If things line up right for the big game, I'm planning on Indian nachos:

Thick corn chips- the good ones
daal
Grilled tandoori thighs, or perhaps a boti marinated in yogurt / spices the day before.
Tamarind Chutney
Lots of diced serrrano
Fried red onion
Cilantro
Raita with added sour cream to add more body.
I'm blanking on a cheese that would work well, so right now, plan is some plain ol mozz.

I might just make this into a "7 layer dip" type thing so I can serve it with chips, OR warm naan, to kind of just scoop it out. I'm pretty jazzed about this one.

I would destroy a pan of those nachos.

I've done an Indian Seven Layer Dip and used Sun Chips as sort of a puri..

Time to start putting ideas together for Sunday. Having spent six nights in NOLA the middle of this month, I'm kind of addicted to Cajun/Creole cuisine at the moment so that may be the style I lean towards. I've already gotten one request for Peppadew Stuffed Peppers. You can get everything you need to make them at Mariano's. Loose Italian Sausage, chopped garlic and shredded Parmesan joins chopped cremini mushrooms in the skillet. That mixture is stuffed into a peppadew pepper (available at the deli counter) and they bake for 20 minutes.

Note: Loose sausage doesn't get that fine so you may need to whip out the kitchen scissors and throw your cooked crumbled sausage in a cup to break it down even further.


Sausage Stuffed Peppadew's

So, to put a cap on this year's Football eats, here's what I made for SUPERBOWL LXVII.

Super Shrooms

Hot Italian Sausage, shallots, serrano peppers, asiago cheese and, of course, mushroom caps

Ribs


I spent 90 minutes or so digging my smoker out of the snowdrift that had been its home since before Christmas. It was so worth it. Even though the game didn't live up to the hype, at least we ate well.

WoW those Peppadew Stuffed Peppers look amazing.....I love New Orleans also......gotta make em soon.

not surehow I breezed past it back in Feb. - but those are some tasty looking ribs steve.

Kind of decided this summer I was going to do my best to cook out or be in a bar for each of the NFL Sundays this season.

So far so good.

For the Pack v Bears game I had to go with a backyard burger - fresh ground chuck from Sage's over in Morris was the base. Cheapo white bun, wisconsin cheese spread, fried egg, bacon, lettuce, tomato,chopped onion, mayo, ketchup..

stacked:


squished:


needed a nap after that burger and the game.

I had prepped some pork chops I got at Sages as well, tossed them in a basic brine for about 8 hours.Had these for part of the Cowboys v NOlA game.

pre brine


those 4 kind chops set me back about $30.... almost 2 inches thick and tasty.

post brine:


marked then set off to cook slow and low - RO lump - cherry.





love the color brined items get on the grill.

Had three beautiful pork tenderloins from Fresh Farms and needed some inspiration for something other than it roasted and sliced served with vegetable sides. Then I remembered the Buccaneers were in town to play the Bears and decided to get down on some Cubans, Tampa style of course. Just like with sushi and steak, a Cuban sandwich can only be as good as the product used to make one. Yes La Segunda is a 17 hour (straight thru) drive from Chicago so the real deal Cuban bread is a no-go but I do believe that in the same case with making a New Orleans style Po Boy, the long loaf of French bread from D'amatos does the trick better than the rest. For the ham I went to Paulina Meat Market and got their homemade sliced deli variety which was also crucial. Genoa salami was from Bari and the pickles were deli style from Stanley's. Don't forget the Swiss cheese and mustard. I marinated the pork tenderloins overnight in an extra potent potion of 1.5 cups fresh squeezed orange juice, 3/4 cup fresh lime juice and lots of chopped garlic/onion with a few dashes of some Mexican oregano and cumin. I seared each one separate in a smokin' skillet before they all went into the oven at 375 for 20 minutes. Let them rest until room temp and then slice thin. There is a one by one system that should be used when it comes to building a Cuban sandwich. Balance is also key. As far as tools you'll need a panini press or a big brick or two to flatten them and let that amazing flavor combination mold together while toasting. Let's roll.


