Dishin' Up Gameday

Ravens VS. 49ers

LOCATION New Orleans—Super Bowl XLVII and it's time to plan your Gameday party for the biggest sporting event of the year is taking place. Why not plan a buffet-style party as a fun way to celebrate this year's Super Bowl. 

In New Orleans they'll sure love the flavor of the grill; so whether your party is indoors or out, plan a menu with a little outdoor style for ultimate flavor! 

A good game plan to consider is serving finger foods such as Hush Puppies, Sausage & Artichoke Calzones, Pork Sliders and steaming bowls of Crock of Beer Chili. There's a whole lot of corn in the midwest so be sure to have my Pecan Cornbread ready before the pre game action. But, don’t forget to honor the host city with my favorite Grilled Schweinefilet Sandwich. I’ll be serving it myself on gameday – so you know it’s got to be good. 

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Practical tips for preparing your biggest sports party of the year: 

Pre-Gameday

• Every winning team has key players. Select your team of key players for your “GameDay Party” who can assist in menu planning, preparation, and clean up. And don’t forget to assign the grill chefs.

• Consider a buffet. Serving your main foods buffet style takes the pressure off of timing in respect to the game action. 

• Include in your party plan mix; preparing some foods from home and buying some prepared foods from a local restaurant or specialty food market to remove GameDay party pressure off the home chef. 

•  If part of your party menu includes catered or prepared ready-to-eat or take out foods from your local restaurant or market make sure you instruct them if you want your food ready hot or cold; so you won’t be getting your ribs hot at 11AM - when not serving until 3PM.

• Create the party shopping list several days before the Big Game and be prepared to do your shopping three to four days in advance, except breads.

• Take inventory of your bowls, dishes, silverware, glassware, coolers at least three days in advance (or just go with eco paper products for easy cleanup). Short on glasses? No sweat, use mason jars.

• You’ll need about 1 pound of ice per person for drinks, and chilling soft drinks, wine and beer. BTW, craft beer is huge in Indiana, so you may want to set up a micro brew bar in lieu of standard brew. 

• It may be chilly outside the Stadium, but a batch of margarita or sangria will add a tropical warmth to any crowd. Serve it in a large glass infusion jar - served up with a ladle into mason jars for a fun beverage option.

• Prepare hot foods a day ahead and keep in the refrigerator for easy heating on Gameday. 

Game Day Recipes

Game Day 

• Kick Off is approximately 6:30 EST PM, but you need to ready all the party foods early in the day so you do not miss any pre-game action 

• Prepare all dips, finger snacks and foods by 1pm or earlier if your party includes watching pre-game shows.   

Set up the bar one hour before guests arrive 

• Have all cold finger snacks out before guests arrive. 

Pre-Game

• Serve finger snacks such as nuts, cheese, crackers, assorted chips and dips. If serving hot hors d’ oeuvres, stagger heating so guests will enjoy them while they are still hot. 

• Now’s the time to cook-up any grilled foods so the grill chef doesn’t miss the coin toss. 

•  Heat hot foods one hour before game time and serve before kick off.

• I’m not much for betting, but a fun wager could be for the losing team’s fans to assist in party clean up. Washing cars?

1st Quarter 

Load up your plates & enjoy the first quarter action. 

Half Time

• Serve sandwiches and cold foods for half time. If serving hot foods have them fully prepared prior to the game. This makes no fuss serving, and you will not miss any game activities. 

3rd Quarter 

• As 3rd quarter closes it’s time to close the bar and put out desserts and coffee. 

4th Quarter 

• Two minute warning- a close game will keep everyone glued to the TV set. Serve finger sweets such as cookies and candies. Make extra George’s Chocolate Brownie Cookies and Blondie Bars the day before the GameDay to send home with party guests.

Gameday Dip

Hummus might just be the "original dip". Versions of it date back to biblical times. Chickpeas, the main ingredient in hummus, were plentiful in Southeast Turkey—thought to be the place of the chickpeas origin. Hummus has made itself into a household name..not so widely known when I first became a chef. 

The Chickpea, as it known around the world: Bengal gram (Indian), Chickpea (English), Garbanzo (Latin America), Hommes, Hamaz (Arab world), Nohud, Lablabi (Turkey), Shimbra (Ethiopia)

Whether you are rooting for New York or New England this dip will make the fans happy!

BTW- Tahini, included in my Hummus Recipe is a paste made from sesame seeds and is a good source of zinc and calcium.

George's Hummus 

makes four servings | Recipe by Chef George Hirsch 

Serve as a dip or spread. Either way, it's a great healthy way to snack!

1 15-ounce can chickpeas, drained
3 cloves Caramelized Garlic (get this recipe)
1 Tablespoon tahini paste (optional)
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon hot sauce
juice of 1/2 a lemon
3 Tablespoons plain lowfat yogurt

Puree chickpeas in a food processor. Add garlic, tahini, cumin, hot sauce, lemon, and yogurt. Mix all ingredients well. Allow to set for 30 minutes prior to serving.

