Getting Super Bowl Ready

We are having some friends over for the Super Bowl.  I'm looking forward to opening our home to friends again, as well as the opportunity to make a couple of my favorite dishes. It's funny - when I lived in the South, I found myself experimenting with dishes that weren't typically southern.  I was always looking for something different.  But now that we aren't there anymore, I find myself going back to those old southern recipes that have become so familiar to me.  I think that when I open my home to others I want to share a bit of who I am, and my food is a way of doing that.  So without further hesitation... here is the menu I've picked.  (I have linked either to the exact recipe I use or one very similar and I will tell you the changes I make...if you know me, you know I never follow a recipe!)
Our guests are brining some appetizers such as pigs in a blanket, hummus and veggies and some fruit.
Here is what I am serving:
1. Texas Caviar - This recipe is a little more complicated than mine.  I leave out the black eye peas, double the black beans, add a can of diced tomatoes with green chiles (I rinse everything I use that is canned) I leave out the jalopeno (because of the kids) and only use a green bell pepper b/c I am cheap and red bell peppers cost more - HA!

2. Buffalo Chicken Dip - This has become a favorite of my family  - we serve it with tortilla chips and celery. I prefer the celery! The only change is I rarely add the ranch dressing... sometimes I season some dry ranch in the cream cheese, but sometimes I don't even do that and guests still love it!

3. Brownies - I use the Betty Crocker Hershey mix that you can buy at Sam's Club.  It is truly the best brownie I've ever tasted! I love to top them with this to die for chocolate icing and we are good to go.

4. Banana Pudding - the only "unsouthern" thing I do with my banana pudding is top it with homemade whipping cream.  My kids prefer that...and I don't love making meringue. So it's a win win.  I literally use the recipe from the Nilla Wafers box. For my whipped topping, I put heavy whipping cream in my stand mixer and start it on low, I slowly add in powdered sugar, 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla and a pinch of salt until I like the sweetness.  If I am using a cup of whipping cream, that is usually about 2-3 tbs of powdered sugar.

I'm definitely thinking of an adult beverage to serve as well.  This article is full of some really good ideas  - but I haven't made my decision yet. I will have to get back to you with that decision.  Until then, GO PANTHERS!