Super Bowl Special (2014)

Val's Version

(Denver, CO)

Super Sunday is one of my most absolute favorite days of the year!!! My passion for football is almost as strong as my passion of food. Put them together and it's like a little slice of heaven.

Jen and I thought we'd do a special on Super Bowl apps and snacks this week. I typically do the same things every year, but since we were going to a friends house and they are Paleo and Gluten Free, I had to alter it a bit. I didn't completely cheap out on my super eats, but didn't contribute to extreme gluttony either. Well, maybe a little ;)

Below are 2 apps that I made for our little get-together. My friends Steph and Jeff did the chili and I've also included their recipe. I already have ideas brewing for March Madness, so stay tuned ...

Spinach Dip (Dairy Free)
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes to 2 hours (depends on if baked or chilled)
Total Time: 30 minutes +

Ingredients:

1 package frozen chopped spinach or 10 oz fresh spinach
1/4 cup chopped green onion
3/4 cup plan coconut milk yogurt
1/4 cup mayo
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice (I used fresh lemon)
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon dried dill weed
1/4 teaspoon dry oregano

Instructions:

1. Cook and drain the spinach, squeezing out excess water by pressing it against the sides of a colander with a spatula.
2. Combine the spinach and the remaining ingredients and mix well.
3. Chill for 2 hours before serving OR bake at 350 degrees until bubbly (about 15 minutes).

I went the easy route and used frozen spinach that took about 10 minutes to cook. 

Drained and stripped of all water.

Then I mixed the spinach with all the other ingredients. Once you've mixed it all together, you have 2 options. You can follow the initial recipe and chill it for 2 hours or you can bake it at 350 degrees until it bubbles. I cheated and didn't completely go the "dairy free" route. I also topped the dip with some shredded Romano cheese and baked it to perfection! Next time I think I'm gonna add a couple dashes of hot sauce to spice it up a bit! The Gluten-Free Homemaker originated this recipe and I have to say … it's one we'll use again. 

Easy Pull Apart Pizza Bread

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes 

Total Time: 40 minutes

Ingredients:

2 cups of Pizza Dough or Biscuits

2 cups Mozzarella cheese (or your favorite choice)

2 T parsley flakes

1/3 cup olive oil

8 oz package of pepperoni

1 cup Parmesan cheese 

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Cut pizza dough or biscuits into quarters.

3. Cut the pepperoni into smaller pieces.

4. Mix all the ingredients in a large bowl and toss so that the oil is spread evenly on each piece of dough. 

5. Bake for about 30 minutes (or until top is brown and the center is thoroughly cooked).

6. Flip over onto a plate while still hot and serve with pizza sauce.

The only thing I added to this recipe was some Tony's seasoning. I cut up 2 cans of biscuits and then the pepperoni. 

My bowl didn't seem quite large enough, so I really had to mix in 2 steps.

Then I filled the greased bunt cake pan and rearranged the pepperoni on top so it looked pretty (not specified in instructions).

Passed it to the preheated oven and watched magic happen. Touchdown!!! More so than anything the Broncos produced :( This one was a huge hit! Being in high altitude, it did take about 50 minutes to cook the dough all the way through. You may even need to add foil over top at the 2 minute warning, or in my case, 30 minute mark to prevent a personal foul. Next time, we'll add a couple of other toppings into the mix to change it up a bit. I have a feeling that no matter what I add, it's just going to intensify the flavor of this super dish! Thanks, Sweet and Simple Living for the season opener :) 

Steph took a chili recipe from a friend back East and made it for our celebration. It was fantastic! Gluten Free (which most chilis are) and she had all the fixings on the side for each person to dress on their own. Here's what she did ...

