mixer soon.

Soon....