Seahawks Football: Pt. 1
September through December is a very, very special time in the Zehner house made noteworthy by one weekly event - Seahawks football bay-bee!!! Sunday’s are devoted to Russ, Pete, & the boys, & we ritually suit up in our BEST game day gear, embrace our true fan mentality, & prepare ourselves to yell at the TV & live in suspense for 4 hours. We may or may not even be one of those extra couples who sport matching jerseys. Jordan bought me a Wilson jersey probably 6 years ago in an effort to spark my inner Seahawks, & it was such a fun gift to receive. Not growing up a Seahawks fan like my husband, & converting so we could maintain our relationship during the season, I was thrilled to get this jersey because I felt like I was getting accepted into the tribe. I then bought one for him shortly there after, and then matching on game-day became a real thing for us. I cringe & love it all at the same time.
But really, I love being Jordan’s roll-dog for Seahawks football. It's one of those things that I really start to miss come August, so that first game becomes highly anticipated. I live for that all in feeling & suspense regarding whether or not the crew will pull off a win, and the sheer exuberance of my husband when something good happen. The excited hugs when we score & his unwavering excitement to watch the replays of an awesome catch make it fun to be in his company. The agony when they lose - not so enjoyable (they’re real heartbreakers those Seahawks), but regardless, I’m beyond happy to be a part of it. The BEST was when we lived in Arizona and randomly my favorite radio show had this segment where the host's 9 year old son would call in and weigh in on all things NFL football. People would call in and ask this little kiddo questions, and I used my listening in the car as the time to soak up some stats & predictions, and then repeat them back to my husband and in casual conversation throughout the week. Oh my god I positioned myself to look like this sports buff & it was fucking hilarious. I've never been as sports informed!
Back to the point - we do our best fanning-out when we're watching the game at home. Queue football Sundays powered by bloody beers & the best compilation of game-day snacks. I take my job of amping up the food very seriously, and my favorite types of game days foods are juicy, saucy finger foods - interactive to eat and that good kind of messy. Today we're going all American - burgers, brews, & slaw. Our menu: Pull Apart Bacon Cheeseburgers, Cauliflower Gnocchi Mac & Cheese, & Maple Slaw. Combining my love for burgers with the perfect pairings that I rarely make for myself.
For whatever reason, I’m obsessed with a coleslaw we made for Christmas Eve. For someone that usually turns their nose up at coleslaw at any ol' barbecue, I'm full fledged fanatic of this shit. It uses fresh Napa cabbage, which is already a plus, doesn't require an exorbitant amount of dressing (you're in control), and has this sweet maple-y flavor that has left me hooked & already pledging to make this coleslaw all summer long. So truth be told I just wanted another crack at this salad, & our All American theme was planned around this yummy slaw. & it's been like two weeks since my last cheeseburger fix, so burgers were a definite yes. One of my most FAVORITE new wave snacks - pull apart sandwiches. They're fun, miniature, and just delish. A full slab of King's Hawaiian Rolls filled to perfection to create an epic version of a cheeseburger (or anything other sandwich of your choosing). I always use the best quality ground beef I can find, season it generously with salt and pepper, & make sure I don't add in any other crap to compete with that oh so good juicy, beefy flavor. I mean let the meat speak for itself - that's what makes a good burger! Juicy, savory meatiness that makes a burger truly mouth-watering, and these little gems fit that flavor profile. Topped with melty cheese, bacon, and buns that soak up all that melty good goodness. God they are good - I ate like three because they were so addicting.
& then there was the shining star - Cauliflower Gnocchi Mac & Cheese. The new holy grail of mac & cheese!!! First - Trader Joe's Cauliflower Gnocchi is pure gold and if you haven't subbed it out for the carby original you need to immediately. I love mac & cheese, but I feel so guilty eating it. I mean I've tried to lighten it up with gluten free noodles, but that was just child's play as now I've got a whole new way to sneak in some veg. It was thick & creamy - no change from the saucy favorite that has us all addicted - and paired with pillowy cauliflower nuggets is everything!
