It’s finally September! From my backyard I can see the Friday night lights of Salem Stadium in the distance. With the glow of the stadium over the trees, the muffled announcer, and marching band drums carrying for a mile in the cold air, I know fall has arrived. Many local people go to local games even without kids in school. This is the best of High School football.
I didn’t go to the football games when I was in high school. We had the game day pep rallies and all the hoopla at school, but I worked every game night. I got to see everyone after the game as they came through the local McDonald’s drive-thru to buy celebratory Big Macs or drown their sorrows in McNuggets.
However, as a good aunt does, I went to many Salem High School football games in the late ’90s and 2000s. Either for the nephews on the team or the ones in the marching band. My coworkers’ sons played football also, so we sat together and cheered them on. Our squad sat in the heat, humidity, wind, rain, and sometimes snow. Moving from 70-degree September sweat to bundling in heavy blankets by late October playoffs.
My God-daughter was a cheerleader so I needed to watch her too. She was at Northside High School while my nephews went to Salem High School. I always had to sneak back and forth in the stands when the teams played each other.
I loved watching them run plays under the lights and remembering them when they were just toddlers falling over in the backyard. Watching them grow from pee-wee or junior varsity squads all the way to senior night banners was emotional for me as it marked time passing.
While I ate many stadium hot dogs, I always enjoyed the times when we planned on tailgating before the game. Sometimes we brought a small charcoal grill and we would have burgers or hot dogs since those are easy to eat while standing up. At away games, we ate foods we didn’t have to heat up or we could keep cold in a good cooler. Dips, sandwiches, and cookies were always a hit. There was at least one thermos with hot chocolate to help warm us up on cold game nights.
We always brought extra for after the games. The kids would join us after the game and I think the band members ate more than the football players.
The best tailgating recipes combine easy transport with crowd-pleasing comfort food. If I have to worry about the food and how to fix it, then I will miss the fun of gathering with friends.
When I said I was going to talk about football and tailgating a neighbor gave me a tailgating recipe to use.
“Shelly, this is a cherished recipe, passed down from my father: 1.) Hold the beer firmly in one hand, with the tab-side facing up. 2.) Carefully, using a level of dexterity developed over millions of years, crack that sucker open. 3.) Enjoy!”
He’s a bit of a jerk.
Here are some of my favorite tailgating foods (or homegating if you prefer!)
Beer Dip
Ingredients
2 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup beer or nonalcoholic beer
1 envelope ranch salad dressing mix
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
Pretzels of all shapes and sizes for dipping
Directions
In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese, beer and dressing mix until smooth. Stir in cheddar cheese. Serve with pretzels.
Layered Picnic Loaves
Ingredients
2 unsliced loaves (1 pound each) of Italian bread
1/4 cup olive oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 teaspoons Italian seasoning, divided
1/2 pound deli roast beef
12 slices part-skim mozzarella cheese (1 ounce each)
16 fresh basil leaves
3 medium tomatoes, thinly sliced
1/4 pound thinly sliced salami
1 jar (6-1/2 ounces) marinated artichoke hearts, drained and sliced
1 package (10 ounces) ready-to-serve salad greens
8 ounces thinly sliced deli chicken
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
Directions
Cut loaves in half horizontally; hollow out tops and bottoms, leaving 1/2-in. shells (discard removed bread or save for another use). Combine oil and garlic; brush inside bread shells. Sprinkle with 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning. Layer bottom of each loaf with a fourth of each: roast beef, mozzarella, basil, tomatoes, salami, artichokes, salad greens, chicken and onion. Repeat layers. Season with salt, pepper and remaining Italian seasoning. Drizzle with remaining oil mixture if desired. Replace bread tops; wrap tightly and refrigerate at least 1 hour before slicing.
Peanut Butter Cake Bars
Ingredients
2/3 cup butter, softened
2/3 cup peanut butter
1 cup sugar
1 cup packed brown sugar
4 large eggs, room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 package (11-1/2 ounces) milk chocolate chips
Directions
Preheat oven to 350°. In a large bowl, cream first 4 ingredients until light and fluffy, 5-7 minutes. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla. Combine flour, baking powder and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture. Stir in chocolate chips. Spread onto a greased 13×9-in. baking pan. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 45-50 minutes. Cool on a wire rack. Cut into bars.
