Big game day celebrations are the ultimate appetizer showdown! Whether you are hosting or attending a party, making an appetizer to share is a must. If you need some creative recipe inspiration to think beyond the Buffalo wing, here are some of my favorite appetizer recipes that you can use for your game day party and anytime after.
Shrimp Cocktail Dip
Shrimp cocktail dip is an appetizer my grandma always served. So simple yet so delicious. This is one of those appetizer recipes that may not steal the show with its looks, but certainly will surprise people with its flavor. It’s the perfect dish for a last-minute event.
Ingredients:
– 1 lb of frozen shrimp or fresh cooked
– Bundle of celery
– Heinz cocktail sauce
– Horseradish (optional)
– Club Crackers
Directions:
1) Bring pot to a boil; throw in frozen shrimp until pink and cooked through. Rinse and store in fridge to bring to a cool temperature.
2) Cut the celery and cooked shrimp into small pieces.
3) Mix shrimp, celery, and Heinz cocktail sauce together. Start with minimal amounts of Heinz sauce and build up. You can always add but you can’t take away. There is no measurement because it is up to your own desire. However, I would make sure it is all coated without sitting in extra sauce. Add some horseradish to the mix if you like a spicier cocktail sauce.
4) Serve in a bowl with a side of club crackers.
Deviled Eggs Recipe
Who doesn’t love a deviled egg? Especially one with extra pizazz! Add some bacon and potato chips to give these delicious treats some texture. It’s the perfect handheld snack for parties. This is the only appetizer recipe that is not my own or from my family. This is a recipe by Julia Levy on Southern Living called “Loaded Deviled Eggs”.
Ingredients:
– 2 bacon slices, chopped into ¼-inch pieces (about ¼ cup)
– 6 hard-cooked eggs
– 3 tablespoons sour cream
– ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
– ¼ teaspoon black pepper
– ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
– ¼ teaspoon onion powder
– ¼ cup potato chips, lightly crushed
– 2 tablespoons shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
– 1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives
Directions:
1. Fill a medium saucepan with water to a depth of 1 inch. Fit saucepan with steamer basket, and bring water to a boil over medium-high. Add eggs to basket; cover and steam 13 to 14 minutes.
2. Remove eggs from pan, and transfer to an ice bath. Peel.
3. Cook bacon in a medium skillet over medium until crisp, about 5 minutes, stirring often. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate.
4. Cut hard-cooked eggs in half lengthwise, and scoop out yolks into a medium bowl. Add sour cream, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder to yolks; stir until mixture is fully combined and smooth.
5. Spoon yolk mixture into a zip-top plastic bag, and cut off ½-inch from one of the corners. Pipe yolk mixture evenly into the cavity of each egg white half.
6. Place egg halves on a serving platter, and sprinkle evenly with cooked bacon, chips, Cheddar, and chives. Serve chilled or at room temperature.
Charcuterie Board
There really is no exact recipe for a charcuterie board but there is an art to making one that is tasty and beautiful. Luckily, most Kroger’s have a Murray’s cheese selection. This takes a lot of the headache out of figuring out what to include. Here are a few of my tips to assemble a beautiful charcuterie board:
1. Pick cheeses that are unique but not too extravagant that no one will eat them.
a. My favorites: goat cheese, brie, dill Havarti, Merlot Bellavitano
2. Always have some sort of fresh fruit or dried fruit option. Strawberries or grapes are a great option.
3. Pick a cracker that pairs well with your cheese selection.
4. Jams are my favorite thing to add to my charcuterie board. My go to is a chili fig jam that you can find in the Murray’s cheese section at Kroger. The creamy texture of cheese, with the spice of the jam and crunch of a cracker is the perfect pairing.
5. Some great space fillers include varieties of nuts, olives or even pretzels.
6. Sometimes I focus on mainly cheeses but a great charcuterie board includes cured meats. I think this is the area where you shouldn’t skimp. Quality is key when it comes to the meat for a charcuterie board.
7. A stable board that looks nice is the perfect vessel to put all of these goods on for a charcuterie board that will wow anyone. My mom has the top of an old bourbon barrel for her big charcuterie boards but her smaller ones she uses a wood cutting board.
Veggie Tray
This one may seem like a no-brainer for appetizer recipes, but the key to a great veggie tray is to make it from scratch. There are some dishes where you can’t taste the difference in a store-bought product versus a homemade product, but this is a case where you certainly can. Grab a variety of vegetables that vary in color but aren’t extremely unique that no one will want to snack on them. The star of the show is the homemade ranch dip. It is super easy to make but for optimal flavor it needs to sit overnight. This entire recipe consists of mixing the dip, preparing the veggies, and assembling them. Boom you have a beautiful appetizer!
