Food Friday: Superbowl Snack Recipe Roundup

We here at mommy's recess enjoy snacky foods (a little too much). Today's post is dedicated to recipes we've posted throughout the years to help you with your Superbowl Party planning (if you're having one...heck...even if you're not).

Tim's Homemade Chili

Beer Can Chicken

CrockPot Baked Potato Soup

BBQ Ham Balls

Spinach and Artichoke Dip

Chocolate Chip Cheese Ball

Sloppy Joes or Sloppy Jacks

Homemade Buffalo Chicken Pizza

That ought to keep your bellies full during the game. Mommy's Recess does not supply antacid. Sorry. :)

Shuffle Saturday: Homecoming!!

My brother was able to get tickets to Iowa State's Homecoming game today...he thought it was only appropriate that an Alumni attend the Homecoming game.

We got up, got the boys to Grandma and Grandpa's house and got up to Ames. It just happened to be the same day that Herman Cain would be stopping my the game...and who am I to turn down a photo op with a Presidential candidate??

So yes, Herman Cain, Iowa State Football and I can't forget the BBQ Pork Nachos.




It was a good day. But now I'm tired and I really hope the kids choose to sleep in tomorrow. I know they'll be up before 6...but a girl can dream, right?

Shuffle Saturday: Iowa's Own Superbowl- Iowa vs Iowa State...Brothers battle it out.

The big question of the day, are you an Iowa fan or Iowa State fan?

I'm for the Cyclones...that's because I did attend Iowa State. It's my Alma Mater. Of course I'm cheering for the Cyclones!!

My favorite joke? "What do Iowa and Iowa State fans have in common? Neither went to Iowa."

I love my Cyclones. And my kids are Cyclone fans.

My Aunt who lives in Arizona sent me a Hawkeye outfit when my second son was born. She thought it was the right team, but it wasn't. Anyway, my little guy fit well into it and I thought it would make for a cute picture last year...big brother vs. little brother.

Big brother says, "Can't we all just get along?"

But the battle for CyHawk in the Bowman living room begins...

And, like usual, Iowa plays dirty.

And then Iowa attacks...

Iowa State tries to fight back...but after getting yelled at by mom to be nice to his little brother...

Iowa thinks he's won...and like most Iowa fans after the game...

He passes out.


So who are you rooting for? This year the Iowa outfit it too small for my boys so they're decked out in Cardinal and Gold. GO STATE!!!

Superbowl Sunday: An Ongoing Tradition

We've been getting together for 6 years now for the Superbowl. From Ankeny to West Des Moines, it's been a fun tradition.

By "we" I mean Emma and I, the writers of Mommy's Recess. We've been new moms, pregnant through Superbowls, Dave was in Iraq one year (and we still got together). It's been fun and the kids always enjoy getting together.

Sean, Liam and Judah...and the stack of Conservative Books. :)

So for this special Mommy's Recess, we've decided to ask Liam (my oldest) a few questions:

Mommy's Recess: How long do you think we've been friends?
Liam: 75 years

Mommy's Recess: How old were you when we became friends?
Liam: I was still in mommy's tummy

Mommy's Recess: What does friend mean?
Liam: Someone you like.

Mommy's Recess: How do you think we met?
Liam: I don't know

Mommy's Recess: What's your first memory of Emma?
Liam: I remember you since I was a baby.

Which is true. Emma and Tim visited baby Liam in the hospital. We actually met volunteering on a campaign back in 2003. We were in each other's wedding party, we visited new babies in the hospital.

So on this Superbowl Sunday we're continuing the tradition. We've got a few more little boys running around between us (we're up to 4) and LOTS more food on the floor; but we wouldn't have it any other way. The food was delicious as always and like always, there's too much. But an overabundance of food, friends and fun is what we are very thankful for. Year after year.

Food Friday: The Thanksgiving of Junk Food--Superbowl Sunday!

For the last month, we here at Mommy's Recess shared some of our favorite junk food recipes, just in time for the big game.

In case you missed it, we shared:

Spinach and Artichoke Dip

Sloppy Joes or Sloppy Jacks

Taco Soup

Chocolate Chip Cheese Ball

And how to possibly score FREE pizza for the Big Game!


Now, if that wasn't enough, we even shared how to decorate on a budget and fun games to play during the game.

Feel free to throw in some baked potato skins and hot wings and you're good to go. Enjoy the game, the commercials and friends. And please, if you do plan on having adult beverages, celebrate responsibly.


*Just a small tip. While shopping for all of the ingredients to make these dishes for your guests, be sure to buy extra toilet paper. That's one thing you don't want to run out of. Also, you might want to review our post about  Keeping the Dishwasher Clean.

Go Packers!

Make Monday: Prepping for the Super Bowl

Having a party on Sunday? Here's a few tips to having a great party that will make your guests come back, year after year.

Be sure to have enough food. Yes, it is about the game (and commercials) but it's also about the food. You can have the traditional wings, dips and potato skins, but you can also make it a theme. I'm going to attempt to make Pierogis and Wisconsin Cheese Soup in honor of the two teams, the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Green Bay Packers. Just make sure you make enough!!

You can find inexpensive decorations at your local dollar store or, if you're a planner, on clearance the year before. Paper football field plates, plenty of forks and fun football decorations will create a sporty atmosphere that will get everyone amped up for the game.