For the Slaw
1 head of Napa cabbage, thinly sliced
1 carrot, peeled and shredded
2 celery stalks, thinly sliced
2-3 scallions, thinly sliced
1 c. good quality mayo
3 tbsp milk
1 tsp lemon juice
2 tbsp maple syrup
2 tsp apple cider vinegar
Salt & pepper
1/4 c. Almonds or pecan, coarsely chopped and roasted
For the Cauliflower Gnocchi Mac
4 tbsp butter
1 onion, finely diced
2 c. Butternut squash, cut into bitesize pieces
3 tbsp flour
1 c. chicken broth
1 c. milk
pinch of cayenne pepper
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 c. shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1 c. shredded pepper jack cheese
24 ounces cauliflower gnocchi (2 packages of frozen Cauliflower Gnocchi from Trader Joe's)
Salt & pepper
For the Pull Apart Cheeseburgers
6 slices bacon
1 tbsp EVOO
2 jalapeños, seeded & finely diced
1 lb ground beef
1 Kings Hawaiian role, split in half
1 c. shredded cheddar cheese
1 large dill pickles, thinly sliced
Ketchup & mustard, for drizzling
Salt & pepper
Start by whipping up the slaw. In a large bowl serving bowl, toss together the cabbage, carrot, celery, & scallions. In a separate bowl. whisk together the mayo, milk, lemon juice, maple syrup, & vinegar until you have a smooth, dressing-like consistency. Toss the dry salad with half of the dressing along with a pinch of salt and pepper, mixing so all of the cabbage and other veg has a light coating of the dressing. Once well mixed, add in more of the dressing to your taste preference (I only used about 75% of the dressing on our salad). Sprinkle the roasted nuts over the top of the tossed salad, and let it sit in the fridge until you're ready to eat.
Next move to making the bacon that you'll need to the pull apart burgers. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Lay the bacon in a single layer on a foil lined baking sheet, and place in the oven. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until it browns to your liking. Let it get nice and crispy while you make the gnocchi.
Now it's mac & cheese time. In a large skillet, melt the butter over medium high heat. Add in the onion and let cook for 8 minutes, stirring every 2 minutes. Then add in the squash, letting the veggies continue to cook for 5 more minutes. Sprinkle the flour over the squash and onion, & give it a stir to coat all the veg. Let cook fo one minute so a pasta like substance can form. Add in the broth , cream, cayenne, Dijon, and pinch of both salt & pepper. Bump up the heat to high and bring the liquid to a boil. Let the liquid boil for 2 minutes, then reduce the heat to medium low. Add in the cheese 1/4 cup at a time, stirring and allowing the cheese to melt completely before adding in an additional 1/4 cup of cheese. Complete this pattern until all the cheese is melted. PS - if the cheese sauce becomes too thick add in an additional 1/4 c. - 1/2 c. broth. Once all the cheese has been melted to make the sauce, cover and reduce the heat to low. Meanwhile, cook the cauliflower gnocchi to package saute instructions. Once the gnocchi has been fully cook, add it to the cheese sauce, stirring so each little gnocchi gets a coating of sauce. Cover and reduce the heat to low, keeping it warm until you're ready to eat.
Now move to making the burgers. In a large skillet, heat 1 tbsp over medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add in the jalapenos and let them cook for 4-5 minutes, stirring ever minute. Add in the ground beef and break it apart as it cooks using a wooden spoon (getting a crumbly mixture that resembles sloppy joe meat). Let the beef continue to cook until it is barely pink (I hate over cooked meat so once 75% of the redness of the beef was gone I turned off the pan).
Once the beef is finished cooking, the bacon should be done. Take it out of the oven, place on a paper towel to absorb some of the extra grease. After romving the bacon, crank up the oven temperature to 350 degrees. When cool enough to handle, chop up the bacon into small bitesize piece - think large bacon bits.
Halve the whole King's Hawaiian roll so that all the bottom pieces remain in tact and all the top pieces remain in tact. Spread the ground beef mixture over the bottom half of the roll, juices and all (let them get absorbed by the bread, and that will one of the best parts of the whole thing). Then, in an even layer, spread the bacon over the top, then the cheese, & lastly the pickles. Place the sandwich on an oven lined baking sheet, leaving it open faced, and bake for 5 - 7 minutes, or until all the cheese starts to melt. Once the cheese is just melted, place the top bun on top of the sandwich and let toast for another 2 minutes. Remove from the oven & you're ready to eat! Serve up with the hot gnocchi-mac & ice cold slaw - a game day meal for the books.
