This is a print preview of "Mile High Super Bowl Party" recipe.

Mile High Super Bowl Party Recipe
by Lea Ann

I like everything about Super Bowl Sunday, the hype, the food, the commercials and most of all the excuse for good friends to come together over food and beverage. A good football game is the icing on the cake and the Saints and Colts did not disappoint. I’m so glad to see the Saints win.

Our house was the scene for the big game gathering this year and here’s the recap of our evening.

Let’s start with the finger food and the recipe “find” of the century.

We all love Kathy’s Jalapeno Shrimp appetizer. L-O-V-E love it. We beg Kathy to bring this to all of our gatherings and it’s devoured within minutes of being plated.

It’s simply a slice of jalapeño tucked into the crook of a shrimp, wrapped in bacon and then broiled. If all of those flavors aren’t wonderful enough you dip this appetizer into a delicious sauce. I’ll post the recipe below. It’s worth cutting and pasting it into your database and giving it a try.

No party would be complete without relish plates and no relish plate in this house is ever void of pickled beets and hot pickled okra.

Mandatory Super Bowl party dips, chips and crackers. Starting top left and continuing clockwise, Maralee’s delicious guacamole, and her home-made Sun-dried tomato hummus and olive hummus. Cauleen brought some wonderfully sinful warm crab dip that we gobbled down on some crackers and toasted baguette rounds. Thank you ladies!

Teri brought this WONderful salad. She said it’s very easy to make and it’s definitely going into my database to serve again and again. I don’t have the recipe. When she gets it to me I’ll make and post the recipe.

Since Cajun/Creole foods are some of my favorite dishes, how could I resist not serving a couple of traditional classics for my party.

Let’s start with my Muffaletta Sliders.

First of all, I was so proud of this idea. And I must admit they turned out pretty good.

How many of you have ever been to Central Grocery in New Orleans and had one of their world-famous Muffalettas? I’ve never found another as good. But, if you do it just right you can come somewhat close.

I’ve made my own olive relish before, but this time relied on a local speciality and fine meats grocer, Tony’s Market. Tony’s is a wonderful place and one of these days, I’ll dedicate an entire post about some of the items you can find there. We’re lucky to have such a fine market in our area and you can click on the logo if you want to take a quick look.

Tony’s makes a good Muffaletta, so when we purchased the deli meat for my sandwiches, we asked the deli guy what he would recommend for the tapenade. He recommended the same that they use for their Muffalettas. It’s pictured above, and it really was quite good. What I really liked about this brand is that pickled cauliflower is included in the ingredients. I can’t find pickled cauliflower in Denver to save my life. Thanks Deli Guy at Tony’s!

I really like Sara Lee Classic Dinner rolls for any slider recipe that I make.

My Muffaletta sliders were built with alternating two layers each:

Mortadella

Smoked Ham

Cotto Salami

Provolone Cheese

Swiss Cheese

I topped the each sandwich with 1/2 Pepperoncini pepper, veins and seeds removed, and a slather of the olive tapenade.

On to the Jambalaya. I’m naming my Jambalaya, “Who Dat Jambalaya”. The reason it’s Who Dat is because it’s a combination of three recipes. My Jambalaya consultants are:

Chef From Hell, my Blogger Consultant. If you’re at all a fan of Cajun/Creole cuisine, his blog is a must read. Some mighty fine recipes are posted over there.

I not only consulted Chef Paul for the Jambalaya but also made his Creole Sauce that he recommended be served as a topping to Jambalaya. Easy, delicious and I’m glad I took the time to make that sauce.

And then John Besh’s My New Orleans was a great source for the Jambalaya.

I’ve had my share of gumbos and etouffees, but I don’t think I’ve ever tasted jambalaya. What I made up was pretty darn good if I don’t say. Thanks to all these Chefs for the great recipes. And no photo, every photo I took was absolutely horrible.

Did I mention the beverages? I guess I didn’t.

The beer. A collection from local brew pub, Breckenridge Brewery Beer…thank you to Greg.

The wine. Dan brought a 2007 Columbia Crest H3 Cabernet Sauvignon (right). The H3 stands for Horse Heaven Hills. A highly rated Washington Cab and an excellent bargain at $13 or $14. Our Superbowl tradition is to start the game with a sparkly. This year we served a sparkling Prosecco (left) and then the filler (center), a good Black Box Shiraz

Happy Super Bowl..here’s the crew. From left:

Greg who brought the beer

Maralee, hummus and guac queen

Bob the hubby,

me, the blogger

Tom, the only Colts fan

Kathy, the Jalapeno Shrimp maven

Teri the salad guru,

and Dan wine connoisseur and chief heckler

This photo was actually taken at Christmas at Dan and Teri’s house, so we’re minus Greg, Cauleen and Conner.

As with any of our gatherings, Bad Santa is always looking over us. And of course, he’s a Saint’s Fan. Here’s the shrimp recipe.

1. Place shrimp and balsamic vinegar in a large resealable plastic bag. Refrigerate for about 15 min. Soak toothpicks in water while shrimp is marinating. Cut bacon in half, crosswise. Remove shrimp from marinade, reserving marinade. Put 1 piece of bacon on work surface, place on shrimp at the end, place one slice of jalapeno in the crook of the shrimp, roll and secure with toothpick.

2. Stir together mayo, chili sauce, pickle relish, red pepper and 1 T. water. Refrigerate until ready to use.

3. Broil shrimp brushing with marinade 2-3 minutes. Turn, marinade again and cook another 2-3 min.

Servings: 8

My Muffaletta Sliders are on their way to paradise to Deb in Hawaii for Souper Sunday. Is there a Pro-Bowl joke in there somewhere? I know, I know, it wasn’t in Hawaii this year Her Souper Sunday segment is chock full of great soups and sandwiches. Thanks for hosting this Deb.