An Italian and a Greek walk into a Tailgate

I was flipping through a stack of recipes I had torn out of magazines from back when I used to read magazines and tear out recipes.  Greek chicken wings with loads of lemon and oregano, I immediately knew I had to try these and quickly.  Most of my inspiration comes from my terrible habit of procrastinating and the need to come up with 5 new recipes 2 days before we shoot my show.  These wings seemed too easy and yet they have so much flavor it was easy to dress them up a tiny bit and make them an original Tailgating Tidbits recipe.  They can be baked and served, grilled only or try both like I did, just don't forget the feta and olives!  The following recipe is very forgiving, no need to measure much of anything, just eyeball your marinade and the final Greek toppings.  You can never have too much flavor in a simple dish like this!  

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Greek Chicken Wings with Grilled Lemon 

Ingredients:

15-20 chicken wings, 

       legs or combination of both 

5 lemons  (zest from 2 lemons) 

1 cup olive oil   

2 Tablespoons dried oregano 

1 Tablespoon Sweet Hungarian Paprika 

1 Tablespoon Granulated Garlic 

      (similar to garlic powder)

1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper 

1 Tablespoon kosher salt 

1/2 Tablespoon Cracked Black Pepper 

For serving: 

1 bunch scallions, green part only chopped 

1 small can sliced black olives, drained 

Handful flat leaf parsley, chopped 

1/2 – 1 cup feta cheese 

Instructions: 

If using chicken wings, remove wing tips 

Add chicken wings to a re-sealable bag or container with a lid 

Marinate wings overnight (or a few hours) in olive oil, zest of two lemons, 

juice of three lemons, and spices from above.  

Toss and coat wings in marinade.  Place in fridge until ready to cook 

Preheat oven to 375 degrees 

Place wings on foil lined baking sheet 

Bake wings for 45 minutes 

Throw cooked wings on the grill for 5-8 minutes for a nice char

Add two sliced lemons to the grill 

as well for 3-4 minutes 

Remove wings and pile on platter 

Add scallions, olives, parsley, 

feta and juice from grilled lemons 

Serve immediately 

Sweet Chex Mix

I started by teaching career back in the late 90's and meet my first teacher friend, Deb.  Deb taught both high school math and German and somehow managed to make the best birthday lunches for all of us in the math department. It was there she introduced this amazing, crunchy, sweet, addicting, delicious treat to the entire math department (it's radical...get it).  In the year 2K she also brought it to every bunco night, fast forward to playdates once we had kids and to this day in 2019 she has kept the recipe going strong.  The hardest part of this recipe is deciding how many batches you are going to make because let's be honest, you are not going to eat the leftover wheat chex with milk.
Go ahead and buy two pounds of butter, you will need it!

Unlike most of my recipes this one is pretty exact with measurements.  Click the link to watch me make the yummy treat on Tailgating Tidbits.  Recipe follows below and can also be printed for quick access!

Follow along below or  Click here to print 

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Sweet and Crunchy Chex Mix 

Ingredients: 

3/4 cup salted butter (not margarine) 

1 cup brown sugar (dark or light)

2 cups corn chex 

2 cups wheat chex (or Crispex) 

2 cups rice chex 

1 cup pecan halves 

(I break them in half) 

1 cup pretzel circles or any flat pretzel 

Preheat over to 350 degrees 

Bring butter and brown sugar to a boil 

over medium high heat, whisking or stirring constantly, 

and continue to boil for 2 additional minutes. 

In a large bowl combine the cereal, pecans and pretzels 

Pour butter and sugar mixture over mixture and stir until combined 

Pour onto a greased 9x13 cookie sheet (I used a silpat on a cookie sheet) 

Bake at 350 degrees for 8 minutes, stir and cook another 8 minutes 

Cool before serving  

Breaded Eggplant Sandwich with a Fancy Chocolate Balsamic Glaze

Eggplant is my favorite vegetable ever, I'm obsessed with all kinds of eggplant, especially the long, skinny, pretty, Chinese eggplant that tends to be less bitter than Italian eggplant.  However, here is the thing, I don't find eggplant bitter, I don't mind the seeds, I don't even feel the need to peel eggplant.  Maybe I'm a little lazy and that is why I don't mind all those things but I think they just bring out the eggplant flavor.

This sandwich is a perfect blend of soft and sweet and yet hearty enough for dinner.  The eggplant is tender with a touch of salt, topped with garlic goat cheese, spicy arugula and a chocolate balsamic glaze that gives the perfect finish.

I have included the recipe below (you can watch it or print it or both) notice I don't measure anything and you can swap out whatever you think.  You can make your own breadcrumbs (just toast any old  bread you have in oven until crispy and then process in a blender, food processor or vitamix.  Add spices like I have shown and store any extra in the fridge.)  You can also make your own glaze by slowly heating about 3 Tablespoons sugar with 1 cup balsamic over medium heat.  Stir often and don't let it burn.  Extra can be stored in the fridge as well.

