Recipes:
Colorado Green Chili-Denver Signature Dish
3 lbs. boneless pork shoulder; browned in oil and placed in crock pot filled with water, sliced onion and sliced garlic cook until falling off the bone; about 4 hours; shred and set aside
4 Tbls. olive oil
½ cup white onion, diced
1 Tbls. minced garlic
4 Tbls. flour
1 tsp. ground cumin
9 cups chicken stock
2-3 Yukon gold potatoes, diced
1 29 oz. can white hominy
2 roasted, peeled and seeded poblano peppers
1 jalapeno, seeded
3/4 pound tomatillos, husked and quartered
1/2 bunch chopped cilantro leaves, plus more for garnish
½ Tbls. Mexican dried oregano
2 garlic cloves
diced avocado, for garnish
Sliced radishes, for garnish
Queso fresco, for garnish
Heat the olive oil in a heavy-bottomed stockpot over medium-high heat.
Add the onions and garlic and cook until translucent. Stir in the flour and cumin and then add the chicken stock.
Add the potatoes and hominy and simmer until the potatoes are tender.
Combine the poblanos, jalapenos, tomatillos, cilantro, oregano, garlic, in a blender. Blend on high until all of the ingredients are well combined.
Add the blended mixture to the pot, add shredded pork and cook for about 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
Ladle the chili into bowls and garnish each serving with avocado, thinly sliced radish, queso fresco, and chopped cilantro. Serves 8.
*I roast the pablanos over the stovetop flame until blackened then place in a paper bag to let steam, peel off skin once cooled (you can also blacken under the broiler).
The Thunder-Specialty cocktail named for Broncos mascot
1/4 cup ice
1/2 cup orange juice/mango
1 1/2 ounces vodka
Blue Curacao
In a cocktail shaker, add orange/mango/vodka juice over ice. Shake well, and strain into a glass.
Using the back of a spoon, pour cuacao slowly into a glass so that it sits atop the orange juice mixture.
Truffle Parmesan Popcorn
Small bottle white truffle oil
Butter
Parmesan cheese
Sea salt
Popcorn-I LOVE Tiny Pop kernels; non GMO pops up crunchy and so flavorful
Pop desired amount of popcorn in oil on stove top. Once popped mix about 1 tsp. white truffle oil into ¼ cup melted butter, pour on popped corn, sprinkle with parmesan cheese and sea salt.
Mini Chicken and Waffles with Sriracha Maple Aioli
3 chicken breasts, cut into 1 1/2″ chunks
3/4 cup milk
dash of hot sauce
1 cup of flour
1/4 tsp. paprika
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
pinch of salt
pinch of pepper
oil for frying
season salt
Place the chicken in the milk and toss to coat. In a separate bowl add the flour and seasonings, and dredge each chicken piece. Heat the oil to medium heat (350) and fry a few pieces at a time for 3-4 minutes, turning occasionally. Drain on a paper towel and lightly sprinkle with season salt. Makes about 8 pieces.
I used Bisquick to make my waffles on my waffle iron and using a small 2” round cutter cut out 2 waffles for each piece of chicken, skewed with football pick and drizzled Aioli over the top.
Bacon Wrapped Puff Pastry Straws
1½ cups grated Parmesan cheese
2 sheets puff-pastry dough (if frozen, thawed but chilled)
12 slices of bacon, halved lengthwise
Preheat the oven to 425°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
On a clean surface, sprinkle ¼ cup of the Parmesan cheese evenly in a square. Place 1 sheet of puff pastry on top, then sprinkle another ¼ cup cheese over it. Use a rolling pin to roll the sheets slightly (from about ¼-inch thick to about ⅛-inch thick).
Using a pizza cutter, cut the puff pastry into long, thin strips about ½-inch wide. (The length will vary depending on the brand of puff pastry. Just make sure the strips aren’t longer than your baking sheets.)
Place a piece of bacon on top of a strip of dough and press lightly. Grab the dough at both ends and twist it. Place the twist onto a prepared baking sheet, and lightly press the ends onto the parchment paper so that they stick and hold the twist in place. Repeat this entire step with the remaining dough strips from the first sheet of puff pastry, then sprinkle ¼ cup Parmesan cheese evenly over the finished twists.
Repeat steps 2 to 4 with the second sheet of puff pastry.
Bake the straws until they’re crispy and golden brown, 12 to 15 minutes. Serve the straws warm or at room temperature. Makes 12.
Grilled Pimento Cheese-Carolina Signature Dish
PIMENTO CHEESE
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 jarred pimentos or roasted red bell pepper, chopped
2 cups sharp cheddar cheese (good quality), shredded
2 cups Monterey Jack cheese, shredded
4 oz. cream cheese at room temperature
1/2 cup mayonnaise-Dukes brand if you can find it
Dash cayenne
1 baguette; sliced about 1 inch think
Butter
Blend all ingredients together very well, can pulse in the food processor but careful not to over blend.
Place about 2 heaping tablespoons between baguette slices, butter and cook until golden on a non stick skillet.
Hail Mary Brownies
For this recipe you can use your favorite brownie mix or from scratch, bake in football muffin cups (I got mine from Wal-Mart). Once finished drizzle with caramel sauce and top with Rold Gold pretzel football (available in the grocery store during Superbowl). The brownie/caramel/pretzel combination is surprisingly good!
Sir Purr-Panthers Signature Cocktail-named for panther mascot
2 large tea bags for iced tea
1/2 cup boiling water
8 fresh mint sprigs
4 cups lemonade made from frozen concentrate
1/2 cup vodka
Ice cubes
8 lemon slices
Mint leaves
Place tea bags in medium bowl. Add 1/2 cup boiling water. Let steep 4 minutes. Discard tea bags. Place mint sprigs in large pitcher; mash with muddler or handle of wooden spoon until slightly bruised. Pour in tea, lemonade, and vodka. DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill.
Fill 8 glasses with ice. Divide sweet tea among glasses. Garnish with lemon slices.
Crafts/DIY:
*Bought wheatgrass at grocery store for centerpieces, used Arabian horse and panther from Michaels to put in wheatgrass, banner supplies also at Michaels, printed of team names for banner from the internet
*Turf table cloth-Home Depot
*put kid’s footballs in mesh basket for centerpiece
*Used inexpensive clay pots as risers and placed simple white plates on top; spray paint pot black, let dry, use painters tape to block off stripes paint black exposed stripes white for referee stripes effect
*Use brown construction paper to make cone cups for popcorn, trace with #4 coffee filters, staple together to form cone and paint laces with white craft paint
*Jolee’s Boutique football/football helmet stickers for straws and food tags
*black and white paper, grass paper, black and white ribbon-Michaels
*Team napkins-Party City
*Use your kid’s football trophies (or borrow) to decorate the table
*Black and white washi tape on the edges of the platters
*Use a clipboard to hold and display the menu
Products used:
Hamilton Beach Football Slow Cooker: www.hamiltonbeach.com
(purchase through Amazon for a better price)
Football Picks: www.pickonus.com
Blue and orange small bowls from Crate and Barrel
Carol That Cooks 