Superbowl noms

In honor of the Ravens' big trip to New Orleans, we had a small superbowl party with a large spread of delicious noms! I made sure to have lots of Baltimore specials, including hot crab dip w/ old bay, Ravens eggs (see below), Natty Boh, Heavy Seas beer, Ravenswood wine (techincally form California but I feel like it counts), and Bergers cookies, along with traditional Superbowl foods, like veggie chili and (faux) wings 'n' things w/ blue cheese dressing. I'm including a few of my new favorite recipes from last Sunday's festivities below:

Chunky blue cheese dressing
Adapted from the Joy of Cooking
Note: the original called for mayo, but I didn't have it, and I really liked the result

Process the following in a food processor until smooth:

• 1-2 garlic cloves (to make 1t minced garlic)
• 1c low fat sour cream
• ~2T red wine vinegar
• ~1T soy sauce 
• ~1T dried parsley (or 1/4c fresh)
• salt, black pepper, & old bay to taste

 Stir in 5 oz crumbled blue cheese and process until desired consistency.

I served it with wings, things, and other crudite.

Ravens eggs
Adapted from a TV news story and this recipe.
Note: these didn't taste quite as good as regular Ravens eggs, but they were fun to have for the game.

Make 6-7 hardboiled eggs (I follow the Joy of Cooking instructions)
Remove the yolks and reserve.
Boil the white halves in 1/2 bottle Ravenswood wine (the Zinfindel has a good purple hue)
When the whites have taken on a good purple color (5-10"), remove from the wine with a slotted spoon and refrigerate to set.
Make the yolks with old bay - we mashed them with the following:

• 2T mayo
• 1-2T sour cream
• squirt mustard
• salt, black pepper, & old bay to taste

Assemble eggs and sprinkle with paprika to serve.

Legend has it that these eggs are good luck if consumed before the end of the 1st quarter and bad luck if finished after that. We debunked that theory on Sunday however - we left a few for the 4th and the Ravens still won. So slow down, folks!

Hot & creamy crab dip
Adapted from this recipe from the Old Bay website

Preheat oven to 350.

In a medium bowl or food processor, mix 8 oz cream cheese (softened), 1c mayo, 2t Old Bay, 1 squirt mustard until well blended.

Gently fold in 1 lb backfin crabmeat (we used fresh Virginia crab - delicious!)*

Spread this mixture in a 9" pie plate. Sprinkle w/ 1/4c grated cheddar, bread crumbs, more old bay, and chives to taste.

Bake for 30" or until hot and bubbly.

I served it with tortilla chips & crudite. I bet crackers, fresh french bread, and/or bruschetta would be great, too!

*The result of a small miracle: our neighborhood store had fresh seafood that day

If you want a less creamy dip, this other recipe from the Old Bay website may be a good alternative.

Go Ravens!!