You also have options!  Skip the bun and make an eggplant stack, change out the goat cheese for pepper jelly,  Add lemon to the arugula instead of olive oil.  Add honey to the goat cheese to sweeten the entire dish.  So many choices.....

This sandwich makes a great meatless option to your nightly routine and if you are tailgating, it is a great way to switch it up!!!

Click below to watch Tailgating Tidbits 

Featuring "Breaded Eggplant Sandwich"

Follow along below or  Click here to print
Once the recipe pops up, just use your file menu to print. 

Tailgating Tidbits

Breaded Eggplant Sandwich with Chocolate Balsamic Glaze, 

Spicy Arugula And Herbed Goat Cheese

Recipe courtesy of Celeste

Ingredients:

2 eggplants, sliced in rounds (no need to peel)

1 cup flour

2 cups breadcrumbs (you can sub half with panko)

2 eggs

4 oz goat cheese

2 cups arugula

Chocolate Balsamic Glaze  (regular glaze will work here too)

Olive oil

Garlic Powder

Italian Seasoning

Dried Rosemary

Kosher Salt and pepper

Brioche buns, sliced and lightly toasted

You will need three bowls for this dish; a wide bowl is better

Add flour to bowl and set aside

Crack eggs in bowl, add 1 Tablespoon water with a pinch of salt and pepper

Season breadcrumbs with 1 tablespoon each of garlic powder, Italian Seasoning, Dried Rosemary, kosher salt and give a few cracks of black pepper

Mix Goat cheese with 1 teaspoon garlic powder and ½ teaspoon black pepper

Mix arugula with 2 Tablespoons olive oil

Over medium high heat, add olive oil to large skillet until the bottom is just covered

To bread eggplant:

Take each slice and dip both sides in flour, then egg wash, then your seasoned breadcrumbs .  I usually pat my breadcrumbs on the eggplant gently. 

Add to hot oil, they are done after a few minutes on each side.  

The eggplant should have a golden brown crust and will be soft inside. 

As soon as you remove from the oil, drain on paper towels and season immediately on with a pinch of kosher salt.

To assemble:

Spread a nice amount on each toasted brioche bun bottom

Top with our lightly dressed arugula

Add your hot eggplant

Drizzle with your balsamic glaze

Serve immediately 

What is Calamari Anyway?

Fried Calamari is my favorite appetizer ever!  Some restaurants make it better than others; some add peppers or finish with a garlic aioli and some restaurants serve a perfect combination of rings and tentacles.  As long as there is lemon and a nice crunch, I am happy!  Calamari is so easy to make that my kids ask for it every week (when they don't ask for fries).  I have combined three flours for the coating however you can stick to just seasoned flour if you prefer.  Also, don't bother measuring anything, this recipe should be easy.  If you watch the video you will see I just throw the dry ingredients together, cooking is unlike baking in that regard.  Lastly, you can find cleaned calamari frozen almost anywhere or fresh at your farmers market, both work great.  OH, and what exactly is calamari?  Calamari is squid.  The kind you will buy most often has already been cleaned of the ink and outer skin.  The tubes or rings you are eating are the body and the tentacles (my favorite part) are indeed, the tentacles.  Calamari can also be sautéed or grilled, maybe we will try that next season!  

Click below to watch Tailgating Tidbits 

Featuring "Fried Calamari"

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Tailgating Tidbits 

Fried Calamari 

Recipe courtesy of Celeste

Ingredients:

1-2 pounds calamari, cleaned, rinsed and sliced in rings if using tubes.

Buttermilk

2 cups flour

2 cups corn masa flour, also called masa harina

1 cup corn meal

kosher salt

1 Teaspoon Pepper

1 Teaspoon Garlic Powder

1 Teaspoon Sweet Hungarian Paprika

2 Tablespoons Tony Chachere’s seasoning

6 cups peanut oil 

3 lemons

Marinara sauce for serving/dipping

Soak cleaned and sliced calamari in buttermilk for a few hours or overnight

                                                      Get ready: 

Line a huge sheet pan with brown paper 
(I usually overlap lunch bags)

Slice 2 lemons in half and 1 in wedges 
to serve on the side

Grab your salt and have it handy

Heat your marinara and add to a small bowl and place on sheet pan

Heat your peanut oil to about 350 degrees 
(I never measure the temp, I just throw in a pinch of flour to see if it bubbles up, that means it is ready).

Mix flour, masa and corn meal in a large bowl with salt, pepper, garlic powder, paprika and Tony Chachere’s Seasoning, mix together.

Strain calamari

                                                      You are ready to fry:

Take a huge handful of calamari and 
add to flour mixture,

toss to coat or mix gently

Add to hot oil and stay near

Calamari will cook very quickly, 
it will only take a minute or two. 

Remove with a wire strainer and spread out over brown paper. 

Sprinkle immediately with salt and half lemon

Repeat with another huge handful of calamari

Repeat until you have cooked all the calamari

Eat immediately! 

Note:  Unlike when I make my French fries, I do not re-use this oil.  I wait until it cools and add it to an empty pickle jar to discard in the trash.  Do not throw it down the sink.