Grub We Loved

We got so many awesome entries for the MH Game Game Grub Bowl and, even though there could only be one winner, all of us on the MH team had a favorite. So, we decided to share our top picks with you—check ‘em out:

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Our game grub choices may have not gotten a lot of love from the other MH fans, but Susan Scollins, Linda Bolz, Susan Jacobsen, and Susan Johnson keep an eye on your mailbox and be on the lookout for a Mad Hungry pot scraper!

LSQ’s Go-to: Spicy Baked Beans. Kudos to all entries—I almost hesitate to pick a fav because my favorite thing is the diversity and enthusiasm you all shared with the MH community. BUT there’s no two ways about it; I’m a bean girl through and through—almost a bean evangelist. They’re a frugal (feed a large crowd), protein packed (meat substitute), powerhouse of a food. What Susan does here is nail an awesome flavor with a few well chosen and constructed ingredients. Admittedly, a double dip of bacon (using bacon fat to sauté the onions and crumbling bacon on top for garnish) will get me every time. This dish also is easily made ahead, reheats beautifully (a must for fervent game day viewers) and highlights two of my go-to ingredients. SO basically—Susan had me at beans and bacon!

CQ’s Fav: BLT Dip. While the bacon honey chicken wings sated my perpetual smoked pork craving and the stewce blew my mind with its mysterious medley of meats, for me there was only one winner: BLT dip.  Yes it sounded a little cheesy at first glance, a little too supermarket ready, but the second I started to imagine the possibilities present in a riff on such a classic meal my salivary glands began pumping furiously.  What direction would it go in?  Would it be loose and crunchy?  Thick and crumbly?  How would the salty sweet soft and crunchy interplay work out?  In the end it was none and all of those things and was my (almost) hands down favorite. Honoroble Mention goes to the Double Wide Shandy; anytime you can successfully marry beer and liquor without having it taste like either then you’ve achieved something to admire.

Lo’s Pick: Punch (a.k.a The Double Wide Shandy). DWS is a true underdog. I was curious what kind of drink was “game grub” considering when the game I’m watching is on, beer is the only the drink of choice. The ingredient list was interesting: vodka, beer, concentrated lemonade, pineapple juice and orange juice– the only thought that came to mind is either this is going to be a disaster or absolutely amazing. Luckily, it was the latter; I took one sip and was in heaven. Fruity but not too fruity, the bubbles from the beer and just as you’re finishing a sip, the vodka sneaks up on you make this drink refreshing and evenly balanced. In short: the DWS has a special place in my booze book.

Sam’s Must-Have: The Stewce. Although it took me a little while to figure out what a stewce actually was, once it clicked I thought it was absolutely brilliant. One side of my family is Italian and we make a lot of sauce, including some meat sauces where we add braciole (or “bra-jole” if you’re from Long Island, like I am), meatballs, etc. So the idea of using three different meats instead of just one sounded pretty exciting. When we whipped up this recipe in the test kitchen all the flavors of the juicy pork ribs, chicken thighs and beef short ribs blended so nicely with the tomato based sauce. We poured it over pasta per the instructions; it smelled fantastic, like something you’d want to curl up with on a cold night. It’s definitely more hearty like a stew, but still kind of sauce-y…stewce really is the perfect name. You’ve really got to be a meat-lover to make this but, since I am, I’m going to be making this at home for sure.