Big Game Bites into Overtime
With the Saints season not quite living up to expectations, the city's eyes are now on Super Bowl LIX to be held on February 9 in the Caesars Superdome.
Whether Cindy Crawford's iconic Pepsi ad or former Miss America, and Miss Louisiana, Ali Landry's Simone Biles-style "flip out over Doritos," food and drink are famously tied to America's favorite sport and its biggest day. But times, as they say, are changing.
Inflation and grocery prices were obviously a hot topic during the last presidential election. So with consumers and fans being even more money conscious, the higher prices have made people even more efficient. The question becomes: After the game, what happens to the leftovers?

Chicken Cordon New
According to Wells Fargo's Super Bowl Food Report, between game day 2023 and 2024, chicken prices dropped while beef costs increased. Louisiana's favorite Super Bowl food, according to MarthaStewart.com, is chicken wings.
No matter which type of chicken is used—fresh or frozen, wings or tenders, spicy or mild—one favored practice is repurposing poultry into a much beloved chicken salad.
Allision Shapiro, the executive director of Krispy Krunchy Chicken Foundation (KKC), a Louisiana-based business with 3,000 locations across 46 states, says the company serves approximately 1.2 million pounds of chicken weekly. KKC's proprietary marinade makes it a unique, Louisiana-flavored dish, as does another Louisiana favorite, Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen.
British website Don't Go Bacon My Heart advises to combine shredded chicken with Greek yogurt, mayo, dijon mustard, and choice lemon, as well as red onion, dried cranberries, bacon, celery, and nuts to taste.

Double Dipping
One trick consumers are using is to make the most out of individual items that can be used in a variety of ingredients.
A family friend is famous for her seven-layer dip, which consists of refried beans, ground beef, guacamole, salsa, cheese, and black olives. All of these dishes can be used in other dishes.
Rouses, the closest to the Dome is located at 701 Baronne St., has a Mediterranean bar with a variety of olives, peppers, and cheeses. Using the seven-layer dip as a baseline grocery list, reuse certain ingredients such as taking the guac and using it as a spread on wraps or even in a Mexican-themed bowl. The olives can also be used to compliment a bleu cheese-based Dirty Martini Dip.
In addition to guacamole, avocados can be used in any number of ways, including freezing. Super Bowl fixture Tom Brady, a seven-time Super Bowl champion who is famous for his healthy diet, is a fan of avocado ice cream.
Also, if you really want to save on the energy expenditure, a Southern Living game day favorite is the tiny taco. So utilize the leftover seven-layer to fill tiny tacos, and the only thing missing are the shells themselves.

Bloody Hangover
Another use for the leftovers from vegetable trays and such is the ultimate hangover remedy—the Bloody Mary. Flamingo A-Go-Go, located at 869 Magazine St., soaks green beans, olives, bell peppers of various hues in vodka and serves a Bloody Mary, which sells for $9.
Also, the espresso martini—CNN Business dubbed 2022 the "Year of the Espresso Martini"—can also be used with leftover or fresh coffee. Lisa Hawking, senior vice president for the Distilled Spirits Council, says, "The convergence of two major US consumer trends: Americans' affinity for high-end coffee and cocktail culture" are behind the cocktail's "moment."
For those looking for the easy route, Ketel One makes an espresso martini cocktail, which retails at Target for $12.99.
The Cheese Stands Alone
Whether on pizza, another Super Bowl favorite to order, in a dip, or on a charcuterie board, cheese remains a lynchpin of the Super Bowl spread. According to Suzanne Fanning, chief marketing officer for Wisconsin cheese and senior vice president at Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin, over 20 million pounds of cheese will be consumed on game day, which equates to "1.7 million wheels of cheese—enough to create a cheese board covering [the Superdome's] playing field and all other NFL stadiums nationwide." Dairy Herd Management says, "No matter how you slice it, it is clear that cheese will be the real MVP of snacks."
Options for leftover cheese can also be cooked in a variety of ways, including, according to Food & Wine, grilled cheese with ricotta or even air frying burrata and serving it with pesto, marinara, or romesco, which can also be "double dipped."
Another fan favorite that can be dipped, spread, or sandwiched is pimento cheese, which is known as the "caviar of the South."

Waste Not, Want Not
Obviously, if all else fails, donations are always welcomed, especially in wintertime. After Swift made headlines donating $750,000 to Second Harvest, giving back is more top-of-mind than ever.
In Paris—another "Franco-metro" with recent experience in global events as it hosted the 2024 Summer Olympics—laws have been passed supporting the Ugly Produce Movement, which donates produce deemed not pretty enough to be displayed in stores.
Shapiro shares that KKC makes it a point to "deliver a hot meal wherever and whenever it's needed."

Go Local
With New Orleans being such an epic food city, our specialties, such as gumbo, red beans and rice, and jambalaya, will all be making an appearance. Each is, according to some, "better the second day."
Lenny Martinsen, regional executive chef of Sodexo Live!—which handles food and beverages for the Superdome, the Smoothie King Center, and the National WWII Museum—says that he "makes dishes that reflect the local cuisine, and those items tend to be the most popular."
No matter what your game day menu is, don't forget the Westbank-located Gourmet Butcher Block's, and John Madden-beloved, turducken, which is probably the best example of food efficiency in history.