We Heart Tailgates

We are officially in the midst of college football tailgating season. While UVA has been plagued with two noon home games already this season, which are not the most optimal for tailgating, we are coming up on a night game (yay) this weekend! Anyone who knows me knows that I don’t especially care for sports, but I DO love tailgating. Plus, it is the form of entertaining that even boys can get excited about!
More to come on this soon, but for now, one of my favorite tailgating hors d’oeuvres courtesy of my parents’ best friends from high school:


Buffalo Chicken Dip
4 boneless chicken breasts, boiled & shredded
12 ounces Franks Red Hot Sauce
Mix in a 13x9" baking dish.

2- 8 ounce packages cream cheese (the regular version melts better than the reduced fat)
16 ounces ranch dressing
1 cup chopped celery
Mix and heat in saucepan till smooth.
Pour over chicken mixture.
Top with 1 block Monterey Jack cheese, shredded

Bake 375°F for 45 minutes.
Let sit 10-15 minutes before serving.
Serve with tortilla chips, celery or carrot sticks.

*I usually bake this before leaving home in a Pyrex dish and then transport in an insulated case. It can also be reheated on the tailgate grill if needed!

No one ever said tailgating was good for your waistline!
Goo Hoos!
flj

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

This sounds awesome! I love tailgating!

Anonymous said...

For tailgating you can put the Buffalo Chicken Dip in a heavy disposable foil pan after you bake it and put the pan on the grill---makes it all hot and bubbly right before you serve! Since I work with Swanson Chicken we use two cans of their all white meat chicken, it makes it easier to make since you don't have to boil/shred chicken. Also, subbing in bleu cheese dressing for the ranch and crumbled bleu cheese for the shredded cheddar is an option if you like the authentic "wings with bleu cheese dipping sauce" taste. Just some suggestions for spicing up a great dip for football!