Well, folks, I’m back and we’re currently in the midst of my favorite season—football season. Or as I like to call it, Getting Away with Murder season. This is because for 12 hours every Sunday, my husband is so deeply immersed in the games that I can quite literally get away with anything. If you too have a spouse who lives and breathes football, gameday is a great time to tell your spouse you’re thinking of redecorating the living room, becoming a vegan household or switching the chores chart so he/she will take over laundry for the next year.
So, it is with Troy Aikman’s voice droning on in the background that I’ve decided to write about healthy snacks you can bring to your next football viewing party or tailgate. Typically, the only snacks available are wings, pizza and beer, so why not be the beloved person who opts to bring a light bruschetta or a low-fat cheeseball?!?
I’ve included a few of my new favorites recipes below. But since the people looking up healthy football appetizers aren’t likely regular football viewers, I thought I’d define some football terminology and explain a few rules of the game, so you’ll sound like a pro on gameday.
Football terminology
- Touchdown: This is when a player scores 6 points and gets to dance.
- Fumble: This is when a player sucks at their job and drops the ball. These dudes get paid tens of millions of dollars to catch the ball and they drop it ALL THE TIME!
- Line of scrimmage: An imaginary line that separates the two teams at the start of the play. Side note: the NFL LOVES playing pretend. Like how they pretend running full speed and slamming your head into a 300-pound man won’t damage your brain forever.
- Football move: Seriously, there is no clear definition. And it’s what determines whether or not a player gets to score 6 points and dance, which I think is really unfair. These guys have been practicing their dance moves all suuuummmmmeeerrrr!!!!
Football enigmas rules of the game
- The game starts with a kickoff. The ball almost always lands in the end zone, meaning that every team starts the game in the end zone. Why we need to go along with the charade of pretending it will land elsewhere is beyond me. But apparently, they can’t start the game in the end zone because it would lack fanfare. When watching the game, it’s best to just go along with. Football fans do not like it when you ask too many questions about the absurdities of the game.
- On the field, there are 11 defenders whose job it is to tackle the person with the ball. After the quarterback hands the ball over to the running back, the running back will, without fail, run directly into the mass of large men trying to tackle him. He will NOT run around the defenders towards open field. I’ve had several people attempt to explain this me, but I will never understand it, and neither will you.
- Football players are burly, surly and manly, but they wear incredibly tight pants. Football fans will tell you it’s for speed and safety. It’s not. It’s for the ladies and gays.
Now that you know everything there is to know about football, here are a few recipes that will make you super popular at a football viewing party or tailgate.
SkinnyMs (or Mr) quinoa chicken nuggets
Ingredients
- 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- ½ tsp. salt
- ¼ tsp. ground pepper
- ¾ cup whole-wheat flour
- 1 egg, lightly whisked
- 1 ½ cups cooked quinoa
- 2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
- Slice the chicken to cubes, then sprinkle them with salt and pepper. Prepare three bowls for the following: flour, egg and quinoa.
- Coat the chicken with the flour then shake off the excess. Dip the chicken in the egg then shake off the excess. Coat the chicken with the quinoa then press lightly to make the quinoa stick to the chicken.
- On a baking pan lined with parchment paper, place the chicken nuggets side by side. Drizzle with the olive oil. Bake in the oven between 40 – 45 minutes or until they turn golden brown.
- Serve with your favorite sauce while still hot.
Jen’s jalapeño poppers
Ingredients
- 1 container Pillsbury crescent dough
- 4 jalapeños
- Low fat cream cheese
- Low fat shredded Mexican cheese blend
Instructions
- Cut tops off jalapeño peppers and split in half length-wise. Remove seeds.
- In a small bowl, combine 1-2 tablespoons of cream cheese with 1-2 teaspoons of shredded cheese. Fill jalapeños with the cheese mixture until slightly rounded.
- Wrap the crescent dough around the stuffed jalapeños and cut any excess dough.
- Cook in oven according to crescent dough packaging.
Bell pepper nachos (edited from ASweetLife)
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp. chili powder
- 1 tsp. ground cumin
- 1 tsp. garlic powder
- 1 tsp. paprika
- 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp. pepper
- 1/2 tsp. oregano
- 1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes (more if you like it hotter)
- 1 lb. ground turkey
- 1 lb. mini peppers, halved and seeded
- 1 ½ cups shredded low fat Cheddar cheese
- ½ cup chopped tomato
- Other toppings as desired (black olives, chopped jalapeño, avocado)
Instructions
- Combine chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, paprika, salt, pepper, oregano and red pepper flakes in a small bowl.
- In a large skillet over medium heat, brown ground turkey until just cooked through (about 7 to 10 minutes), breaking up any clumps with the back of a wooden spoon. Add spice mixture and sauté until well combined. Remove from heat.
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F and line a large baking try with parchment paper or aluminum foil. Arrange mini peppers in a single layer, cut-side up but very close together.
- Sprinkle with ground turkey mixture and shredded cheese (make sure every mini pepper gets a little meat and cheese!). Bake 5 to 10 minutes, until cheese is melted.
- Remove from oven and top with chopped tomatoes and any other desired toppings. Serve immediately.