For the January 14, 2005
Carefree… by Joyce McCombs
Super Bowl Snack Attack
Even though the holiday cooking, baking, wrapping and eating
marathon is officially over, don’t put away your oven mitts yet.
There’s a serious snack emergency looming on the horizon and I’m
here to help.
The Never Ending Football Playoffs are underway and they won’t
stop until February 6, Super Bowl Sunday. The extravaganza is
worth a look, even if you don’t like football very much, because
the hoopla gets bigger every year. With all the pre game shows,
play by play analysis, up close interviews, worries about turf,
weather, crowd size and uniform design, the Super Bowl lasts
approximately 25 hours. You’re going to need some food.
I think it was legendary football coach Knute Rockne who said,
“Wherever football lurks, food must follow”. Or maybe it was Mrs
Rockne, who got tired of having Knute and his boys traipse through
her kitchen day and night looking for a handout. Or it might have
been “The Gipper” in that old movie starring Ronald Reagan. You
remember. He can’t play in the Big Game, so his teammates crowd
around his hospital bed, and everyone listens to him croak in a
pathetic voice: “Coach? Someday, when the tortilla chips are down,
and the salsa jar is empty, tell the guys…reach out for the cream
cheese… and chow one down for the Gipper ”
It’s not that I mind football on television, especially since the
Carefree Spouse got his satellite dish (his well-deserved
retirement reward for teaching school for 25 years). We get a nice
clear signal, and I can fold a mountain of laundry, pay bills, and
get caught up on my magazine reading all while pretending to watch
endless instant replays.
Being raised in Seattle, we’re partial the Seahawks and follow
their season with a fair amount of interest. And when the
University of Washington Huskies are on, please be advised that
extremely detailed coaching advice being broadcast to the greater
Clearwater area direct from my living room is coming from number
one fan Steve. The man roots for his alma mater a passion that is
pure, bright and most of all, loud. I reserve my comments for the
half time show. If I don’t see the Husky Band marching up and down
the field, I get extremely cranky. Even though I went to WWU in
Bellingham, the Husky Marching Band looms large in my psyche for
two reasons. First, my high school band director based our
marching squads on Husky Band formations, and even though it was a
pain to learn, it looked terrific on the field and we were darn
proud to literally follow in their footsteps. Second, Bill Bissel,
who directed the band for years, hailed from Bremerton, hometown
of the McCombs Clan. Mr. Bissel was the band director at Steve’s
high school before he became the maestro of the Husky Band. So
both of us have a lot to holler about when the Huskies are
playing.
So, back to the question at hand, literally. What is the perfect
football snack food? At the stadium, the classic steamed hot dog
and cold cup of beer combo is perfect. Add a side of peanuts or
popcorn you’re good until the third quarter. And even though
stadiums now serve everything from pasta to sushi, food that you
can hold easily in your hand is still the best. After all, you
can’t be twirling linguine on a fork and gesture toward the end
zone at the same time. And hollering explicit directions to the
coaches with a face full of sushi doesn’t seem as manly as it does
when there’s a bratwurst in a bun involved, does it?
It’s different at home though, with the kitchen just around the
corner from the TV. There’s a coffee table to set food on, and the
cold beverages aren’t several dollars a cup. And there are plates,
which seem a little silly in the bleachers, not to mention
dangerous for the people sitting in the row in front of you.
I’ve thought a lot about this, and here’s my list of ideas for
good football watching food. You need at least two kinds of dip,
one hot and one cold. Cheese is good, especially a big hunk of
supermarket cheddar resting on a cutting board so you can whittle
on it as needed. Something baked with a hot and bubbling bunch of
cheese mixed in, like the Rueben Squares coming up first in our
lineup today is good, too. Most football watchers I know like
something spicy to kick up the action, and the chicken wings to
follow should cover you there.
Remember that where three are four are gathered, one is bound to
be on a diet, but won’t want to broadcast the fact. Carrots and
celery are a good choice since they can be used with dip or not,
and nobody will feel like they’re being left out of the munch
marathon.
Easy things to make at the last minute include a big bowl of GORP
(“gold old raisins and peanuts” – toss in some chocolate chips,
too), and warm tortilla chips and your favorite salsa. Popcorn
made the old way in a kettle is great, maybe sprinkled with
Parmesan cheese or onion salt for a more grown up taste.
A crock pot full of brats or hot links or plain old hot dogs on
the buffet table will keep folks happy and keep you out of the
kitchen, where you do not want to be stuck deep fat frying small
objects and missing out on the fun. There’s a bunch of neat
mustards on the market now, so get some and encourage folks to
experiment. Keep the hot dog buns warm in a foil lined electric
skillet set on the lowest heat – it makes all the difference and
people will be delighted.
