Betty Kaiser
It’s coming! This Sunday, Super Bowl XLVI will take place at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Kickoff for this much anticipated Giants-Patriots rematch is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. Pacific time on NBC.
Already? The Super Bowl? Yikes! How can that be? Didn’t we just celebrate the Rose Bowl? (Go, Ducks!)
Nevertheless, the Super Bowl looms and it’s time to start thinking what to serve the hungry hordes. Leafing through recipe ideas led me to a dead end: Chips, dips and other boring stuff.
So I got nosy and checked out Super Bowl party recipes around the country. I finally struck pay dirt in The Indianapolis Star newspaper. Just in the nick of time they published some recipes from Greg Hardesty. He is the lead chef for the Taste of the NFL fundraising event the night before the Super Bowl.
Chef Hardesty’s recipes will spice up any Super Bowl party. They include an interesting potato ‘nacho’ with a salmon and white bean topping; a celery heart salad topped with chicken ‘lollipops’ and a simple but elegant Buffalo Chicken Wrap.
At first glance the recipes seemed a bit complicated with too much to do at the last minute. But really, most of the prep work can be done early and assembled at the last minute. The potatoes for the ‘nachos’ can be sliced in advance and covered with cold water (drain and pat dry before cooking). The chicken ‘lollipops’ can be prepared in advance and re-heated; also the filling for the lettuce wraps.
Enjoy the game and the food!
IDAHO POTATO 'NACHOS'
Makes 8 to 10 appetizer servings
10 medium Idaho potatoes
1/3 cup olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
1 (20-ounce) can white beans, drained and rinsed
1/4 cup sour cream
24 slices (about 1 pound) smoked salmon, chopped
2 to 3 jalapenos, seeds removed and diced
1 small red onion, diced
12 large green olives, chopped
1 cup crushed tortilla chips
1 cup Cotija cheese (or other cheese, such as feta or mozzarella)
1/4 cup cilantro leaves, chopped
Juice of 1 lime
6 to 8 red radishes, julienned
Cut the potatoes lengthwise into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Toss the potatoes in a large bowl with a couple of tablespoons of the olive oil. (The remainder of the oil will be used later.) Season potatoes lightly with salt and pepper. Lay the potatoes in a single layer on baking sheets. Bake in the oven at 350 degrees 10 to 12 minutes, until tender and golden brown. Set aside to cool.
Place beans and sour cream into a food processor. Pulse machine 8 to 10 times to lightly mash up the beans. Transfer beans to a bowl. Stir in the salmon, jalapenos, onions, olives and tortilla chips. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Set aside.
Place 2 large ovenproof sauté pans over high heat and add a bit of the remaining olive oil to both pans and sauté potatoes on one side until very crisp. Turn potatoes over and top each "potato nacho" with a heaping tablespoon of the salmon bean mixture. Sprinkle the Cotija cheese over the top of the nachos and place sauté pans into the oven. Bake 3 to 4 minutes until hot and the cheese is melted.
Remove potatoes to a platter; top each with cilantro and radishes. Squeeze lime juice over the top, and serve immediately.
CHICKEN WINGS WITH CELERY HEART
AND MAYTAG BLUE CHEESE SALAD
Serves 4
2 cups celery hearts, sliced thinly on the bias
1/4 cup carrots, finely julienned
2 tablespoons flat-leaf parsley, chopped
8 grape tomatoes, halved
2 tablespoons olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
4 ounces blue cheese, crumbled
24 to 32 chicken wingettes (two bone portions of the wing)
2 teaspoons peanut oil, per batch of wings cooked
1/2 cup chicken stock
2 tablespoons butter
3 or 4 tablespoons hot sauce, such as Red Hot or Texas Pete
For salad, toss celery, carrots, parsley and grape tomatoes with olive oil and salt and pepper to taste. Divide among 4 salad plates. Sprinkle cheese over each salad equally.
For wings and sauce, pull the skin down from the wings, starting where the wing tip connects to the wingette. Pull the thinner or skinnier bone out, creating a "lollipop" of chicken with the remaining larger bone.
Bring peanut oil to medium high heat in a large skillet. Cook chicken in several batches, seasoning the chicken lollipops with salt and pepper. Sauté in the oil about 3-1/2 to 4 minutes per side or until crisp and cooked through.
Meanwhile, place chicken stock in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce stock by just over half. Remove from heat and swirl in butter and hot sauce. Add chicken wings and toss to coat. Remove and place 6 to 8 wings on each plate with the salad.
BUFFALO CHICKEN LETTUCE WRAPS
Serves 4 to 6
1/4 cup chicken stock
1/2 cup hot sauce (such as Red Hot or Texas Pete)
1/2 stick butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
4 boneless chicken breasts, cooked, cooled and cut into 1-inch cubes
16 to 20 large lettuce leaves, washed and dried
6 to 8 ribs celery hearts, diced
2 small carrots, peeled and shredded
1 cup high-quality blue cheese crumbles
Bring the chicken stock and hot sauce to a boil over high heat. Add the butter, cube by cube, to the sauce and whisk until the butter is incorporated. Add the chicken to the boiling mixture, and heat through until chicken is hot.
Place the open lettuce leaves on a serving plate. Divide the chicken and sauce among the lettuce leaves. Top with celery hearts, carrot shreds and blue cheese. Roll and serve immediately.
Keep it simple and keep it seasonal!
Betty Kaiser’s Cook’s Corner is dedicated to sharing a variety of recipes
that are delicious, family oriented and easy to prepare.
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