Super Bowl party? Chili, wings, and rings!

It doesn't matter who's playing, what the score is, what new commercials are being shown between timeouts, how good the halftime show is, or whether anybody had a wardrobe malfunction. The Super Bowl game on television calls for some super food - and lots of it.

Try this triad of power-dishes that go together extremely well: Super Chili Bowl, Buffalo Wings and a Prayer, and Onion Rings Ă  la Beer. These recipes serve approximately six persons.

Buffalo Wings and a Prayer

This is a good dish that you can make ahead or even the same day with very little labor.
Ingredients: 3 pounds chicken wing drumettes (remove flippers from full wings, break rest in half); 2/3 cup sugar; 2/3 cup soy sauce; 2/3 cup canola oil; 1-1/4 minced garlic cloves; 1-1/2 tablespoon ground ginger or curry; 2/3 cup honey; 1/3 cup sherry (brandy may be substituted).
(1) Mix all ingredients except chicken in a large sealable freezer bag or Ziploc-style bag. Add chicken, shake bag well to ensure that wings are well coated. Then let the wings marinate in the bag in your refrigerator for at least 3 hours and as long as 24 hours.
(2) Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Put wings in a baking dish or flat aluminum tray and back for 30 minutes. You can baste as needed with the marinade during the baking process.
(3) Let cool slightly and serve.

Super Bowl Chili

This is an easy, throw-together recipe for a crock pot. It also can be done the day before or on game day. This is a relatively hot recipe, but you can adjust the heat up or down by adding or deleting peppers and onions.
Ingredients: 2 lbs. stew beef, boneless, in 1/2-inch pieces; 3 or 4 crushed cloves of garlic; 2 red peppers, diced; 2 jalapenos, diced (remove seeds if you want to cut the heat a bit); 2 medium onions chopped; 1/4 to 1/2 cup chili seasoning; 30-40 ounces red kidney beans; 56-60 ounces of whole tomatoes with puree; 1 can tomato paste; 1/4 cup sugar; 1 tbsp salt; 1 tbsp oregano.
(1) Brown the beef in a skillet.
(2) Combine all ingredients in crock pot; cover and set on High. Stir occasionally. If the chili seems not thick enough, remove lid for last 10-15 min. before serving.
(3) Ready to serve in 2-3 hours - be sure to have crackers on hand! Put the crock pot on low to keep the chili warm all day. If you need more than one crock full, make up a batch the day before and re-heat on the stove or in the oven while the second crock is cooking.
(4) Thick-grated cheddar cheese or oyster crackers make nice toppings for this chili.

Onion Rings Ă  la Beer

Ingredients: 2 cups flour; 1 teaspoon salt; 2 cups beer; 3 large onions, cut in slices of 1/4" to 1/2" and separated into rings; Canola oil; salt and pepper as needed.
(1) Combine flour and salt, then stir in beer and whisk or beat until consistently smooth.
(2) Stir in beer, and beat until smooth. Let the batter "marinate" for 2-3 hours.
(3) Heat salad oil in a deep fryer or saucepan (with oil 2" deep) to 375 degrees. Dip rings into batter and coat well. Fry in hot oil until golden brown (2 to 4 minutes).
(4) Remove carefully, placing rings on stack of paper towels to drain. Sprinkle with salt and/or pepper to taste. Serve immediately, or you can keep them hot and crisp in an oven at 185 degrees.

Enjoy -- and enjoy the game, too!

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