This past year we celebrated Thanksgivukkah, when Hanukkah and Thanksgiving landed on the same day. A cornucopia of new recipes and products emerged.
Now, get ready sports and weather fans, this Sunday will be a day of revelry as two of the country’s most beloved pseudo holidays, Super Bowl Sunday and Groundhog’s Day, merge into one.
As the anticipation for Supergroundbowl Day builds, we can’t help wonder: Who will win the game? Will Punxsutawney Phil see his shadow? How will Bruno Mars fare in the shadow of seasoned greats such as The Who, Paul McCartney and Madonna?
Punxsutawney is about 300 miles west of the MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. Technically, die hard fans of both Groundhog’s Day and the Super Bowl could start off in the small Pennsylvania town on Sunday morning to see Phil come out at about 7:25 a.m., and then make the five hour drive to East Rutherford, just in time for the pre-game festivities.
People may be split on which team to root for, but everyone unites behind team Spring. Predictions as to whether the Seahawks or Broncos will win and predictions of when spring will actually arrive make for an exciting day, and we haven’t even begun to talk about food.
What does one eat on such an important day as Supergroundbowl Day? Here are a couple suggestions.
Seattle Fans: Start the day off with some of Seattle’s Best fresh ground coffee, and Dutch Babies. According to Sunset magazine, these huge popover style pancakes became famous in Seattle at a restaurant called Manca’s Café, who trademarked Dutch Babies in 1942. As the day progresses, enjoy fish and chips, wild-caught Washington salmon, Washington apple slices and caramel, and your favorite Seattle microbrew beer.
Denver Fans: Wake up in the morning with Denver omelets. For lunch, try Rocky Mountain bison burgers and fries. As guests arrive in the afternoon and for dinner, have a big pot of elk chili simmering on the stove. Serve with cheese-stuffed jalapeño peppers, and cornbread.
For both Seattle and Denver fans, complete your Supergroundbowl Day menu with a garden vegetable platter laced with edible dandelion garnish in honor of all groundhogs.
For dessert, try these delicious chocolate Punxsutawney Phil cupcakes: Bake cupcakes, frost and sprinkle with green sprinkles or toss shredded coconut in green food coloring to resemble grass. Add a bit of crushed graham cracker crumbs to the very top of the cupcake on top of sprinkles or green coconut to resemble dirt. Place a Teddy Graham, by Nabisco, into to top of each cupcake as if he’s peeking out from the ground.
Regardless of the team colors you and your guests are wearing, make sure to add a black top hat, to make your Supergroundbowl Day outfit complete.
Ha. Nice column, Jill. Here in Northern California, we don’t need the groundhog for reassurance, as we’ve had unnaturally warm weather for months, and the daffodils, cherry blossoms and magnolias have been blooming since the New Year. Best wishes to the East Coast for Phil’s annual appearance, and Happy Supergroundbowl Day to all!