Matt Berry's Infamous Chili
(not sure if credit is also due somewhere else, but I know he originated this particular one)

Ingredients:

2 pounds ground beef- grass fed lean

1 packet hot chili seasoning

1 packet mild chili seasoning

2-3 peppers (red, green, and yellow)

1 onion

2 cans Rotel

1 can diced tomatoes

1 can petite diced tomatoes

1 15 oz can tomato sauce

1 can black beans

Instructions:

1. Cook meat and add chili seasoning.

2. Grill onions with butter and then add everything into the crockpot.

3. Cook on high for two hours. 

4. Top with sour cream, cheese, oyster crackers or our pick of Blue Chips

Even though the Broncos decided not to show up for the party, we enjoyed ours and are looking forward to a chance at the Lombardi next year. GO BENGALS or BRONCOS ... UNITED IN ORANGE! And a very Happy Birthday to our friend, LG!

(brought to you by Dairy Queen)

Jen's Version

(Acworth, GA)

Few things:

1. I became a football fan 3 years ago. I cheer for the Falcon's. It was a tough season.

2. I have been a Super Bowl fan since I was a junior in college (which is subjective because I was in college for 6/7 years) and went in with my BFF on a football pool. We were both poor, so we each put $10 in for a square and made a deal that if one of us won, we'd split the prize. It turns out that we won and two poor college girls each made $500! 

3. In all honesty, I've been a Super Bowl food fan for life. I have vivid memories of my mom's neighbor, Mrs. D, bringing her fruit pizza over.

Super Bowl Sunday is a bittersweet event. It's the end of the football season but such an exciting ending filled with yummy food. I know, food, food, food...

Val went down a GF, non dairy, words I don't understand route. For those who don't know, I was diagnosed with Celiac's Disease at 18 and begrudgingly was GF for three years. It was only three years because they finally advanced their testing and were able to prove the initial diagnosis wrong. That and I missed doughnuts. So at 18 I couldn't eat bread and this was tons and tons of years ago. Way before Publix had a GF section and Barilla made special GF pasta. It actually was during the Atkins Diet phase and when I'd request "no bun", I got the "oh, you're doing Atkins" comment. So, my grandiose point is that I don't really "do" GF anymore. If at some point in life I face that juncture again, I will deal with it (and die). 

I went down the greasy, spicy, yummy route with Buffalo Chicken Egg Rolls, Cheeseburger Egg Rolls and Wings. 

Oh wait - I did make something not greasy. But it was the day before, for my BIL's birthday. He was born on Super Bowl Sunday, so you know, I made it cute for him. 

Unfortunately, the big game had already started when I was preparing my Buffalo Chicken Egg Rolls and this was the only prep picture I got. BUT a great picture because Frank's is delicious. I put it on almost everything. I also read somewhere that cayenne is good for the metabolism, so now I've convinced myself that I need to put it on almost everything. I didn't use a recipe for my egg rolls, instead I just kind of modified the famous buffalo chicken dip recipe. I DO NOT do canned chicken. Mostly because when you open it, it smells like cat food. So I pan fried some chicken breasts with salt and pepper and finish them off in a simmer with chicken broth before shredding. It's a lot more work, which I'm usually not a fan of, but so much better than canned chicken. When I'm feeling lazy, I use rotisserie chicken when I want to use shredded chicken (and throw the bag away as to not let on to my laziness).

For the egg rolls, I mixed the shredded chicken, a little cream cheese (maybe a quarter of the package), a lot of Frank's RedHot, a cup of shredded cheddar and then a 1/4 cup of ranch. Another thing I love, and I'm sorry this is getting lengthy, but I love to make my own ranch. I buy the hidden valley seasoning packet and mix with mayo and milk. It's the only way to have ranch! After I mixed it all together, I wrapped the mixture in the egg roll wraps. 

I did not wrap them tight enough! I learned that after I fried them up (2 minutes per side). 

I made a Cheeseburger version for the kids. I literally chopped up a cheeseburger and topped with shredded cheddar. 

The game was getting boring so I got more pictures of this process. 

Please pardon my horribly chipped nail, but this is the yummy goodness that is a Buffalo Chicken Egg Roll once fried. It was legit delicious! The girls enjoyed theirs dipped in ketchup. 

This picture just screams football to me! And to make the night better, I won $125! It will offset all of my Fantasy league losses....

Goodbye football season! Hello Winter Olympics!