The countdown to the Super Bowl has officially begun.  Honestly guys, I have never been a big NFL fan and I’ve never gotten very excited about watching the big game.  But a Super Bowl party?  Now that I can get passionate about.  I especially love food that you either have to eat with your fingers or requires tortilla chips as a utensil.

Over the next week, I’ll be sharing some new ideas to serve at your Super Bowl party.  But first, I wanted to dig up a few of my favorites from the archives.  For more ideas, click on button located on the righthand sidebar:

• Babalu Guacamole: Made tableside at Babalu Tacos & Tapas here in Jackson, this guacamole lists sun-dried tomatoes as one of its ingredients.
• Crawfish Beignets with Cajun Dipping Sauce: No doubt, this dish is uniquely Southern.  If you don’t have access to fresh or frozen crawfish meat, diced shrimp or crabmeat will make a good substitute.
• Honey Balsamic Buffalo Wings: My friend Emily will probably disagree that these are actually Buffalo wings.  These are not at all spicy, but rather they have a sweet, sticky, Asian flair.  Whatever you do, don’t serve them with ranch dressing.  According to Emily, who is a Buffalo native, ranch dressing is the eighth deadly sin.  As in God kills a puppy everytime someone unknowingly dips their wing into a vat of salad dressing.  The proper way to serve them is with bleu cheese.
• Parlor Market Smoky Pimento Cheese: Yet another nod to a Jackson eatery, this is definitely not the stuff you grew up eating from a plastic container.  It’s cheesy, it’s smoky, and it’s yummy.
• Zucchini Patties with Dill Dipping Sauce: Even if you don’t like zucchini, everything tastes better fried.  These light and crispy little cakes dipped in a cool, creamy sauce are no exception.

Now for some link love!  These are a few appetizers I’ve pinned lately.  Are you on Pinterest?

• Pizzadillas by Budget Bytes: A Fun and tasty spin on pizza, and easy on the pocketbook!
• Baked Polenta Fries with Spicy Lime Mayo by a Cozy Kitchen : I know, polenta is probably not the most traditional Super Bowl food.  But look at these fries.  How could you not want a whole plate full of them?
• Pepperoni Pizza Monkey Bread by Confections of a Foodie Bride: I have noticed this has gotten pinned and repined numerous times, so it’s likely you’ve seen it before.  It’s a savory take on traditional monkey bread.  Every time I look at the pictures my mouth begins to water.  I have to make this soon!
• Balsamic Honey Pulled Pork Sliders by Fake Ginger: I love pulled pork!  It’s one of my favorite things to eat between two slices of bread.  These not only look beautiful, but the balsamic barbeque sauce sounds amazing!

Last week, The Husband and I were lucky enough to snag a couple of tickets for a very unique event in Jackson – the first ever Bread Pudding Showdown sponsored by Eat Jackson.  Fifteen restaurants from the metro area came together and put their best pudding forward to vie for the title as Jackson’s best bread pudding.  That was reason enough for us to find a baby-sitter for Little Tot and make a date of it!

The showdown was held in the Gala Ballroom of the Old Capitol Inn, a very swanky bed & breakfast in Downtown Jackson.  As you can see, the room was packed with pudding lovers.

Everyone that attended received bread pudding official judge aprons.  Even the husband got into the spirit and put his apron on long enough to snap a picture.  I think we look like we are ready for our debut as judges on Top Chef.

Each judge was also given an official ballot.  The name of the game – visit each station, try their bread pudding, and after you are stuffed to the gills, cast your vote for Best Overall, Most Creative, and Most Like Grandma’s.

Chef Andy Cook at The Parker House in Ridgeland received Best Overall with their cranberry and white chocolate bread pudding.

Parlor Market’s “Lighter Than Air” bread pudding featured dried cherry anglaise and candied pecans.   No surprise they won Most Creative in addition to Best Table Decoration.

I do have to mention the bread pudding from Table 100.  Chef Payton Warren paid tribute to one of Mississippi’s most famous natives – Elvis Presley.  It’s common knowledge that the King’s favorite sandwich was peanut butter and banana.  I have also heard that he liked to include a couple slices of fried bacon in between those two slices of bread.  Chef Warren’s dessert featured banana custard bread pudding, a peanut butter mousse, caramelized bananas, candied bacon and Pepsi Cola caramel sauce.  I loved the creativity!  You can see from his table decoration that Elvis heartily approved.

The best part of the night?  The bourbon tasting!  You may not realize this, but judging bread pudding is extremely difficult work.  You don’t appreciate how filling it is until you’ve had three servings in a row and you still have 12 more to try.  Kat’s Wine was kind enough to bring several top shelf bourbons for us to sip on between tastings as we let our guts take a rest.  The Husband and I were particularly fond of Black Maple Hill 8.  I’m not a big bourbon drinker and I certainly don’t ever drink it straight, but ya’ll this stuff went down pretty smooth . . .

In the midst of pudding fest 2012, patrons also had the opportunity to donate to the Craig Noone “Rock it Out” Memorial Scholarship, an endowment in honor of Parlor Market’s late chef and owner.

For a complete list of the winners and the runner’s up, visit Eat Jackson.