October 4, 2012

How to Be Southern: Football Tailgating Food

This morning I'm joining those fabulous folks at Knoxville's WTNZ Fox43 and we're talking football...specifically tailgating. Football and the festivities that it brings are such a way of life here in the south, whether high school games on Friday nights, college tailgating on Saturdays and NFL match-ups on Sundays. I wanted to share some tailgate food ideas that I think will make your next tailgate really special. 


1) The Barbecue Sundae 
I saw this idea at a fall festival and thought it would be perfect tailgating fare. Mason jars filled with all your favorite barbecue fixings, layered like a sundae! 


This recipe was created by my blogger friend Nealey and I'm adding my own spin to it for this morning's segment by creating individual servings of the delicious treat in jars. You can fill the jars ahead of time but not too far ahead or the bananas will start to turn brown. 


3) Tennessee Caviar 
I adapted this recipe from one of Paula Deen's. It's so easy to make and a real fan favorite. Just mix together a couple cans of black-eyed peas, a can of RoTel and enough Zesty Italian salad dressing to coat it all. You can also add a can of corn if you like. For the segment today, I'm serving this tasty side dish in small jars perfect for tailgating! 


4) Pimento Cheese & Celery
Pimento cheese is such a southern staple and it's a great addition to any tailgate. As lovely as it looks spread on celery, it's much easier to serve it in small cups or containers. Then you can just toss a few stalks of celery in each cup and it makes for easy tailgating. There are several delicious store-bought brands, but if you want to go all out, make my homemade pimento cheese. You won't be sorry! 

I hope some of these ideas inspired you! Whether you're tailgating near the stadium of your favorite team or just cheering them on from your living room, the food you enjoy while doing so helps to make the experience memorable. Food, family and football really are a way of life here in the sweet south and I hope you are able to enjoy all three!

Catch my tailgating segment and all the rest on the TV page of my blog.