Good morning, readers! I'm sure many of you are either celebrating, mourning or (like me) indifferent to yesterday's Super Bowl events. I will admit that although I didn't have strong feelings or hopes for either team, it was impressive to see the Pats come back without much push back from the Falcons.
Now that that's out of the way we can discuss my favorite part of watching the Big Game: the grub. Yes readers, I am one of those viewers who only attends Super Bowl parties for the food, the commercials and (if I like the artist) the Half-Time show. Speaking of the Half-Time show, last night I think Gaga killed it. I have been inspired by her since I was a kid so it was truly amazing to see her perform with so much passion. She began with a somewhat political tone but it was done tastefully and without being preachy. Anyway, back to the grub. The party we attended had a lot of great food to choose from, mainly dips. There was a 7-layer dip, a crab dip, buffalo chicken dip (in my opinion it had too much blue cheese), a sausage queso dip, and the best dips of them all (yeah, I'm probably biased): roasted jalapeno pimento cheese and tried and true hot artichoke and green chile dip.
Roasted Jalapeno Pimento Cheese
4 C white cheddar cheese, shredded
2/3 C lite mayonnaise
4 oz diced pimentos, drained
8 jalapeno peppers, roasted
1/8 Tsp granulated garlic
1/8 Tsp granulated onion
Dash cayenne powder
Fresh cracked black pepper
First you will begin by splitting in half and seeding 8 whole jalapenos. After your jalapenos have been ridded of their seeds, ribs and split in half.
Before I continue I'd like to ask you if you've ever done anything stupid? I don't mean like misplacing your keys or putting your pants on the wrong way, I mean like absolutely brain-dead stupid? Do you have your memory in mind? Now, let me tell you about my extremely stupid experience: I have roasted peppers before and it is murder on your baking sheets. I just got shiny new baking sheets for Christmas and would like them to stay as pristine as possible for as long as possible so I had an idea, instead of roasting the peppers directly on my pretty baking sheet I'll line it with parchment paper! Sounds reasonable so far, right? Well, originally I tried roasting my peppers at 400 degrees for 20 minutes. I opened my oven after 20 minutes and the peppers were barely blistered so I had another idea: I'll move the pan to the top rack and put it under the broiler for 5 minutes instead! Here's where the stupidity comes in. The broiler is basically a giant open flame...paper is flammable.
Flame + paper = a real big problem.
I began smelling something strange...why does my kitchen suddenly smell like a campfire? That's weird. OH SHIT. I realized that I unwittingly set my oven on fire. There were flames leaping out of my oven! I was able to put the fire out quickly thanks to my husband grabbing a bowl of water however, my pretty baking sheet paid the price. There is now an outline permanently burned into the sheet to forever remind me of my immense idiocy.
Anywho, so NOT following my lead, maybe line your baking sheet with foil instead of paper and broil the peppers for 5 minutes until the skins are blistered.
Place the peppers into a plastic grocery bag to sweat. This process is important because it makes the skins easier to remove, also wear a pair of latex gloves when you peel to prevent spice burns. Once the peppers have sweat and the skins are removed, roughly chop the peppers and set aside.
In a bowl, combine all the ingredients and the peppers.
Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and enjoy with tortilla chips, crackers or a spoon.
My other dip I've made every year for the Super Bowl and it always receives rave reviews! Find the recipe here. The dip is tangy, creamy, chunky and is amazing on fresh pita bread (or in a grilled cheese. Oh damn, I know what I'm eating for dinner tonight!)
Well readers, I hope you enjoyed your own Superb Owl Party and maybe you'll keep these excellent recipes in mind for the next time you need an exorbitant amount of dips.
Both were tasty
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