This weekend we celebrate America's 2nd largest food holiday - the Super Bowl. I'm could care less
about football or the Super Bowl, but I have to admit, it's a good opportunity for a casual, fun party.
Parties frequently have a lot of waste and unhealthy food. But they are also great opportunities for revamping your menu and decorations to healthier and more eco-friendly alternatives. And, they are opportunities to educate your guests as well.
Here are my tips for a green and healthy
Super Bowl:
Decorations:
- The greenest option is to skip them all together
- Martha Stewart made these wood-burned bamboo cheese/cutting boards on her show yesterday
- For a table cloth use green fabric or felt, white tape or paint 4 lines, and stencils or stickers for yard lines
- Avoid buying football-themed serving dishes unless you entertain all season
- Use cloth napkins instead of paper and find some in your team's colors. Or, use white and tie colored ribbons around them
- Use your reusable every day dishes & silverware rather than disposable
- If you must buy disposable plates & silverware use brand like Preserve, made from recycled plastic & can be used over & over and wash them w
- If you have a compost pile, consider compostable serveware
- Check out these fun DIY green Super Bowl decorations from EcoSnobbery Sux
Food & Drinks:
- Instead of soda, serve fruit juice with sparkling water
- If you are going to have soda, skip canned soda with BPA and buy a Soda Stream for healthier options
- If there aren't any local breweries near you, buy organic beer from your local liquor store
- When buying beer buy from local breweries to support your local economy & prevent shipping long distances
- Buy alcohol from a locally owned liquor store rather than your chain grocery store to support a local business
- If you're having a lot of people over, get a keg to avoid bottles & cans & their transportation . Kegs are reusable
- Instead of buying snacks from the grocery stores who brought them from far away, buy from local vendors & caterers
- Make sure your tortilla chips are organic so you're not serving your guests GMOs
- Popcorn with different flavors makes a fun, easy and cheap snack.
- Some of my favorite flavored popcorns are Chocolate-Orange Brown Butter, Basil Parmesean, or vegan Spirulina, or try some of these popcorn flavors
- Skip the microwave popcorn. It causes cancer. Make it from scratch & avoid canola oil-it's GMO
- This kiwi-jalepeno salsa from Jerry James Stone of Treehugger's Green Wine Guide looks like a fun & healthy option
- Serve healthy dips like hummus, guacamole, or Jerry James Stone's beet hummus
- Instead of ordering wings make your own from organic free-range chicken & bake or BBQ instead of deep fry
- A chili buffet is easy and can be done ahead. Keep it in your slow cooker. Depending on the size of your crowd, you could have multiple types, but make sure to have at least 1 vegetarian option. Put out bowls of toppings
- Do a make-ur-own soup bar. Have several different broths in slowcookers, & lots of chopped veggies, meat, etc. for ppl to make own
- Try some of these healthy Super Bowl party foods from the Healthy Voyager
- Check out these cute super bowl desserts
- Taco bar w/ warm filling in slow cooker is another easy, do ahead option for feeding a crowd
- Make sure your wine is organic too
- Take your left overs to your local homeless or battered women's shelter, directly to a homeless camp or to your local Occupy protest
Other:
- If your guests bet on the game, donate the winnings to a local charity
- Put out boxes or trash cans labeled clearly for recycling, compost & landfill. Designate a teen to be in charge
For more tips on hosting a green Super Bowl party check out these resources:
Mom's Rising: Green & DIY Facepaint ideas for Football Fans and 5 Tips to Host a Green Super Bowl party
The Fun Times Guide: Tips for a Green Super Bowl Party
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