Football Food Favorites

Y'all. A new season is approaching... although fall may not be in the air just yet, college FOOTBALL starts this weekend. We live for this time of year! Mr. SFB and I met while attending the University of Arkansas and we love our Razorbacks through and through. I also love any excuse to host people and to love on them by serving yummy food and drinks.

I've rounded up my favorite football party snacks below so with a couple easy clicks you can get to brainstorming about what you want to make this weekend!

For crunchy & tangy: Fried Pickles (< fan favorite)
For dip lovers: Southwest Cheesecake, 7-Layer or Corn & Black Bean Dip (< lighter option)
For classic football food: Chili (beef) or Chili (chicken) (< don't forget the tortilla chips)
For BBQ fans: Pulled Pork (< best served with the spicy slaw)

Whatever you decided to make or whichever team you root for, may you enjoy this glorious weekend! Cheers!

BLT Pasta Salad

Are you a sucker for anything with bacon and/or pasta included in the ingredient list? Me too, me too. This BLT Pasta Salad brings together all the flavors of your favorite summer sandwich, wrapped up in a hearty pasta dish that is sure not to disappoint. The unlikely addition of BBQ sauce adds the perfect zing to the yummy sauce, too. Trust me--this will definitely be a side dish hit at your next cookout! : )

This recipe serves 4-6 people so double or triple up if you are feeding a bigger crowd!

What You Will Need
8oz farfalle (bowtie) pasta
2 green onions, sliced
2 cups fresh summer tomatoes, chopped
4-5 slices bacon, cooked and broken into pieces

¼ head (or about 2 cups worth) of iceberg lettuce, washed & chopped

¼ cup mayonnaise (Duke's preferred)
2 tbsp BBQ sauce
2 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 garlic clove, minced

½ tsp salt & black pepper
1/8 tsp ground red pepper (optional)

Directions
Step One
Cook pasta according to package directions. While it is boiling, clean and chop your veggies and set aside.

Step Two
Whisk together mayo, BBQ sauce, vinegar and spices and set aside.

Step Three
Mix all ingredients (except lettuce & bacon) together in a large mixing bowl and refrigerate until ready to serve.
Tip: make sure your pasta is cooled off before mixing with other ingredients - sometimes I throw a few ice cubes in the colander to quicken the process.

Fold in the lettuce and bacon a few minutes before serving so they don't get too soggy. Enjoy, y'all!

Banana-Zucchini Bread

I love baking fresh, sweet breads (as evidenced here, here and here)... and I am SO excited to share that I think we have finally found our favorite go-to, make once a week, butter-free, less than a cup of sugar, toddler-approved recipe. I don't know why it took me so long to start including zucchini as a main ingredient in breads, but I will never, ever look back! Let me know if y'all love this bread as much as we do. : )

Ingredients
1 medium zucchini
2 large (ripe) bananas
1 large egg
¼ cup coconut oil (liquid state; canola or vegetable oil can be substituted)
½ cup light brown sugar
¼ cup granulated sugar
2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
1/8 tsp salt (optional)

Set oven to 350°  and grease a loaf pan.

Step One
Wash zucchini and coarsely grate on a box shredder (this part sounds tedious, but it will seriously take 2 minutes or less). Squeeze out liquid with a paper towel. Then mash bananas in a small Ziploc bag (this will make for an easy transfer later on). Set both aside.

Step Two
In a medium size mixing bowl, whisk together next 5 ingredients (eggs-vanilla), then add in flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt and fold to combine ( >> no need to dirty up extra bowls or your mixer).

Step Three
Fold in zucchini and bananas; make sure batter is mixed pretty evenly (i.e. no big clumps of flour or sugar). Pour into prepared loaf pan and smooth the top with a spatula.

Bake for about 50-55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. NOTE: at around the 30 minute mark you can place a piece of foil on top of the bread to keep it from browning too much.

Allow bread to cool in pan for 10-15 minutes before turning onto a wire rack, leaving there for at least 30 minutes before slicing (if you'd like it to stay in one piece ; ) ).

Enjoy, y'all!