Fall is Here, It's Game Time!

Hey everyone, I have a guest post for you today from Blake Daniels.  He has some tips for drinks and eats when you and your family and friends get together to watch football this fall!  Enjoy!

Summer has officially come to a close and fall is finally here. That means it’s time for cooler weather, raking leaves and more importantly football Sundays! It’s always fun to get together with some buddies, gather around the TV and watch the game. With the right food and drinks, you’re guaranteed to have a great time.

Drinks

The first thing you’ll need to do before game day is choose the beers that you’re going to serve. Chances are that not all of your friends will be craft beer fanatics, so your best bet is grabbing a few different brews to try and fit everyone’s tastes. For any hop-head guests, session IPAs are a new twist on the popular style and are a perfect choice for game day. They’re much lower in alcohol than regular IPAs, but are still packed with tons of fruity hop aroma and flavor. If you want to show your guests that you take your beer seriously, consider picking up some IPA glasses, or other beer-related accessories and they’ll be sure to get the message.

Octoberfest-style or Märzen beers should be readily available at your local beer store and are another great option for the party. This malt-forward brew pairs well with a wide variety of foods and is a nice alternative to the hoppy session IPA. This is also a nice “gateway” beer for any light beer drinkers that might shy away from anything with IPA in the name.

As a third option, you may want to serve a beer-alternative, like hard cider. Ciders are rapidly growing in popularity and are a nice change of pace from beer. There’s also a growing number of people who are sensitive to gluten (including my wife) and the majority of hard ciders are naturally gluten-free.

Eats

Now that the drinks are taken care of, it’s time to move on to the food. One of my go-to recipes for entertaining is bean dip—this recipe is simple, quick, and will be gone before you know it.

Game Day Bean Dip

Ingredients:

·      1 can refried beans

·      ½ cup sour cream

·      ¼ cup mayonnaise

·      2 tablespoons taco seasoning

·      1 tomato, chopped

·      1 avocado, mashed (can substitute prepackaged guacamole if desired)

·      8 ounces cheddar cheese, shredded

Instructions:

            Layer the bottom of an 8x8 glass pan with refried beans, then spread avocado or guacamole over the beans. Mix the sour cream, mayonnaise, and taco seasoning well and spread it on as the top layer. Sprinkle cheese and tomatoes on top, then refrigerate until you’re ready to serve. This recipe should feed at least 8 people, but is easily doubled if you’re expecting a bigger crowd.

Bean dip certainly won’t be enough if you’re having a big gathering, so another appetizer I like to make is chicken wing dip. You can’t really go wrong by having a few dips at a football party and it’s easier cleanup for you if you only use a few dishes.

Chicken Wing Dip

Ingredients:

·      2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened

·      ¾ cup hot sauce

·      1 cup ranch dressing

·      2 cups diced, cooked chicken

·      1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Instructions:

            Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. In medium bowl, stir together the cream cheese and hot sauce. Mix in the ranch dressing, chicken, and cheddar cheese. Spread the dip into a 9x13 baking dish and bake for 30 minutes in a preheated oven. Serve warm with tortilla chips. You can also try this recipe with blue cheese instead of ranch, or reduce the amount of ranch it calls for to play with the balance of flavors.

Chicken Wing Dip

With food and drinks like these, you’re bound to impress your guests and don’t be surprised if a few new best friends show up at your door for the next game.