Super Bowl Sunday

Before the Super Bowl begins, take some time to make the atmosphere in your living room comfortable and inviting. Select party decorations in your team's colors. Since I'm cheering on the underdogs (the Arizona Cardinals), my color scheme is black, red, and white. Cover the table or a side banquet in a red tablecloth. Place the sliders and sandwiches on a black tray and stack appetizer plates nearby. Cocktail napkins with a football print are festive. Fill beer buckets with ice and chill the beer. If you have bottles of beer, don't forget to have several bottle openers on hand. Serve the Jell-O shots in clear Dixie cups. Turn on football-shaped lights and toss a few red throw pillows on the couch. Beer koozies are a fun party gift that can be enjoyed throughout the game.

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When I think of the Super Bowl one drink comes to mind: beer. If you have a large crowd coming, consider getting a keg of your favorite beer. A keg should be ordered several days in advance and picked up the morning of the game. If your group is small, stock up on an assortment of brews and plenty of ice. To get the party going, make Jell-O shots. When guests arrive hand them a gourmet, mojito-flavored Jell-O shot. Instead of using the classic powder to make the shot, this recipe calls for gelatin, rum, and simple syrup. Start making the shots several hours before the game as they'll need time to set. Sound fun? Get the recipe when you read more

The ideal dessert for Super Bowl is something that can be made in advance: that way you won't miss a minute of the game! I prefer a deliciously decadent dessert that can be consumed without the aid of a knife and fork. Rich chocolate brownies with a layer of peanut butter frosting and chocolate ganache are so scrumptious they're sinful! Make the cake-like dish the night before the party to allow plenty of time to chill.

If you don't want to serve a chocolaty treat, consider lemon cheesecake squares — another Super Bowl-worthy dessert that's best made ahead of the game. Otherwise, for the brownie recipe, read more

The Super Bowl is this Sunday and to make sure you host the best blowout bash, I'll be sharing all of my ideas for an awesome party. To get things started let's talk about the menu. Before you select a bunch of dishes, think about the crowd you will be serving. Will it be mostly people who are invested in the game? A male heavy group? A mix of football fans and people who are simply there to socialize? Choose dishes that will accommodate this group. My crew falls into the last category with a variety of meat-lovers and vegetarians planning to attend.

For appetizers set up a buffet of store bought or homemade dips (guacamole, buffalo chicken dip, hummus, and artichoke crab dip are my favorites). As the main course, offer oozing grilled mozzarella sandwiches and cheesesteak sliders. No Super Bowl party is complete without a deep fried treat and guests will be delighted to snack on super crispy onion rings. To look at these recipes, read more

There were a few bright spots in this year's rather underwhelming batch of Super Bowl ads; a ton of other commercials were downright bad. But several just left me shaking my head, not sure what exactly I'd just seen. Here are my picks for the five most baffling ads of the night; what were yours?

Budweiser Select
It's possible I'm missing something, but what was this ad about? Jay-Z and former Miami Dolphins coach Don Shula played a chess-like virtual football game with their fingers while not drinking beer? I'm confused.

GM "Obsessed with Quality"
So a GM robot gets laid off after dropping a bolt, takes a variety of dead-end jobs, and ultimately jumps off a bridge — before realizing it was all a dream inspired by GM's quality-obsessed culture. The use of "All By Myself" as the background music was great, and I like a cute robot as much as the next girl — but with all the trouble the auto industry's been in recently, wasn't it kind of a bad idea to feature a spot where one of your robot-workers loses his job and commits suicide? Just a thought.

Three more, so read more

I thought it was kind of a weak year for Super Bowl ads, and so far, you seem to agree. Still, there were a few ads worthy of a second look. Here are my picks for the five best; what are yours? Tell me in the comments below.

Bud Light "Rock, Paper, Scissors"
Call me juvenile, but I've been laughing at "I threw a rock" for, what, almost 24 hours now?

Nationwide Insurance
The most anticipated ad of this Super Bowl actually managed to be pretty darn funny. K-Fed rapping along with himself on the tiny TV was fantastic.

Three more, so read more

When I first heard that Prince was playing the Super Bowl Halftime Show, I wasn't sure what to expect. After all, we haven't heard from Prince in a while, so it was equally possible that he would totally rule or just come off as a washed-up former rock star.

What we got was arguably the best Halftime Show in years: Not only did Prince actually seem to be having a great time, but he reminded us of the awesome talent that only a man comfortable in a sea-foam green suit can emanate. His voice sounded stellar, and he pulled out all the stops on the guitar. In case you missed it, here are the highlights from the show:

• Prince managing to look cool while wearing a little kerchief to protect him from the rain.
• A rockin' cover of "Proud Mary" with the glow-in-the-dark FAMU marching band.
• The back-lit silhouette of the artist playing a ridiculous Prince-symbol-shaped guitar in front of a fluttering flap of fabric.
• Plenty of improvisational outbursts, including air kisses and lines like: "Somebody take my picture/ with all this rain in sight!"
• A "Purple Rain" guitar solo in the pouring rain.

To see the halftime show in its entirety, read more

The network that airs the Super Bowl can try to give one of its shows a ratings boost with prime placement immediately after the big game. (It's what vaulted "Grey's Anatomy" into the spotlight last year.) This year, CBS has chosen "Criminal Minds," a drama about a group of elite FBI agents (led by Mandy Patinkin's Jason Gideon) whose unravel the behavior of notorious criminals and stop them before their next strike.

James Van Der Beek (aka Dawson) guest-stars on Sunday's episode, which focuses on a serial killer or killers who quote Bible passages before murdering their victims. I've never seen the show, but I'm curious to see how it does in such a prime time slot. Watch the preview here and let me know: Will you be watching?

Photo courtesy of CBS

On Friday, Pitchfork posted a new track from Chicagoans Common and Kanye West that may be the closet thing we get to a "Super Bowl Shuffle" this year. "Southside Super Bowl" melds the best of both rappers' styles for a very fitting tribute to their hometown. To hear the track, read more