Haul the camping cooler in close to the TV and toss in some ice
and beverages so everything is handy, and don’t forget a few diet
sodas or non alcoholic beers for people who are still keeping
their New Year’s resolutions. M sure there’s an trash can handy
and do I have to remind you to use paper plates and plastic
utensils? I didn’t think so. Oh, and set out twice as many napkins
as you think you’ll need, and have an extra roll of paper towels
handy. You probably won’t need them, but just in case you do,
there’ll be no fumbling
First Down Rueben Squares
These want to be left alone for 24 hours before cooking, so they
are the perfect things to prepare the night before. Put them in
the oven right after the coin toss so you won’t miss kickoff.
1 loaf mini rye bread or cut regular slices into four squares
1 8 ounce package cream cheese
1 1/2 cups shredded Swiss cheese
1/2 cup Thousand Island dressing
1/2 pound sliced corned beef, chopped
1/2 cup well rinsed and drained sauerkraut
Line a cookie sheet with foil, then line pan with bread squares.
Mix the cream cheese, 1 cup of the Swiss cheese, the dressing and
the corned beef. Divide evenly among rye bread squares, then top
with kraut and remaining cheese. Refrigerate overnight, then bake
in a preheated 400 oven for about 15 minutes until cheese is
melted.
Place Kicker Wings
I made these for New Year’s Eve and they turned out pretty good,
or at least that’s what I think Bill Todd was trying to tell me as
he went back for his third helping – thanks, Bill
3 pounds chicken wings
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons ketchup
1/2 cup honey
1 teaspoon crushed garlic
Combine marinade ingredients in a large bowl and mix well. Add
chicken wings, stir to coat and refrigerate at least four hours or
overnight, stirring occasionally. To cook, line a deep baking dish
with foil and add wings and marinade. Bake at 350 for an hour,
turning once after 35 minutes. Wings should be deep brown and
slightly crisp when done. Sprinkle with sesame seeds before
serving.
Sideline Shrimp Dip
This looks mighty festive served in a hollowed out sourdough bread
bowl. Slice and toast the bread you remove to use as crisp
dippers.
Two 8 ounce packages cream cheese
One 16 ounce carton sour cream
Two 8 ounce cans shrimp, drained, save juice from one can
3 ribs celery, finely chopped
1 small yellow onion, finely chopped
Pepper
Lemon juice
Tabasco, if you like it.
Mix the cream cheese, sour cream and juice from one can shrimp
until smooth. Add dash of pepper and lemon juice to taste. Gently
stir in celery, onion, and shrimp, taking care to not break shrimp
too much. Add Tabasco to taste.
Hot Cheerleader Cheese Dip
Cheerleaders have so much on their minds, what with keeping their
hair flowing perfectly and their pom poms in order, so thank
goodness this only has a few ingredients. Best of all, it has a
kick from the horseradish and you make it in the microwave - YAY
1 pound Velveeta
1/4 cup horseradish sauce
1 cup Best Foods Mayonnaise
Melt the cheese in the microwave on half power, stirring every
couple of minutes until smooth. Add the horseradish and mayo and
combine until well mixed. Serve warm. Keep leftovers, if any, in
the refrigerator.
By hour sixteen of the Superbowl, you’ll think it’s never going to
end, but eventually it will and people will be wondering what to
do next. What they need to do is go start their vehicles so you
can collapse in peace and quiet and recover when they go home, but
first you must feed them dessert and give them a cup of coffee
(did you get some decaf?).
Cake is a good thing to have handy, since you can make it ahead of
time and haul it out for a surprise, and then just sit back and
soak up the compliments. But, as Carefree as you and I are, I know
that sometimes we don’t even have time to open a cake mix box, so
what you must do is make these cookies. I don’t know why, but
nothing smells better or impresses folks more than a fresh cookie,
still warm from your oven and who needs to know that these only
take two ingredients, both of which come from the store? NOBODY
needs to know, that’s who, and I promise I won’t tell. Pop these
in the oven when the two minute warning goes off during the game
and they’ll be done right when you need them.
Quarterback Sneak Bars
1 package refrigerated chocolate chip cookie dough
6 Snickers bars
Heat the oven to 350. Press the dough into a 9 x 13 pan. Chop the
candy bars into small pieces and distribute evenly over the dough.
Bake 20 minutes, cool for ten minutes, then cut into bars. Wave
bye bye to your guests and go to bed. You deserve it
