We started the day with a nice antipasto knowing that more vegetables would be in short supply as the day went on.

Superbowl Sunday is all about the pacing of the food. And as the pre-game gets underway, we find we need a good snack. The most popular request were honey mustard pigs in a blanket. Who was I to argue?

Phew – finally made it to the kickoff. I made some chicken bites (because we didn’t want to deal with making wings) and crispy potato skins.

The chicken bites are a party staple at our house: just cube some boneless, skinless chicken breasts (or thighs work well too), toss in a stick of unsalted butter that’s been mixed with a tablespoon each of honey mustard and Worcestershire sauce, and coat in a mix of 2 cups of seasoned bread crumbs, 1 cup of grated parmesan and garlic powder and paprika to taste. Bake at 400 for about 15 minutes (flipping halfway through)

I have to confess we are potato skin purists here. They have to be crispy and thin. So I baked some russet potatoes, sliced them in quarters and scooped out the insides (I’ll use the extra potato for mashed potatoes this week, but potato bacon soup is another great option). When you’re ready to serve, brush the skins with melted butter and bake for 10 minutes to get them crispy. Flip them over, brush the potato side with more butter and bake for another 10. The final step is to top with bacon and cheddar and bake until the cheese is melted. Top with chopped scallions and sour cream and enjoy!

And of course we had to cap things off with a sweet treat (plus Valentines day is right around the corner). I made a batch of almond raspberry streusel bars in the morning to enjoy for the game and for the rest of the week. I may have sampled one out of the oven just to be sure they were fit to eat!