Add a layer of Ham to the bottom portion of a sliced 9" roll


Add a couple layers of Roast Pork


Add a layer of Salami (tuck the ends in so they don't stick out)


Add a layer of Swiss Cheese


Add a layer of thinly sliced Deli pickles


Add Mustard to the top portion of the roll, and make a sandwich with it


Add butter to the top and bottom of the sandwich and prepare flattop


Cook sandwiches on a medium heated well buttered flattop. About 3-5 minutes per side.


Remove sandwich when well colored and crisp and slice diagonally from corner to corner


Enjoy, and you know I did! What's everyone cooking for the Bears game on Thursday? (I keed)

Brilliant!

Nice work! I was in Tampa this weekend and tried out one of your recent recs that I hadn't been to--Floridian. Good stuff. Though yours looked MANY times better!!!

Nice sandwich. I like your approach. Last July 4th I had Cubans in town from Tampa for the 8th annual pig roast and (amazingly) for the first time did Cubans in addition to the regular spread -- Gunthorp pig (on cherry and apple), Paulina ham (last minute audible in place of Mike's from Detroit and Paulina's whole ham was f'ing brilliant), Graziano Genoa, decent ementhaller, and bespoke Cuban bread from Tim Foley's legendary (and oddly placed) Bit O' Swiss bakery in Stevensville. (If you've missed it, he's a Gold Medal Coupe du Monde de la Boulangerie team captain; a bakery well worth the visit in Harbor Country, though his stuff is in all the decent spots). One of the best Cubans I've had, but I'd still kill to have the Vienna back in the vicinity of Havana and Gomez in the old 'hood. Oh, and cheap Mt. Olive sours, cause that's how they do it in the land of Trafficante and Steinbrenner.

Anyway, Paulina's city ham was the big pleasant surprise. It shared space with the pig for 3-4 hours and people plotzed over it. Perfect for this application.

PS: that reminds me, Cubans are the best use of Thanksgiving leftovers (assuming turkey and ham are leftover). Even if your bird was not pavochon, you can easily take the day-old meat and revitalize it in a bubbling pan of mojo, wilted onions, and a little lard to make a nice proxy for lechon. Slap it on some D'Amato's (I prefer Liborio for Cubans, though) with ham, Swiss and Genoa, and you are set to watch the nothing-to-lose Gators knock out the 'Noles.

JeffB wrote:PS: that reminds me, Cubans are the best use of Thanksgiving leftovers (assuming turkey and ham are leftover). Even if your bird was not pavochon, you can easily take the day-old meat and revitalize it in a bubbling pan of mojo, wilted onions, and a little lard to make a nice proxy for lechon. Slap it on some D'Amato's (I prefer Liborio for Cubans, though) with ham, Swiss and Genoa, and you are set to watch the nothing-to-lose Gators knock out the 'Noles.

Absolutely brilliant. And that's exactly what I'll be doing on Saturday. Go Gators!

Having a Packers party on Sunday at noon and I would like to to serve typical game-day foods, nothing fancy, but I would like to do something a little extra to make it a special holiday version of game-day foods.

Is this possible? Cranberry meatballs? Anyone.....

funholidaygirl wrote:Having a Packers party on Sunday at noon and I would like to to serve typical game-day foods, nothing fancy, but I would like to do something a little extra to make it a special holiday version of game-day foods.

Is this possible? Cranberry meatballs? Anyone.....

Maybe some moldy cheese to match the Packers' uniforms!

In all seriousness you could probably pull off the cranberry meatballs if you served them in a style to Swedish meatballs, with the lingonberries (or cranberries in this case) in a sauce on the side.

=R=

Day #3 of a football fans paradise gets going tonight with the College Football National Championship. The lady requested one of her hometown favorites for the Cowboys game yesterday and I obliged. Too bad there wouldn't be a win to go with them. Change the damn rule, Roger.


Sour Cream Chicken Enchiladas with Rice, Beans, and Bacon.