Affiliate Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. If you purchase something through one of these links, I may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. I have not purchased these cookbooks; I’m sharing them as reading and cooking inspiration for this week’s 30-Minute Reading Challenge.
#Football isn’t something I think about but my brother is staying with us. Last week was the Cowboy’s first game for the Season and he likes to watch Football.
Sometimes David does too. As for Charlie and I we may not be a football fan, But there is one thing I can tell you about football season: Football food calls my name.
If I ever actually went to watch a football game, you can bet your bottom dollar David would have a beer in his hand, and I’d have a hot dog and some popcorn. LOL
Don’t ask me what Charlie would get because I honestly don’t think he would go with us because there would be to many people. Since we don’t usually go to football games, we do something much more our speed.
We cook football food at home. And Sunday is a pretty good day for it. We might not even watch football while we’re eating it. We might watch 80 for Brady. We might watch The Longest Yard.
And technically, those are football movies, aren’t they? This is the type of football you will find in my home because my house is never quite like everybody else’s.
We’ve got multiple TVs, though, so if you really want to watch the game, you’re welcome to head into the man cave. I’ll probably go upstairs and find something else to watch. But I’ll still be eating the football food.
For our 30 minutes reading challenge were we showcase a Cookbook, we’re changing things up just a little. Instead of picking up a cookbook that would fit into our Interactive Halloween Gift Guide, I’m thinking ahead.
Halloween will be here soon enough, but right now we’re in that wonderful in-between season where football has kicked off, but here in Texas, it isn’t exactly cold outside.
I’m not ready for a big pot of fall soup yet which means Fall has arrived. But I am absolutely ready for appetizers, snacks, dips and food that can sit on the table while everybody grabs a little of this and a little of that.
So for today’s 30-Minute Reading Challenge, we’re going to spend 30 minutes exploring football and tailgating cookbooks. You don’t have to be a football fan. Trust me. I understand. You just have to like food.
I picked out three Cookbooks for Game-Day Inspiration that would make a wonderful Christmas Gift for #Football fans like my nephew David. Which is why you will find these cookbooks inside our Christmas Gift Guide.
The Southern Tailgating Cookbook: A Game-Day Guide for Lovers of Food, Football, and the South
A Game-Day Guide for Lovers of Food, Football, and the South includes 110 recipes along with tailgating preparation advice, packing information, food-safety tips and stories about Southern football traditions.
That makes it more than just a collection of recipes. And sometimes that’s exactly what I enjoy about a cookbook. You can read about the food, the traditions and the ideas behind it, even if you aren’t planning to cook every recipe.
For our 30-minute challenge, grab a cup of coffee, sit down and start reading. You might find something you want to make. Or you might spend 20 minutes looking at recipes and the other 10 minutes deciding what you’re hungry for. I wouldn’t judge you.
Kickoff Kitchen: 64 Game-Day Recipes Inspired by Every Pro Football Team by Tim Lopez takes a different approach.
There are recipes inspired by all 32 professional football teams, with two recipes representing each team.
That makes this one fun if you have a favorite team—or if you’re like me and your first question is simply: “What’s that recipe?” You don’t have to know every player on the field to enjoy reading about the food.
Tailgates to Touchdowns: Fabulous Football Food
Focuses on the casual side of game-day eating.- Think appetizers, grilled foods, sauces and spreads, main dishes and desserts.
It’s the kind of cookbook that gets you thinking about putting together a table full of food instead of sitting down to one formal meal. And that’s exactly what I want for a football-food Sunday.
Now we get to the really important part. The food. I love the idea of putting together a simple charcuterie-style football tray without making it complicated or expensive.
You don’t need twenty different things. Start with some sausage balls. Then add crackers and pretzels. Maybe some sliced meats. Pickles and olives are always good choices.
Grapes or another easy fruit can add something fresh. Add some nuts if your family likes them, and don’t forget something sweet. And if you’re putting sausage balls on the tray? I’d have some mustard nearby. Because sausage balls and mustard just make sense to me.
The whole idea is to put together a tray of things people can grab while they’re watching the game—or while they’re watching a football movie, or whatever happens to be playing at your house.
And then I had another thought. We already make Rotel dip at our house. It’s one of those recipes that doesn’t need a football game as an excuse. But if we’re making sausage balls anyway, why not use sausage in our Rotel dip, too?
Make the sausage balls. Put them on your snack tray. Then make a batch of Rotel sausage dip. Now you’ve got two completely different game-day foods that start with the same ingredient.
That’s my kind of cooking. And that’s exactly what you’ll find on our printable recipe card: two recipes on one card. Making us grateful, thankful and blessed for #Football.
I can’t wait to make these sausage balls because I already know everyone in my home is going to love them. And I’m not just thinking about them as a football snack.
Can’t you see sausage balls for breakfast? I can. Put a few on a plate with some eggs and you’ve got breakfast. Lunch? Absolutely. Dinner? Of course. Game-day snack? You bet.
That’s one of the things I love about recipes like this. They’re not limited to one holiday or one occasion. You can make them for football Sunday and then turn around and make them for breakfast another day.
Here’s what I want you to do. Set your timer for 30 minutes. Pick one of these cookbooks and read. Look at the recipes. Find something that sounds good.
Maybe make a list of recipes you’d like to try. And if you find yourself getting hungry? Well… That’s kind of the point. Because now you have a reason to try a new recipe or two.
If you like Sausage make our two game-day recipes: sausage balls and Rotel sausage dip. Then put together a simple snack tray. Invite your family to grab a plate. And don’t worry if nobody actually watches football.
At our house, we might be watching 80 for Brady. We might be watching The Longest Yard. David might be in the man cave watching an actual game. While Gerald is camped out on the couch watching multiple games.
Charlie might be doing something completely unrelated. And I’ll probably be upstairs. But wherever everybody ends up, there will be football food. And that’s good enough for me. So come join us for 30 minutes of reading. Then let’s eat!
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✝️ Glenda 🐸 David 🎮 Charlie 🦋 Suzanne
Grateful, Thankful, and Blessed.
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