Who are you rooting for in the Superbowl? I live in New York, but I've never been a huge Giants fans so I'm not sure!!!
Snacks are an important part of a fun at-home Superbowl party especially if you're going to be drinking. Last year, I was one of only two people that made it to work the next day after the Superbowl party that I went to. I think we had music videos playing more time than the actual game. This year, we're taking it down a notch and focusing more on cooking and less on partying.
Here are my top 5 Superbowl snacks from my blog and others.
1) Hummus and veggies....
This is a great homemade Hummus recipe. I made it for the Superbowl two years ago and it was perfect. You can serve it with veggies or with Glutino crackers. It's simple and fun to make!
Ingredients
- 2 (15-ounce) cans garbanzo beans (chickpeas), drained and rinsed (reserve liquid from cans)
- 5-6 tablespoons lemon juice, freshly squeezed (you will probably need two large lemons to get enough lemon juice)
- 1/3 cup sesame tahini. Interestingly, this is just ground sesame seeds... something I learned from this recipe :)
- 2 cloves garlic, finely minced
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- Freshly ground pepper
- Pinch of cayenne
- Olive oil
Directions
Start by draining the garbanzo beans into a bowl. You will need to save the liquid from the cans to use later in the recipe
Put the liquid from garbanzo beans aside. Rinse the beans in cold water
Squeeze the lemons to make lemon juice, mince garlic and measure tahini
Place the garbanzo beans, lemon juice, tahini and garlic in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth
If the mixture is too thick, use the reserved liquid from the garbanzo beans and add a small amount, a little at a time, until the mixture blends smoothly.
I probably used about half the reserved liquid
Remove from blender and add salt, pepper and cayenne
Place in a serving bowl and drizzle a small amount of olive oil on top
2) Elise's Perfect Guacamole...
Chips and Guacamole are always a great Superbowl snack! If you're gluten-free you just have to make sure that the chips are made purely of corn so they don't make you sick. I usually try and stay away from eating too many chips but for the Superbowl, Guacamole is a must-have snack!
Ingredients
- 2 ripe avocados
- 1/2 red onion, minced (about 1/2 cup)
- 1-2 serrano chiles, stems and seeds removed, minced
- 2 tablespoons cilantro leaves, finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon of fresh lime or lemon juice
- 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
- A dash of freshly grated black pepper
- 1/2 ripe tomato, seeds and pulp removed, chopped
Directions
1 Cut avocados in half. Remove seed. Scoop out avocado from the peel, put in a mixing bowl.
2 Using a fork, mash the avocado. Add the chopped onion, cilantro, lime or lemon, salt and pepper and mash some more. Chili peppers vary individually in their hotness. So, start with a half of one chili pepper and add to the guacamole to your desired degree of hotness. Be careful handling the peppers; wash your hands thoroughly after handling and do not touch your eyes or the area near your eyes with your hands for several hours.
Keep the tomatoes separate until ready to serve.
Remember that much of this is done to taste because of the variability in the fresh ingredients. Start with this recipe and adjust to your taste.
3 Cover with plastic wrap directly on the surface of the guacamole to prevent oxidation from the air reaching it. Refrigerate until ready.
4 Just before serving, add the chopped tomato to the guacamole and mix.
Original Recipe
3) Gluten-Free Soft Pretzel
I haven't tried this one yet, but when I saw the recipe I knew it had to be on the list.
Making gluten-free pretzels for the Superbowl is a great idea especially since people who are gluten-intolerant can't eat them at the Stadium. I am including a dairy-free soft pretzel recipe below from
Jules Gluten-Free. I am definitely going to be making these on Sunday!
Prep Time: 45 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 65 minutes
Ingredients
- 1 1/3 cup + 2 tablespoons All Purpose Gluten-free Flour
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1 package active dry yeast
- 1 tsp. granulated cane sugar
- 1/3 cup warm water (110 F)
- 1 Tbs. honey or agave nectar
- 1 egg
- Canola oil
- (2/3 cup baking soda for soda bath)
- Melted butter or Earth Balance Buttery Sticks to brush onto tops of pretzels
- Coarse sea salt or other toppings for pretzels
Directions:
In a large bowl, mix warm water, sugar and yeast and let stand for 5 minutes. Whisk together the remaining dry ingredients and set aside.
