With football season comes countless opportunities to experiment with new snack plates. Photo by Creative Headline on Unsplash.
Football season is upon us, and that means some winning game day snacks should be on the menu too. Whether you’re a football fanatic or just watching the game to hang with your friends, make sure you bring some food fit for a team with these recipes that put a spin on classic game day fare. I got hungry just writing this article, so maybe you can bring your snacks by The Daily Campus while you’re at it.
Bacon Corn Dip
Ingredients:
4 slices bacon, diced
3 cups corn kernels, frozen, roasted, or canned
½ cup onion, diced
¼ cup red bell pepper, diced
4 oz. cream cheese
2 tbsp. milk
2 green onions, sliced
1 tsp. sugar
1 jalapeño, seeded and diced (optional)
Salt and pepper, to taste
This creamy dip from Damn Delicious is a fun twist on one of my favorite soups, bacon corn chowder. You might even consider skipping the chips and just eating this with a spoon, which I would certainly support.
First, heat a skillet over medium high heat. Add bacon and cook for about seven minutes or until crispy, then transfer to a plate lined with a paper towel to sop up the excess fat. Add corn kernels, onion and red bell pepper to the skillet. (Throw in the jalapeño if you want your dip to be a little spicy.) Cook the vegetables for about 4-5 minutes or until tender.
Stir in cream cheese and milk until well-combined, or for 2-3 minutes. Add more milk as needed if the mixture is too thick. Stir in green onions and sugar with salt and pepper to taste. Serve with bacon sprinkled on top.
Chicken Parm Sliders
Ingredients:
1 ½ lbs. breaded chicken, fresh or frozen
12 slider buns
2 cups marinara sauce
2 cups mozzarella cheese
½ cup grated Parmesan
¼ cup melted butter
½ tsp. garlic powder
1 tbsp. parsley
Combine the classiness of a cheesy chicken parm with the bite-sized nature of a slider with this fun recipe from Delish. The already breaded chicken saves you the messiness of having to bread it yourself.
Prepare chicken according to the directions on the package, then cut into pieces fit for a slider. On a large baking pan, lay the bottom half of the slider buns, top with marinara sauce, chicken, mozzarella and parmesan, then top them off with the rest of the slider buns.
In a bowl, stir together melted butter, garlic powder and parsley to brush on top of the buns. Bake for about 15 minutes, or until the cheese is melted.
Pizza Roll Ups
Ingredients:
1 tube of crescent rolls
½ cup mini pepperonis
4 sticks of string cheese
½ tsp. Italian seasoning
2 tbsp. butter
Make your own version of a childhood favorite with this other recipe from Damn Delicious.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees, then line a baking tin with parchment paper. Separate the crescent rolls into triangles, then top each one with mini pepperonis and string cheese stick. Roll each triangle back up, place seam-side down on the baking sheet and bake for about 10-12 minutes. When the rolls are done baking, brush them with a mixture made from butter and Italian seasoning.
There are a ton of more creative recipes you can try out there, like buffalo mac and cheese, pull-apart garlic bread, chili cheese nachos, stuffed peppers, jalapeño queso fundido, tropical avocado salsa with pineapple, Greek salad dip, chocolate and caramel – drizzled popcorn and much more. Make your watch party fit for a football feast!
Thumbnail photo by Brooke Lark on Unsplash.
Hollie Lao is a staff writer for The Daily Campus. She can be reached via email at hollianne.lao@uconn.edu.