Lawson's Top 5 Super Bowl Party Ideas

The Super Bowl in America is my favorite "national holiday." It's the one day a year the bandwagon and die-hard fans come together. Whether you're watching the game for the commercials or the win, here are some of my favorite essential ways to have a party pros kind of party.

1. Serve food with SUBSTANCE

Display a taco bar! This is perfect for meat lovers as well as vegetarians. Have an assortment of possible fillings: beef, chili, cut sweet potatoes, and black beans. Include toppings such as avocado or guacamole, shredded cabbage, sour cream, chopped onions, cilantro, and lime.

An emerging party food trend is meatballs! These Classic Italian Turkey Meatballs are perfectly satisfying.

Here is on of my all time have recipes.

1 small onion,

3 grated garlic cloves, minced

 1 large egg

 1/4 cup dried bread crumbs 

3 tablespoons ketchup 

1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves 

1/4 cup grated Parmesan 

1/4 cup grated Pecorino Romano

 1 teaspoon salt

 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

 1 pound ground dark turkey meat

 3 tablespoons olive oil

Add the onion, garlic, egg, bread crumbs, ketchup, parsley, Parmesan, Pecorino, salt and pepper to a large bowl and blend. Mix in the turkey. Shape the turkey mixture into 1 1/4-inch-diameter meatballs. Place on a large plate or baking sheet.

Heat the oil in a heavy large frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the meatballs and saute until browned on all sides, about 5 minutes. Turn off heat. Transfer the meatballs to a plate. Pour off any excess oil. Add the marinara sauce, about 3 cups. Return all the meatballs to the pan. Turn the heat to medium-low and simmer until the sauce thickens slightly and the flavors blend, 15 to 20 minutes. Season the sauce, to taste, with salt and pepper.

I like to whip up a zesty BBQ sauce. However, the brown sugar flavor at the store does wonders and it’s so easy.

2. Mix it up

Beer is a Super Bowl classic-- However, I like to mix it up. So, have some variety in your beverages! Display a selection of beers as well as a specialty drink to wow your guests.

Brewsky Sangria

2 Bartlett pears, peeled and chopped

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Four 12-ounce bottles lager, chilled

1 cup triple sec

Ice

2 Bosc pears, sliced, for garnish

Directions:

In a food processor, combine the Bartlett pears with 2 tablespoons of the lemon juice and process to a puree.

Slowly pour the beer into a pitcher. Stir in the remaining 1 cup of lemon juice, the triple sec and the pear puree. Fill pint glasses halfway with ice. Add the sangria and garnish with the Bosc pear slices.

3. Prepare for spills- physically and mentally

With the mixture of food, alcohol and cheering, staying tidy tends to slip from the guests' list of priorities. Thankfully, there's a way to keep your space clean without looking like a complete nervous wreck. Turn your coffee table into a football field by covering the surface in green turf you can purchase from a hardware store! If you're feeling extra creative, paint the white lines of the field!

4. Get creative

Recreate this delicious Bloody Mary Guajillo Salsa

15 guajillo chilies, stemmed and seeded

1/4 medium white onion, roughly chopped (about 1 cup)

1 medium tomato, stemmed and halved

1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

1 teaspoon sugar

2 cloves garlic

Kosher salt

2 tablespoons of vegetable oil

1 tablespoons of horseradish

2 tablespoons vodka

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

Celery leaves for garnish

Celery sticks, tortilla or vegetable chips for serving

Combine the chilies and onions in a medium saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a simmer and cook until the chilies are tender, about 20 minutes. Drop the tomato in about 5 minutes before the chilies are done. Strain, reserving 1 cup of the cooking liquid. Put the cooked vegetables, the reserved 1 cup of cooking liquid, the vinegar, sugar, garlic and 1 teaspoon salt in a blender, and then puree until very smooth.

Pour the chili-tomato mixture into a mesh strainer set over a medium bowl. Use a rubber spatula to help push the mixture through until only the chili and tomato skins remain in the strainer. Discard them.

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Ass the strained chili-tomato mixture and cook, stirring and scraping up the bottom frequently, until thick, about 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the horseradish, vodka, Worcestershire and some salt. Refrigerate until chilled, at least 1 hour or overnight. Garnish with celery leaves and a swirl of horseradish. Serve with celery sticks or chips.

5. Keep everyone engaged!

Depending on how big of a fan your group is, some can get a little too involved in the game and forget to socialize. Nothing gets a group full of football fans going like even more competition. Create a game similar to BINGO! Simply watch the game and commercials for appearances of the numbers and symbols on your card! Consider setting a prize for the winner!