What’s a tailgate party with out great food? NOTHING! Although the football game is the main attraction; the menu comes in at a close second. CGE’s Top 3 Tailgating Recipes will have your guests salivating for 3rds and 4ths!
1. Mozzarella Stick Egg Rolls
What you will need:
1. 12 Pieces of string cheese
2. 12 Egg roll wrappers
3. Oil for deep frying
4. Marinara or Spaghetti Sauce
What you will do:
1. Place a piece of string cheese near the bottom corner of one egg roll wrapper (keep remaining wrappers covered with a damp paper towel until ready to use). Fold bottom corner over cheese. Roll up halfway; fold sides toward center over cheese. Moisten remaining corner with water; roll up tightly to seal. Repeat with remaining wrappers and cheese.
2. In an electric skillet, heat 1/2 in. of oil to 375°
3. Fry sticks, a few at a time, for 30-60 seconds on each side or until golden brown. Drain on paper towels. Serve with marinara sauce.
Yield: 1 dozen.
2. Chick-Fil-A Nuggets (Well, not exactly, but darn close!)
What you will need:
1. 2 skinless and boneless chicken breasts
2. 1 cup milk
3. 1 egg
4. 1 1/4 cups flour
5. 2 TBSP powdered sugar
6. 2 tsp salt
7. 1 tsp pepper
8. Peanut oil (is best) or canola oil
What you will do:
1. In a medium bowl whisk the egg and stir in the milk.
2. Trim any fat away from chicken. Cube chicken into bite size pieces. Place chicken in milk mixture,and cover. Let it ‘marinate’ for 2-4 hours in the fridge. This will make the chicken very nice and tender.
3. In a gallon size resealable baggie combine flour, powdered sugar, salt and pepper. Seal and shake to combine.
4. Place about 2 inches of oil in a medium deep pot. Over medium high heat (more towards the high side) heat oil until hot. If using a thermometer let the temperature reach 375°. If you don’t have a fancy gadget like most people, you can test the oil by dropping a few drops of water into it. You want it to sizzle and not pop too much. Adjust your heat if necessary.
5. Using a fork or tongs remove cut chicken from milk mixture and place in the flour mixture. Seal and shake until nuggets are completely coated. Place about a 6-8 nuggets into hot oil and let them cook until golden brown, turning half way through once the edge of your chicken starts to turn white. About 1 minute each side.
6. Always double check to see if any chicken you make is cooked through. Simply, make a tiny cut to see if it’s pink. Remove and drain on a paper towel.
7. Repeat until all nuggets are cooked.
3. Oven Baked Parmesan Fries
What you will need:
1. 1 pound of medium russet potatoes (approx 3 medium potatoes)
2. 1 1/2 TBSP of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
3. 1/4 tsp Dried Thyme
4. 1/4 tsp Dried Oregano
5. 1/8 tsp Dried Rosemary
6. 1/4 tsp of Garlic Powder
7. 1/4 tsp of Old Bay Seasoning
8. 2 TBSP of Kraft Parmesan Style Grated Cheese ( used reduced fat optional)
What you will do:
1. Preheat oven to 425.
2. Wash and cut potatoes into 1/8ths.
3. Place on a cookie sheet that has been lined with foil (Note: Reynolds Release foil so that they will not stick, but you could also either use non-stick cooking spray or lightly grease the top of the foil with extra virgin olive oil).
4. Mix all of the spices and the Parmesan cheese in a small bowl.
5. Place all of the potatoes (remember we are talking about one pound at a time) into a gallon size freezer bag, add olive oil and the Parmesan cheese/spice mixture to the bag.
6. Seal the bag and shake until the potatoes are evenly coated.
7. Once thoroughly coated dump onto the prepared cookie sheet and spread in a single layer.
8. Bake 30-45 minutes or until tender and lightly golden brown. (Baking times will vary depending on the amount of fries that you make and the size that you cut them). For the ones shown in the picture they were baked at 425 for 45 minutes.
Note: The amounts listed are for every one pound of fries. One pound of fries is the equivelant of appoximately 3 medium potatoes. (You can double or triple the recipe to fit within you needs).
Although these are not your typical game day eats, we are sure that after you try them, they will become staples at all your tailgate parties!
*Featured Photo Source
