PIONEER WOMAN, SUPERBOWL & SYNAGOGUE

I come from a long line of sport lovers. But my husband is NOT into sports of any kind, unless it’s The Olympics. Therefore he does not follow basketball, baseball, or football on a regular basis. He has no team in the game. Throughout the years... we’ve done a wide variety of things... on SuperBowl Sunday... to pass the time, while everyone else partied. But MOSTLY we did NOT watch the game, under any circumstances. Having grown up with sports as part of my weekend ritual, this no participation rule of his, IRKED me. I began to feel like we, as a couple, were on the outside looking in. CHAMPIONSHIP games were a BIG deal. I wanted to see them. EVENTUALLY, over the course of time, I got my husband to cave in. But... he had to justify WHY in his mind. We both LOVE the clever way businesses try to entice customers with their commercials. And since SuperBowl Sunday is when they UP the ANTE... we started to watch the BIG game, just so we could see the commercials and of course, the halftime entertainment... according to my husband. WHATEVER the reason, we were FINALLY watching... and that's all that mattered to me. For munchies, I would put out a bowl of chips, a fresh veggie platter, and that was it. But my hubby wasn’t happy with that. He wanted MORE. We couldn’t agree on what, though? He did NOT want to eat the same things I did. I was pulling out my hair trying to come up with a spread that satisfied us both. One complaint followed another, by him. I was FED up listening to it. Truth is... he didn’t really want to partake in this National Holiday of Sport, so he was being difficult... and THAT made me MAD. Football was something I always LOVED. So I snapped. "You take what you can get," I told him. "Or make your own." It got his attention. We made peace with each other. It was then, quite by accident… that my husband discovered that the local synagogue made CARRYOUT Brown Bag LUNCHES for Superbowl Sunday. It was their annual fundraiser. (The local churches did nothing.) Each meal included a DELI-STYLE Corned Beef sandwich, fresh potato salad, sauerkraut, and a mouthwatering dessert. My husband decided to give it a try. He LOVES his Corned Beef stacked high, slathered with brown mustard and a crisp dill pickle on the side. This Brown Bag Lunch fit the bill. It reminded him of his days growing up in the BIG city. So a NEW tradition at our house was born. For well over 20 years, my hubby has been going to Temple Beth Israel to get his DELI sandwich each SuperBowl Sunday. Thank you wonderful ladies for making my Chef duties easier and for keeping him happy, the past couple decades. I pass on getting the meal, myself...  no offense to anybody... because I HATE corned beef. Always have. Always will.  Therefore, I will be eating... Pioneer Woman, Chicken Wings with Blue Cheese. There will also be fresh fruit and veggie platters on the table. For the record, my husband NOW actually WATCHES the TEAMS spar. As for me, well I couldn’t be happier… I still ENJOY seeing all those TIGHT ENDS. That’s our GAME plan. What’s yours?