Another season of tailgating has come and gone, but we still have one more night to get together with friends and family and pick a team to root for even if ours didn’t make the cut. Fred will be in Arizona at the Big Game for the third year in a row with one of his besties, Chris.
The two of them have made it an annual affair and in return, I get to go shopping. I will be hanging out with friends and making some of my favorite party appetizers and excitedly marking my initials in little random squares hoping that I picked the right one, so that I have even more money to go shopping with! It’s a win-win for everyone!
I’m all about simplicity folks, so these are super simple recipes that require minimal effort and ingredients, without sacrificing flavor. Here’s some of our favorite football foods…hopefully they will make it to your Super Bowl party, too!
ON THE MENU:
Sliders / Crack Dip / Crockpot Corn Dip / Turkey Ranch Pinwheels I Buffalo Chicken Dip / Sausage Dip / Cocktail Meatballs
SLIDERS
1 (3-5 lb.) boneless Chuck Roast
1 (18 ounce) bottle of your favorite BBQ sauce – a few of our family favorites are Stubbs, Williamson Brothers, Annie’s and Sweet Baby Ray’s
One (12 count) bag of King’s Hawaiian Sweet Rolls (found in the deli section at your local grocery)
Coleslaw for topping, optional
Place meat in slow cooker. Pour 1/2 of the bottle of BBQ sauce over meat. Cook on low for 6-8 hours or high for 4-6 hours. Remove meat and shred with two forks. Place on top of rolls and top with coleslaw if desired. Our family’s favorite easy and no cook coleslaw is a simple drive thru at KFC. A secret my mother-in-law taught me, but shhhhhhh!!! don’t tell her I told you that she doesn’t make it herself!!!
CRACK DIP
1 (16 oz.) container sour cream
1 Hidden Valley Ranch dressing mix packet
1/2 package bacon, cooked and crumbled (or for convenience use precooked bacon pieces)
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Mix all ingredients and refrigerate. This dip is best if you make it ahead of time, which allows the flavors to meld together to enhance the taste. Making it ahead of time makes life that much more easy and convenient! That way you can just pull it out of the fridge to take to a party or can even be made two days in advance if you are the host! Fred and I renamed this from the original “Crack Dip,” because what you feel after eating it is just like Porky Pig. You seriously can’t stop dipping the chips and shoving them in your mouth- it’s that good!
CROCKPOT CORN DIP
1 (16-18 oz). bag of frozen whole kernel corn (3 cups fresh or drained from two Green Giant Nibbler cans)
1 package (8 oz.) cream cheese, cubed
2/3 cup evaporated milk
1/4 tsp. pepper
Place corn in crockpot and season with pepper. Place cubed cream cheese on top. Cook on low 4-6 hours. I learned and adapted this recipe from my friends Suzanne and Georgia. They introduced me to this recipe back when I was single and it was our go to girl’s night appetizer. It is so simple and oh, so yummy that it made it into our playbook of family favorites. The fun part is that every time I make this dip it brings back so many special memories and that’s worth its weight for any extra pounds this dip may put on!
TURKEY RANCH PINWHEELS
1 lb. deli turkey (Boars Head brand is what we prefer)
1 package of thin cheddar cheese slices, halved
1 package of burrito size tortillas (whole wheat or spinach if desired)
1 tub of Philadelphia Whipped Chive spread
1 Ranch dressing packet
Combine Ranch packet and cream cheese. Using a knife or spatula, spread cream cheese mixture on tortillas leaving the edges untouched, as it will smear when rolled. Add a few slices of turkey on top of the mixture and then the cheese. Then lightly spread a thin layer of the mixture on the cheese. Beginning with the side closest to you, roll up the tortilla tightly away from you. At the very end, before finishing the roll up, add a dab of the mixture to help the tortilla stick together. Refrigerate overnight until firm.
I wrap mine in Reynolds wrap, but if you do not have any it will be fine as is. Taking out the rolls one by one, cut off the ends of the tortilla where there is no meat or cheese. Then cut the remaining roll up into 3/4 inch pieces. Place in Tupperware container and refrigerate until ready to serve.
I remember the first time I made these for Fred was for the New Edition concert at Chastain Park in Atlanta. It was one of our first dates and his best girl friend from college, Rand, was going, too. To say I wasn’t the least bit intimidated is an understatement! So, I threw on my Betty Crocker best and made these gems that Fred still loves to this day! SCORE!
BUFFALO CHICKEN DIP
2-3 chicken breasts (two cups), boiled and shredded
1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese
1 cup Blue Cheese OR Ranch Dressing, whichever you desire! It’s great both ways!!!
3/4 to 1/2 cup buffalo wing sauce – we use Franks RedHot
1/2 cup Blue Cheese crumbles
Boil chicken about 15-20 minutes until no longer pink. Remove from water and let cool; shred with two forks on cutting board. Combine all ingredients together and put into a shallow baking dish. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes until bubbling.
Serve with pita chips, Wheat Things or celery and carrot sticks. This dip can also be made ahead of time. If so, skip putting it in the oven and put it right into the fridge. Thirty minutes prior to serving or an hour before needing to take it to the party, follow the oven steps above to heat. This spicy and flavorful dip is one of our family’s favorites. A lot of recipes call for two (12.5 oz.) cans of canned chicken and yes, you can use that, but it’s just not as good. So, take this extra step and boil and shred your own chicken or cook it in the crockpot, so you will love it as much as we do! If you do choose to use canned chicken, drain and use recipe above.
SAUSAGE DIP
1 lb. Jimmy Dean original or reduced fat breakfast sausage
1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese
1 can mild Rotel, drained
2 packages crescent rolls, optional
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Brown sausage in large skillet and drain in colander. Mix in cream cheese and stir until it melts and is blended well with the sausage. Drain Rotel and stir into sausage mixture. Open one crescent roll package and unroll onto baking sheet. At the seams, use your finger to gently seal them, so you no longer see the openings. Evenly spread the sausage mixture on the rolls with a spatula leaving a 1/2-inch on the sides. Unroll the other package of crescent rolls and gently place on top covering the sausage mixture. Gently press the edges of the top and bottom of dough together and seal the seams again. Bake for 20 minutes until golden brown. Using a pizza cutter, cut into small squares. DEE-LISH!
**Crockpot Variation – this can also be made as a crockpot dip. Add two bags of Jimmy Dean pre-cooked sausage crumbles, one block of cream cheese and one can of drained Rotel to crockpot. When cream cheese is melted, stir and serve with tortilla chips.
COCKTAIL MEATBALLS
One 3-5 lb. bag pre-cooked frozen mini meatballs or one (2-3 lb.) regular size meatballs
Two (12 ounce) jars of Heinz Chili Sauce
1 (32 ounce) jar grape jelly
Place meatballs in the crockpot. Pour chili sauce and grape jelly over meatballs and cook on high for four hours. Stir and serve with toothpicks. I got this recipe years ago from my mom’s best friend, Margie, who is the mom of my best friend, Betsy. My parent’s group of friends host a Super Bowl party each year and I remember trying them years ago and it was love at first bite. I haven’t forgotten about them since.
What are you doing for this year’s Super Bowl? If you’re hosting or going to a party, I hope you’ll try one of these party favorites!
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