Super Bowl 50 is being held in Levi’s Stadium, the 49er’s stadium in the San Francisco Bay Area, on CBS. You’re welcome if this helps you fill out your Super Bowl questionnaire (one year my friend didn’t get any of those questions right).
Chips and salsa are great for football parties, but what if you want something a little more gourmet? I have compiled a few of my favorite recipes that are both easy and college-budget friendly! Most of these can be made into vegan, vegetarian, or gluten-free versions by swapping ingredients to accommodate everyone in your friend group.
First up is a classic: Buffalo Chicken Dip. I usually modify the given recipe, but that’s just because I am OBSESSED with buffalo sauce. It calls for canned chicken, but I find that watery. I like to get raw chicken tenders (literally however much you want to have in it. I think I put 5 or 6 tenders for the amount of dip that fits in a pie plate), chop them up into bit sized pieces, and cook them on the stove top without anything on them. Alternatively, you can cook the tenders whole and then shred it, but I’m too impatient to wait for the larger pieces to cook. I also use about 1 ½ cups of buffalo sauce to kick it up a notch. It’s good with tortilla chips, but try it on a roll, crackers, or celery for something a little different.
Queso Dip: Try it with sour cream, guacamole, and black beans to take your nachos to the next level. You can’t go wrong with nachos!
Or if you want something a little easier to split between people, try these individual dip cups! No more worries of the sick person double dipping. This is perfect for friend groups with people with allergies or other dietary restrictions so you can make custom dip layers depending on the person! This recipe also saves you time spent scrubbing out large dishes because you can just throw the plastic cups away.
With all these unhealthy dips, you’re going to look like a champion if you bring this healthier Avocado Spinach Dip. It’s going to take more time to make and be more expensive because the ingredients are not going to be in the average college kitchen, but it will be worth it! Just remember to pick up some veggies to dip in it. I recommend broccoli, carrots, and celery for a nice crunch.
Soft pretzels are honestly the best food in the entire world. Why not try to make them homemade? It’s a lot of work compared to the other options in this article, but you can always buy frozen ones and throw them in the oven. Then make the dipping sauce from this recipe and pretend you are a cooking goddess. Either way, it’s going to be awesome.
How about some stuffed pizza rolls? Again, there is an already prepared frozen counterpart, but this homemade version looks so much better! These are easy to make and you can easily add ingredients to make it unique to your tastes. Nothing beats pizza.
Here’s a good dish to show off what a cooking genius you are: spinach and artichoke hummus. It’s easy to make, but with ingredients that definitely require a trip to Market District or Whole Foods. Grab some pita chips to really make it stand out against the sea of tortilla chips.
Since the rest of the food served during the Super Bowl is most likely going to be carb heavy, try eggplant pizza as a lighter option! I love the eggplant crust because cauliflower crust pizza is far too much work and this has a better consistency. Plus, the snack size makes it perfect for feeding a group for game day.
Don’t forget to tag us on social media if you make these recipes!