Grumpy potato. Photo: banger1977, Flickr

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• New York's openings and closings, calendar and benefits.

I've been smitten with these chicken wings from this hole in the wall place by my house and decided to photograph them to test using a new lens.

I was hoping to find that there was some special reason why these were called Male-Bonding Buffalo Wings, like they provoked conversation about feelings or hammers between men or they suddenly turned into a giant Playboy magazine, but they're just chicken wings. That's not to say they aren't great, I'm just saying don't expect anymore male bonding than you'd get from regular chicken wings.

Got that? OK. The recipe comes from the cool folks at Better Homes and Gardens. The sauce contains hot pepper sauce, melted butter, and paprika, and the dipping sauce contains sour cream, vinegar, blue cheese, and mayo or salad dressing. Full recipe after the jump.

What would a collection of SuperBowl dip recipes be without a little blue cheese, considering that it is held to be the gold standard of hot wing dips - excluding hot wing sauce itself, of course. Blue cheese (or bleu cheese, if you prefer) dip is made with a pungent, creamy cheese that cuts into the spiciness of hot wings by adding a new layer of flavor and a cooling sensation that dulls the heat of the chicken. The strongly flavored cheese, in most of these dips, is often combined with sour cream, mayonnaise or cream cheese, each of which contributes to the overall texture of the dip without bumping up the flavor to the point where it overpowers the hot wing itself.

This particular dip is a pretty standard recipe that you'll probably find in several different places. It calls for sour cream and mayonnaise in addition to the cheese, so "healthy" is not something that could be applied. You can always substitute low fat or nonfat sour cream/mayonnaise; using a good quality blue cheese will make up for any loss of flavor in either of those ingredients.

Yesterday we did dips during the cookbook of the day, but we all know that dips aren't much good without something that needs dipping. Chips, crackers and crudite are all good options, but when it comes to sports, hot wings should be a game day staple. Wings Across America: 150 Outrageously Delicious Chicken-Wing Recipes: 150 Outrageously Delicious Chicken Wings Recipes is a cookbook that serves up more than enough recipes for chicken wings to get you through this season and next.

The wing recipes in the book go much farther than you might expect them to in terms of flavor, with recipes from not only all over the country, but from around the world as well. You'll find the classic Buffalo hot wings, as well as Cajun-style wings, and heat levels that range from mild to fiery hot. The better-traveled wings use a combinations of spices and sauces from the Caribbean, Italy and Mexico, with some Asian flavors thrown in for good measure. There are plenty of dips and butters that go perfectly with the wings, as well as a variety of wing-complementing side dishes and salads. Many of which, like the Yummy Beer Battered Onion Rings, are deep fried.

And just in case the massive number of wing recipes still can't tempt you to get into the kitchen and make your own batch, the book includes a section on "wing joints," so you'll be able to track some already made ones down.

Fall is the time for football. And with football comes food like buffalo wings, sausages, pizza, and potato chips. And while most guys (and gals - yes, I know you're football fans too) go for cold beer with their football viewing, don't forget that you can also drink wine with these foods too.

The Boston Phoenix asked the owners and beverage managers of several Boston restaurants for their picks for the best wine to serve with football food. If you're serving spicy wings, Josh Childs at the Silvertone Bar & Grill suggests a California zinfandel from or a syrah from the Rhone region of France (or, for a contrast, a German riesling). For nachos, a sparkling white.

Bill Earle at Bouchee' says that if you're serving chili, he'd suggest a California zinfandel, for the rich fruit and the spice to go with the hotness in the chili. And for hearty sausages? Kate Smith at Butcher Shop suggests a pinot gris or a gewuztraminer or a riesling.

But wait: pizza is missing from this list! I'd say pizza is eaten more while watching football than sausages or wings. Suggestions, readers?

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• More recipes: Gingery Sugar Snaps, Fresh Ginger Tea, Meat-Stuffed Peppers, and Buffalo Wings.

With football season starting up, you might want a few new ideas for snack foods because even though we all know that you're not supposed to be chowing down on munchies in front of the TV, it's probably going to happen when you have friends over and are watching your college football on ESPN. Wing It!: Delectable Recipes for Everyone's Favorite Bar Snack is a book devoted entirely to chicken wings - with an eye on snacking, of course. The recipes range from those you're probably familiar with already, like Classic Buffalo Wings, and ones that use some international flavors, such as Grilled Coconut Wings with Thai Peanut Dipping Sauce. Some of the recipes are battered in some way, while others are not, and a few make use of an alternative coating, like the Mexican-Style Tortilla Chicken Wings, which use tortilla chips to create a crispy coating. There are quite a few barbecued wings with delicious-sounding sauces, as well. Speaking of sauces, there are also a number of recipes for dips, so you won't have to be stuck with bottle bleu cheese or ranch on the side every time you serve the wings.

Spicy is probably the most popular way to make a chicken wing, with the Buffalo-style leading the flock. However, there's more than one way fly. And fry. Most of chicken wings taste great either grilled or deep-fried (my preference) then simply tossed, while still hot, with a sauce. To start, deep fry cleaned and dried wings in oil over medium heat, about 5-6 minutes. Then, use one of the following:

• Original Buffalo wings - For every pound of wings, mix 2 Tbsp. melted butter, 1 Tbsp Franks RedHot Sauce, and a dash of cider vinegar. Serve wings with Blue cheese dressing and celery sticks.
• Asian Spice - mix 1 Tbsp. sesame oil, 1 Tbsp soy sauce, 1 Tbsp chili sauce (sriracha or sambal) and 1 Tbsp sugar. Toss sauce with chicken wings.
• Barbecue - many people marinate meats in barbecue sauce before grilling or broiling. However, I prefer a fairly sweet barbecue sauce, which would end up burning too quickly. Instead, I grill wings that have been seasoned lightly with salt and pepper and lightly oiled with olive oil, then leave a barbecue sauce out for dipping.
• Italian Fried - Just like making oven-fried chicken, dip each wing in melted butter, then coat the wings with bread crumbs that have been generously seasoned with dried basil, oregano and Parmesan cheese. These wings are baked in an oven at 400 degres for 40 minutes. I love to serve these wings with fried mozzarella sticks and marinara sauce for dipping.

Anything you do to the rest of the whole chicken, you can do to the wings. Tandoori? Terikyaki? The options are endless.