1 Head of Broccoli
1 Bag of multi- colored peppers
1 Bag of carrots
1 English Cucumber
1 bundle of Celery
1 Whole Bell Pepper (any color, this will be for decoration and hold the ranch)
Ranch dip:
16 oz sour cream
1 Packet of Hidden Valley Ranch dip powder
1) Mix sour cream and ranch dip. Let sit over night for the optimal flavor.
2) Wash vegetables.
3) Cut up vegetables that need to be made smaller.
4) Place a carved out whole bell pepper in the center of your dish and fill with ranch dip.
5) Arrange vegetables around the bell pepper.
Bruschetta Recipe
Bruschetta always seems to be a fan favorite and it is also a simple appetizer recipe to make. I add burrata to my recipe because I enjoy how it balances the zest of the bruschetta mix. However, you can serve it traditionally without the burrata if you prefer.
– 6 Roma tomatoes
– 1/3 cup basil leaves, chopped
– 4 garlic cloves
– 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
– 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
– ½ tsp salt
– ¼ tsp pepper
– Balsamic glaze (optional)
For toast:
– 1 baguette
– 3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
– Burrata or fresh mozzarella
Make the tomato topping:
1. Dice tomatoes. Drain any excess juice and move to mixing bowl.
2. Stack basil leaves one on top of the other and roll up. Thinly slice the basil and move to mixing bowl.
3. Mince 4 cloves of garlic and mix in with the tomatoes.
4. Season the mixture with 2 Tbsp of olive oil, 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper. Mix together and let sit for 30 minutes.
5. Serve tomato mixture on top of toast with a layer of burrata underneath.
6. Add a drizzle of balsamic glaze on top.
Make the Bruschetta toast:
1. Preheat the oven to 400˚F.
2. Cut baguette into ½” thick slices.
3. Arranges slices on a parchment lined baking sheet and brush olive oil on both sides.
4. Bake at 400 degrees for 5 minutes then broil on high heat for 1 to 2 minutes.
Hanky Panky Taquitos
As far as appetizer recipes go, the Hanky Panky Taquitos are a new creation for me. One day, I thought that the hanky panky mixture would pair phenomenally with a crunchy exterior. That is how I got the random idea to mix taquitos and hanky pankies to make a Hanky Panky Taquito. I looked around the internet to make sure I wasn’t stealing anyone’s idea and was shocked to find I had an original idea. I played around with these and was not sure whether corn or flour tortillas would fit this recipe better. I chose corn to give it that bite that you would typically get from a traditional pumpernickel slice for this appetizer. You can certainly try flour tortillas and baking instead of frying. They sure don’t look pretty but they are quite delicious!
For Filling:
16 oz Velveeta Cheese
16 oz Ground Beef
16 oz Hot Pork Sausage
1 Tsp Salt
1 Tsp Oregano
1 Tsp Worcestershire Sauce
½ Tsp Garlic Salt
For taquitos:
24 (6 inch) White corn tortillas
½ cup oil
Directions for Filling:
1) Brown meat In a skillet over medium-high heat .
2) Drain the excess oil
3) Add in cubed pieces of the Velveeta cheese, salt, oregano, Worcestershire sauce, and garlic salt. Mix everything together.
Once mixed, you should have a creamy mixture that coats all of the meat.
Directions for taquitos:
1. Heat a skillet with oil on medium-high heat.
2. Warm a few tortillas at a time in the microwave for about 15 seconds. This will keep them from splitting when you roll them.
3. Spread 2 tablespoons of the mixture on the tortillas. Roll up and set seam side down in the oil. Cook until golden brown.
4. Set on paper towels to drain excess oil.
Tip: If you are looking to serve these a day after making them, you can pop them in the oven at 300 degrees to crisp and warm.
Whipped Feta Dip with Honey
Whipped Feta Dip is my favorite and most consistent appetizer recipe that I make. It’s sweet, salty and cheesy. It looks beautiful and is so simple to make. This appetizer is always a fan favorite. Tastes great and looks pretty!
– 4 oz crumbled Feta cheese
– 4 oz cream cheese, room temperature
– 1 Tbsp olive oil
– 1/2 tsp minced garlic
– 1/2 tsp dried basil
– 1/2 tsp cracked black pepper
– 1/4 C honey
– 1 tsp finely chopped chives
– Pita chips
1. Mix the cream cheese, feta, garlic, dried basil, black pepper and olive oil in a food processor.
2. Plate mixture from food processor. Make a well in the center of the dip and fill with honey.
3. Garnish with chives and serve with pita chips.
