Super Bowl XLV 2011 Party Ideas and Recipes

Super Bowl XLV (45 is just around the corner. This year's rivals will be defending the gridiron, while their fans are guardians of the tailgate. Even if you're not a Green Bay or Pittsburgh fan, these Super Bowl party appetizers and decorations will make the game, and commercial watching, fun for everyone.

Begin with team-themed Super Bowl appetizers. You can take any basic tailgate favorite, tweak it, and have a team-specific Super Bowl party treat. Try Cheese Head Cheddar Poppers or Steelers Slammers. But to really impress your Super Bowl party guests, check out Polamolecule Canapes and Wisconsin Cheddar Tarts at HerbsdeProvidence.blogspot.com.

Polamolecule Canapes combine one of the Pittsburgh Steelers' Troy Polamalu's favorite foods, fresh Rainbow trout, with a spicy/sweet green tomato sauce and blackberries. Serve over a classic Southern corn cake for bite-sized appetizers or serve as your main Super Bowl dish during half-time.

Wisconsin Cheddar Tarts celebrate the Green Bay Cheddarhead's claim to fame - Wisconsin Cheddar Cheese - in a delicious, savory bacon and chive tartlet. Again, you can tweak these recipes to make larger portions or keep them as appetizer bites.

Next, work in your team's colors and symbols for perfect Super Bowl mojo. If your party guests fall on both sides of the tailgate lines, make everyone feel welcome by mixing things up. To up the competition level at your party, consider dividing the room in half. Use streamers to mark off one side as Green Bay (with green and yellow, of course) and the other as a black and gold Steelers' domain.

Create your own Super Bowl XLV cocktails. Use Jagermeister as the perfect green base for your Packers fans' drinks. Tweak your favorite Jagermeister bombs and drinks by giving them new names. For some Green Bay Packers' cocktails try:
The Matt Flynn: Mix seven ounces pineapple juice with one ounce Jagermeister. Serve on the rocks in a highball glass.
The Atari Party - Four ounces Mountain Dew Pitch Black with two ounces Jager.
The Green Bay Grenade - Mix six ounces chilled Gatorade or Powerade, any flavor, with three ounces Jager.

Pittsburgh Steelers' fans have their own list of Steelers Cocktails at About.com. Try the Steel Helmet or the Black and Gold.