Games to play at your party:


The can't say "football" game. At the beginning of halftime, give your guests two small paper footballs to stick onto their chests with double-sided tape. This is also a good project if you've got a preschooler who needs to work on his cutting paper skills. Let him cut the footballs out, after you've traced them. Tell everyone they're not allowed to say the word "football" while in conversation during halftime. If a guest hears someone use the word, they can take the football from the one who said it. The person who collects the most footballs before the beginning of the third quarter is the game winner.

Commercial fans? 

The commercials shown during the Super Bowl are often as exciting as the game itself.  Make a game out of it by ranking the commercials from greatest to lamest. Even guests who aren't football fans will have fun!

1. Give everyone a sheet of paper and a pen.
2. As commercials come on, make a note of the ones that stand out, whether they're good or bad. If they're funny or not.
3. After the game, add up which commercials got the best and worst votes. Everyone has to tell why they gave a thumbs up or thumbs down--or a ranking from 1-10. You may be surprised at how funny and loud the debate will get!

Guess the score

Before the game, have everyone write down what they think the score will be each quarter. At the end of every quarter, compare scores. Have a "gift" (we use a football necklace) for the winner to wear each quarter. At the end of the game, who ever has guessed the score closest to the actual score gets to take home the necklace. Make sure they bring it back next year. The "floating" necklace trophy has been a fun tradition of ours for years!

 With just a little bit of planning, you can make this Superbowl a game to remember!!

Food Friday: Taco Soup

Need a good dip for the upcoming big game? Here's a yummy easy dip that is sure to be a hit.

Ingredients:

1 pound of ground beef, browned and drained
Velveeta Cheese, 1/2 of the cube
1 can of rotel
1 half pint of half and half
1/2 of a white onion, chopped

Dump all of the items into the crock pot and set on low for about 4-5 hours. Spray the crock pot first so it doesn't stick to the inside.

Serve in bowls with chips.

Food Friday: My FAMOUS Spinach and Artichoke Dip Recipe

You've asked for it, so here it is. Continuing our theme of foods perfect for football, this is one. I always serve this at the Super Bowl, get togethers and (to be honest) almost every time Emma comes over. She LOVES it. It's really easy and so very good.

I've been making this for ten years already. I have it memorized and could probably make it in my sleep. So here goes:

1 cup of Mayo (NOT Miracle Whip, MAYO)
1 small package of frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
1 small jar of marinated artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
1 bag of shredded Monterrey Jack cheese (I can usually only find this from Kraft)
1 Tablespoon of Parmesan Cheese
1 teaspoon of garlic powder

Mix together all but 1/2 of the cheese bag. Hands work best to get all of the ingredients mixed. Top with remaining cheese. Bake for 20 minutes at 350. Serve with tostitos. Enjoy!

Make Monday: Chocolate Chip Cheese Ball

This "Make Monday" is a fun one that is tasty too! Our month of January "Makes" and "Food" will be focused on snacky type foods as I know many people are preparing for the NFL playoffs and the Superbowl! And with big football games comes big food!

A friend of mine said she was having this at New Years...and I had never heard of it. I found a recipe online and tweaked it a bit. My husband was weary of what would come of the recipe. It. Was. Delicious.

Ingredients

• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup confectioners' sugar
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips
• 3/4 cup finely chopped pecans (optional--I did not do this step)
• Graham Crackers (for serving)

Directions

1. In a medium bowl, beat together cream cheese and butter until smooth. Mix in confectioners' sugar, brown sugar and vanilla. Stir in chocolate chips. Cover, and chill in the refrigerator for 2 hours.
2. Shape chilled cream cheese mixture into a ball. Wrap with plastic, and chill in the refrigerator for 1 hour. I put it in the freezer for 30 minutes and that worked just as well.
3. Roll the cheese ball in finely chopped pecans before serving.(Optional: I chose to skip this step as we don't like nuts). 
4. Serve with Graham Crackers

You could even shape it into a football, roll it in nuts if you like and use white chocolate chips for the laces of the ball. Remind your guests this isn't an appetizer ball but a dessert ball. 

 

 

It tastes like chocolate chip cookie dough....so yummy!

Sports Saturday! Mommy's Little Football Players (Maybe)

It's the first Sports Saturday and it wouldn't be sports if I didn't include my favorite sport, football. I LOVE watching football. It's on right now. And my husband is vacuuming. That's how Saturdays and Sundays roll in our house. I watch football, cook and do laundry while he cleans.

He's never been that big into sports. He'll watch a game or two with me but I LOVE having football on TV; which is probably why I love fall. And probably why God has blessed me with three boys.

I love watching Notre Dame (which is where Liam says he's going to college--and that's fine with me as long as he has scholarships), Iowa State (where I graduated from) and the Kansas City Chiefs (because when I was 13 I was in love with Joe Montana--I had a Joe Montana poster on my wall, no really, I did).

Watching sports always helped me know what was going on as I was a cheerleader in high school. I always knew what "First and Ten" meant or what a "full back" did. I would play dumb with the joke "I don't know much about football but I know a tight end when I see one" but I could see if the opposing team was going to run a blitz. Yeah, I was that girl. And now I'm that mom.

Liam (my four, almost five year old) is not really into sports...or we haven't found his sport yet. He did gymnastics last year and enjoyed it, but we thought we would mix it up a bit and put him into soccer. It's not really his thing. We're thinking we'll go back to gymnastics soon. Sean, my middle child, he's the sports kid. He's not even 18 months yet but we can tell he'll be the football or rugby player. He likes to tackle. A lot. As you can see he's taking over the four year old below.

Maybe both of my boys will go to Notre Dame...but I predict Sean will have the athletic scholarship.