Super Bowl
Individual Crispy "Loaded" Pizza
Pizza is a universal crowd-pleaser, and part of its charm is the doughy bed it rests on, along with gooey, wonderful cheese. You'll get no argument from me. I love pizza. But not all pizzas are created equally. This pizza is loaded with cheese, mushrooms, sausage, and peperoncini, but not calories. So for watching your weight, this pizza is a delicious solution. It's meaty, yet amazingly low in fat. You'll love the crust's wholesome taste.
By Rocco DiSpirito
Chipotle-Honey–Glazed Chicken Wings with Toasted Sesame Seeds and Green Onion
Even though this version of hot wings is healthier than the classic—which is deep-fried and tossed in lots of butter and hot sauce—it's every bit as tasty.
By Bobby Flay
Guacamole Taquero: Taco-Shop Guacamole
Editor's note: Chef Roberto Santibañez, the chef/owner of Fonda in Brooklyn, New York shared this recipe as part of a festive taco party menu he created for Epicurious. He recommends serving this guacamole with his Carnitas or Carne Adobada Tacos .
Before you start gobbling delicate corn tortillas topped with salty, tasty meat in the taquerias of central Mexico, you get to crown your snack with your choice of several salsas, often including what might be my favorite taco condiment of all: guacamole taquero. Blurring the line between guacamole and salsa, this smooth blend of creamy avocado and tart tomatillos packs a spicy punch from serrano chiles and a hint of pungent epazote (many cooks add cilantro instead and so can you). I'll put this on just about any imaginable taco, but it's especially amazing spooned over those filled with Carnitas ,Steak , and grilled cactus.
By Roberto Santibañez and JJ Goode
Baby Buttermilk Biscuit Pizzas
Rather than making pizza dough from scratch, patting out biscuit dough for mini pizzas is a quick, fun shortcut that older kids, like our eleven-year-old niece Lauren, will enjoy joining in on. And the kids can top their own pizzas, too, if they like, piling on the cheese and pepperoni or, if you’ve got a strange kid who likes them like Bobby always did, with sliced olives.
By Jamie Deen , Bobby Deen , and Melissa Clark
Chicken Taquitos
This easy Epicurious-exclusive recipe is from Chef Dave Northrup of Rush Street in Los Angeles. It's perfect for any Super Bowl or tailgating party. Just pick up an already cooked chicken at the store, shred it, add some fillings, roll up the tortillas, and pan-fry them.
By Dave Northrup
Pigs in a Blanket
Along with shrimp puffs and the ubiquitous nut-coated cheese ball, some version of these tasty bites was all the rage at 1950s cocktail parties. They haven't lost their allure—just some fat and calories—in this slimmed-down incarnation that swaps reduced-fat hot dogs and crispy leaves of phyllo for the traditional fat-laden cocktail sausages and crescent-roll dough.
By Rocco DiSpirito
Baked Crab Dip
Fresh crab meat is so rich, fabulous, and sweet that, for this dip, I wanted to highlight the texture and flavor of the crab without masking it. Served bubbly hot with a crisply browned, lemon zestpanko topping, this dip will be a party favorite—easy to put together, quick to bake, and quick to disappear, too.
By Diane Morgan
Polynesian Chicken Wings
By Paula Deen
Green-Peppercorn Cornmeal Crackers
Cornmeal lends these crackers a golden glow and a nice crunch; lots of crushed green peppercorns (left over from Chicken Spice Rub ) provide an intriguing spiciness. Serve them with cheese or all on their own with cocktails.
By Ruth Cousineau
Chipotle Onion Dip with Garlic Pita Chips
In this version of chips and dip—an essential snack food—making your own onion dip (spiked with chipotle chiles) really ups the ante. Homemade pita chips flavored with garlic come together quickly and are so much better than anything you'll find in the chip aisle.
By Lora Zarubin
Bourbon-Glazed Chicken Drumettes with Blue Cheese Dipping Sauce
Buffalo wings, all grown up.
By Lora Zarubin
Poppy Cheddar Moon Crackers
Too often crackers get short shrift as merely vehicles for a slice or smear of cheese. Not here. By incorporating cheese into the dough, along with the tiny crunch of poppy seeds, these crackers become crisp snacks that keep your fingers reaching for another and then another and, well, you know how it goes. In no time, they're history.
By Kemp Minifie
Chicken Wings with Ginger and Caramel Sauce
Although the base of this fairly standard Vietnamese dish is a caramel sauce, the garlic, shallots, and black pepper cut through the sweetness like a knife, providing terrific contrast. Since the last 45 minutes of the cooking time are unattended, this is a good dish for a night on which you want to entertain.
By Jean Georges Vongerichten
Country Ham and Cheddar Pretzel Bites with Jalapeño Mustard
Simultaneously salty, sharp, spicy, and sweet (in other words, completely irresistible), these nuggets are chef Edward Lee's way of saying, "You can have a casual meal without compromising true culinary endeavor." The tradition of serving mustard with a soft pretzel is strictly an American one; Lee makes his own honey mustard, jazzing it up with chiles. For sources for country ham and pretzel salt.
By Edward Lee
Portobello Buffalo Burgers with Celery Apple Slaw
More and more people are cooking with ground buffalo meat because it's lower in fat than beef chuck. That very asset can turn into a liability if the meat is cooked too long, so here, sautéed chopped portobello mushrooms contribute additional moistness and flavor. Don't reach for the ketchup: A crisp slaw of celery and apples in a mustardy dressing is a piquant surprise.
Beer and Horseradish Mustard
The hit of beer in this tangy mustard makes it the perfect dipping sauce for the sausages.
By Bruce Aidells
Homemade Bratwurst Bites with Beer and Horseradish Mustard
If you have a food processor, you can make sausage from scratch. Adding pork fat to the meat gives these bite-size sausage patties a tender texture. Call your butcher in advance to make sure he sets aside some extra pork fat for you. To help the mixture blend more easily, be sure to freeze the pork pieces before grinding them in the processor. Keep in mind that the sausage needs to chill overnight so that the flavors have time to develop.
By Bruce Aidells
Buffalo Grilled Shrimp With Blue Cheese Dip and Celery
Hot-wing aficionados will flip for these grilled shrimp, seasoned with hot sauce and butter. Celery and homemade blue cheese dip are delicious accompaniments.
By Gina Marie Miraglia Eriquez
Outside-in Cheddar Sliders on Mini Buns
These kid-size burgers have the cheese on the inside. Serve with your favorite burger accompaniments.
By Maria Helm Sinskey
Beer-Braised Hot Dogs with Braised Sauerkraut
The combination of sauerkraut, sausages, and mustard is well loved in Germany—and beyond. Here, dark beer enhances the sauerkraut, and the hot dogs are simmered in fruity Belgian lambic.
By Andrew Schloss