Healthy Tailgating
Well everyone……. Fall is in the air! The crisp morning air lately here in Nashville and the cicadas singing their hearts out just signifies that summer is coming to an end and Fall is around the corner. Let me just stop and say that I love Fall! I love pretty much everything about this time of year….. football games, tailgating, bonfires, colorful leaves, hayrides, chili suppers, apple ciders, pumpkin patches, comfy sweaters, and….well, my birthday! One of the most fun festivities especially here in the South is of course FOOTBALL and TAILGATING! Lets just spend a minute on tailgating, I mean lets be honest….tailgating food is just YUM from the nachos to the buffalo wings, it is all good! I love to keep the “fun” in food but at the same time I always recommend eating whole and healthy as possible. Sooooooo, as seen on Nashville’s News Channel 5 Talk of the Town, I have created 4 very healthy, delicious, and easy tailgating recipes to make your next tailgating event a healthy hit! The full segment with Talk of the Town will be coming to the media section on my site and here are all 4 recipes, I hope you love them as much as we do! Cheers to healthy tailgating and go team!!! Enjoy!
Healthy Football Finger Food!
Healthy Buffalo Chick-Quinoa Bites:
1 cup cooked Quinoa
1 whole Cooked Rotisserie Chicken-Ground
2oz Light Blue Cheese
1 egg
1/4 cup Natural Wing Sauce
2 tbsp fresh chives-chopped
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp pepper
How To:
Cook Quinoa, drain, and set aside. De-bone all chicken and place in food processor, grind chicken until it is fully in a “ground” consistency. In a large bowl add quinoa, ground chicken, and all above ingredients together, toss and mix all ingredients together well. Pre-heat oven at 375 degrees. Line a large sheet pan with non stick aluminum foil. Gather Buffalo Chick-Quinoa mixture into small round bites similar in size to a meat ball. Place each bit spaced on sheet pan. Cook in oven for 10-12 minutes or until the bites look slightly brown/cooked. Remove from heat, drizzle with extra wing sauce, serve with Blue cheese Ranch dip and celery sticks. Enjoy
Yields: 25-30 Buffalo Bites
Light Blue Cheese Ranch Dip
1 16 ounce container nonfat plain Greek yogurt
Add 1 packet of Simply Organic Ranch Dip dry mix (found at Whole Foods)
Stir in 1/4 cup light blue cheese
Mix all ingredients together well and serve or refrigerate until ready to serve.
Healthy Apple Nachos
6-8 whole apples
1/4 cup raw cacao nibs or natural chocolate chips
1/4 cup shredded coconut
1/4 cup sliced almonds or chopped pecans
1/4-1/2 cup of raw almond butter
How to:
Slice apples thin in round form or form of your choice, place the sliced apples on serving tray and drizzle the raw almond butter over Apple slices, sprinkle raw cacao nibs or natural chocolate chips, coconut, and nuts on top of apples evenly. Serve immediately or refrigerate until ready to serve.
Side suggestions: dip apple slices I orange juice or sprinkle with fruit fresh to keep from apples turning brown before assembling the nachos.
The almond butter used is: Raw Almond Butter Creamy from Trader Joes
The Raw Cacao nibs can be found at Whole Foods.
Healthy Veggie Rolls
4-6 fresh Zucchini and Squash
1 container Roasted red bell pepper hummus or hummus of your choice
16slices provolone cheese
16slices fresh sliced natural turkey
1-2 cups lettuce
1 red bell pepper sliced in thin strips
Tooth picks.
How To:
Using a kitchen tool called a mandolin, carefully slice all the zucchini and squash in long strips with a thin-medium thickness level (not too thin), spread 1 tablespoon hummus to strips then layer 1/2 slice provolone, 1/2 slice turkey, small amount of lettuce, and red bell pepper strips, roll the layers zucchini and squash strips and secure with tooth pic. Serve immediately or refrigerate until ready to serve.
Serve with above Blue Cheese Ranch Dip or healthy dip of your choice. Enjoy!