Serve with toasted pita and raw vegetables.

MORE DIP: Caramelized Garlic and Tomato Dip

Deviled Eggs

What's equally as good with high tea, sparking wine, or frosty beer at a tailgate?


I have an egg of an idea - the deviled egg. It's one of those hors d'oeuvre platters that spans the occasion ladder from high brow to low brow; which always empties fast, because it is so difficult to have just one. The name deviled implies hot, but need not be. It is simply hard boiled eggs chilled and halved with the yolk whipped into a flavorful filling of a wide variety of flavors such as; mayonaise, sour cream, yogurt, Dijon mustard, etc. You can even spice it up with a touch of cayenne, hot sauce or wasabi. Use a touch of fresh herbs like dill, cilantro or chives, it's a nice touch. Make special occasion up-end garnishes such as chopped proscuitto, crisp chopped pancetta or with a sliver of smoked salmon, sour cream and caviar.

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Brie Calzone

This flaky version of a Calzone is ideal for lunch, or make mini versions for a special occasion. If time is a concern by all means use pre-bought pie dough, but if you do have the time you won’t regret making my pastry dough.

George's Brie Calzone
Makes 4 entrée or 8 appetizer servings
Chef George Hirsch | chefgeorgehirsch.com

You can use George's Favorite Pastry Crust, or (15-ounce) package refrigerated pie crust, room temperature.

For the Calzone Crusts:
1/2 cup butter
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup cold milk

For Pastry Crusts:
Chill the butter and milk before you begin. Chilling keeps the pastry crust flaky and prevents the fat pieces from melting into the flour and becoming tough. 

Next, mix the flour, salt, sugar and baking powder. Cut the chilled butter into the dry mixture using a pastry cutter or by pinching the fat into the mixture with your hands. The mixture should have fat lumps no larger than the size of raisins. If making pie crust in the summer time cool off the flour by measuring your flour and refrigerate one hour before making dough.

Pour in the chilled liquid just until the milk is absorbed, mixing gently with a fork. You should be able to gently press the dough into a ball. Mix the dough as little as possible: you don't want to cream the lumps of butter into the flour. A crust without lumps of butter will be dense, not flaky. Note that humidity will effect how much liquid the flour will absorb.

Split the dough into two equal parts. Pat them into balls, flattening them slightly, and wrap them in plastic wrap. The dough needs to rest in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes. Overnight is preferred. Chilling lets the flour absorb all of the liquid, lets the dough relax and become more elastic, and keeps the fat in separate pieces which will give the crust a lighter texture when it is baked.

 

For the Filling:
1 Green apple, cored, peeled and chopped
1 package frozen spinach, defrost & well drained (squeeze out extra water)
2 Tablespoons bread crumbs
Fresh ground pepper to taste

For Filling:
Mix apple, spinach, black pepper and bread crumbs.

To Make Brie Calzone:
8 slices Brie, 1 slice for each Calzone 
1 egg, beaten with teaspoon of water

Roll out pastry dough (if from scratch) into two 10 inch circles and cut in half; or if using prepared store bought pastry cut circles into two half circles. Top each piece of pastry with 1/4 cup filling, and a thick slice of brie, leaving a one-inch edge around pastry. Brush outside edge of dough lightly with water. Fold over the dough into a pocket and seal edges. Pierce the dough with the point a small knife with three small holes to allow steam to escape.

Brush outside of Calzone with beaten egg and place on a baking sheet pan. 

Preheat oven to 425° degrees.

The Calzones will bake in about 10-12 minutes. 
To check doneness, the bottom of the Calzone will have a hollow sound when tapped with your finger. Serve warm.

Chef George Hirsch | chefgeorgehirsch.com

Quiche or Tart

Some people think the bigger the better. OK, if you like that kind of stuff. But I've always made my quiche tart-like in delicate proportions. Meaning, packed with flavor, but reaching only an inch high - which is the height of my tart pan. Makes sense, right?

But, more important than the height is the bottom crust. No soggy bottom on my quiche/ tart. Pre-bake lightly, cool, and then your ready to add the filling and resume baking. You are guaranteed, a fully baked non-soggy crust.  


Broccoli Ham Quiche

Recipe by Chef George Hirsch | Makes six servings 

1 nine inch pre-baked pie crust
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1/4 cup sweet onion, chopped
1 cup broccoli florets, cooked & chopped
1 cup Smoked Ham, chopped
4 eggs, well beaten
1 pint half & half
2 Tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
1/4 teaspoon hot sauce
Pinch fresh grated nutmeg
Fresh ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. 

Beat eggs with half & half, parmesan cheese, hot sauce, nutmeg, and pepper. 

Add olive oil to sauté pan, heat ham, cook onions and broccoli until slightly tender. Cool and put in pre baked pie shell. Pour egg mixture over the filling and place in oven. 

After 20 minutes, the eggs begin to set, lower the heat to 350 degrees for 4-5 minutes, until firm yet moist.