Add half of the dry mixture to the wet mixture bowl, together with the egg and honey. Beat on low speed of an electric mixer for one minute, or until well-blended. Add in the remaining dry ingredients and blend until well-mixed. If the dough is too dry, add an additional 1/2 to 1 teaspoon warm water.
Gently roll chunks of dough to approximately 3/4 inch diameter thickness and shape into pretzel twists using gluten-free flour to dust the rolling surface.
Place on a parchment-paper lined baking sheet. Brush the pretzels liberally with oil. Cover with a damp cloth and proof for 30 minutes in a warm place.
Preheat the oven to 375 F (static) or 350 F (convection).
5 minutes before the proofing is completed, prepare a soda bath by adding 2/3 cup baking soda to 10 cups of water and bring to a boil over high heat. Stir until the soda is completely dissolved.
Once the soda bath is boiling, gently submerge pretzels individually into the bath for 25 seconds, flipping over after about 15 seconds. Drain the pretzels and replace onto the parchment-lined baking sheet.
Brush the pretzels with melted butter or Earth Balance Buttery Sticks and top with coarse sea salt or other toppings. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, or until light golden brown. Do not overbake.
Makes approximately 6 traditionally shaped pretzels.
Original Recipe
4) GF Vegetarian Thai Spring Rolls
I'm loving Thai Spring Rolls as a Superbowl snack because they are healthy but don't stick out like a sore thumb with other snacks. I would definitely include these in your game day menu especially if there are going to be a lot of heavy or fried foods where you're going.
Thai Spring Rolls
adapted from The Gluten-Free Vegan, pg. 101
Ingredients
- 3-4 ounces rice noodles, chopped into 1-2 inch pieces
- 1 cup julienned snow peas
- 1 large avocado, peeled and sliced very thinly
- 2 medium-size carrots, sliced thinly lengthwise
- 1 large cucumber, sliced length-wise thinly
- 1/2 cup chopped water chestnuts
- 8 rice tortillas (hemp tortillas work as well)
- Peanut sauce. I use San-J Gluten-Free Thai Peanut Sauce
Directions
- First, prepare the rice noodles. Bring a large pot of water to boiling. Remove the pot from the heat and place the noodles inside. Cover and let sit for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, promptly remove the noddles and drain in cold water
- Rice Tortillas: If you are using rice tortillas, you will have to dip them in warm water then set them out to dry. This is the part of the process that I had the most trouble with because I let the rice paper dry on paper towels and they got stuck together. From what I've read, the best surfaces to use for drying rice paper are wood, a silpat sheet, marble or a tea towel. I'll let you know which surface works best
- Place the vegetables, avocado and water chestnuts in a large bowl and toss them together. Add the cooled rice noodles and mix together
- Hemp Tortillas: Soften them up by heating a large skillet and turning it up to a moderately high temperature. Add a small drip of oil, then a tortilla, and swirl it around until it softens up. Remove from the heat
- Place some of the vegetable mixture in the middle of the tortilla - hemp or rice - and roll it up
- Continue this process until you have used all of the tortillas and mixture
Serve with peanut sauce. Makes 8 servings.
5) Mexican Superbowl Salad
I love this recipe because you can bring it to a party and serve it with chips or as a salad. It's very versatile but also healthy and filling.
Mexican Quinoa Salad
adapted from The Gluten Free Vegan, pg. 47
Ingredients
- 1 cup quinoa
- 1/2 cup chopped red and yellow bell peppers
- 1 small red onion
- 2 Roma tomatoes, chopped
- 1 (15-ounce) can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 (16-ounce) jar or 2 cups salsa
- 1 tablespoon canola oil
- Juice of 1 lime
- Freshly ground pepper
- Sea salt
Directions
- Heat 1 1/2 cups water to boiling. Add quinoa. Lower heat and cover. Cook until liquid is absorbed, 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from heat to cool
- When the quinoa has cooled, add the peppers, onions, tomatoes, beans, cumin, salsa, oil and lime juice. Season with salt and pepper and salt and toss
- Chill before serving
