Game Day Eats

We love sports, and we love food. The Super Bowl gives us the perfect opportunity to combine the two.

Last year was a big family celebration, complete with our Packer gear and lots of good food. This year, it's more of an immediate family affair, and we're not really excited about either team or Madonna, so hopefully the commercials will be good. 

We're trying a new recipe for a NY Strip & Blue Cheese Pizza from Bobby Flay, making 1-2 dips, and serving lots of fresh veggies. Here are a few of our favorite game day recipes, in case you haven't finalized your menu! You can find a few more on my blog, too. 

Pizza Dip

1 8-oz. package cream cheese, softened (I use Neuchatel)
½ c. sour cream (I use ff or light)
1 tsp. dried oregano
1/8 tsp. garlic power
1/8 tsp crushed red pepper flakes (or more!)
½ c. pizza sauce
½ c. pepperoni, chopped
¼ c. green onions, sliced
¼ c. green pepper, chopped
½ c. mozzarella cheese, shredded

Preheat oven to 350°. Beat together the cream cheese, sour cream, oregano, garlic powder and red pepper flakes. Spread into a 9-10” quiche dish or pie plate.  Spread pizza sauce over top, and sprinkle with pepperoni, green pepper, and green onions. Baked until heated through, about 10 minutes. Top with mozzarella cheese, and bake until cheese is melted and starts turning golden brown. Serve warm with crackers, rye chips, veggies, or any of your favorite dippers!

Sedona Appetizer Bites

1 tbsp. butter
¾ c. chopped red bell pepper
½ cup chopped onion
1 tsp. finely chopped fresh garlic
1-2 finely chopped jalapeño chiles (we use 2)
2 c. finely chopped cooked chicken breast
1 tsp. ground cumin
½ c. sour cream (reduced fat or nonfat work fine)
6 ounces (1 1/2 c.) cheddar cheese, shredded
3 tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro
18 (18x14-inch) sheets frozen phyllo dough, thawed
½ c. butter, melted
Salsa, if desired

Heat oven to 350°F. Melt butter in 12-inch skillet until sizzling; add red pepper, onion, garlic and chiles. Cook over med-high heat, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are softened and liquid has evaporated (3 to 5 minutes). Add chicken and cumin; continue cooking until heated through (1 to 2 minutes). Remove from heat, cool 10 minutes. Stir in sour cream, cheese and cilantro.

To assemble bites, place 1 sheet of phyllo dough on flat surface; brush with melted butter. Top with 2 additional sheets, buttering each sheet. Trim stack using kitchen shears to 18x12 1/2 inches. Cut stack in half crosswise; cut each stack lengthwise into 2- ½" strips. Spoon 2 tsp. filling onto center of end of each stack of strips. Form triangle by folding lower right-hand corner of each strip to opposite side. Continue folding in triangles to end of strip.

Place triangles onto ungreased baking sheet. Repeat 5 more times with remaining phyllo dough and filling. Brush appetizers with butter before baking. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm with salsa, if desired. Makes 40 appetizers (depends on your cutting).



Easy Spinach-Artichoke Dip

1 cup Sour Cream (low-fat is ok)
1 cup cream cheese, softened (low fat is ok)
1 cup mayo (we use Hellman's Reduced Fat)
1 box frozen chopped spinach, thawed, drained and squeezed dry
1 can artichoke hearts, drained (we chop them up a bit)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
 
Mix sour cream, cream cheese and mayo together. Stir in artichoke hearts, spinach and garlic. Spread into pie pan and top with parmesan cheese. Bake for 20-25 minutes at 350 degrees. Serve with veggies and your favorite dippers.  It's also great on a panini with turkey!