The footy grand finals are just a few days away! If you are hosting a party or have been asked to bring a dish, here are some couch and viewing friendly ideas to try.
DIPS
Dips are great for this occasion, because the can be made in advance, are easy to eat while watching tv and are a crowd favourite.
To keep things exciting, offer a range of ‘dippers’ such as:
- Natural corn chips
- Brown rice crackers
- Seed crackers
- Kale chips
- Carrot, cucumber, capsicum, cauliflower and broccoli crudités
- Toasted pita bread – flavour with garlic and paprika (or herbs/spices of choice!)
Loaded Tzatziki Dip
Serves 8-10
Ingredients
- 500g thick greek yoghurt
- ½ punnet grape/snacking tomatoes, finely chopped
- 1 medium sized cucumber, chopped finely
- 1/3 cup roasted capsicum, finely chopped
- ½ small red onion, finely chopped
- 1/3 cup olives, finely chopped (green or black)
- 1-2 tbsp. lemon juice
- 1-2 cloves garlic, crushed
- 1 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
- ½ bunch mint, finely chopped (or parsley)
- pepper, to taste
Method
Mix all ingredients in a bowl until well combined, adjust seasoning to suit.
Pour into a serving bowl and keep in the fridge until needed.
Honey Roasted Chilli Pumpkin Dip
Serves 4-6
Ingredients
500g kent pumpkin, skin removed, diced
1-2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
½ tbsp. honey, melted
50g cashew nuts, raw
½ tbs. lemon juice
pinch cumin, ground
pinch chilli flakes, to taste
salt and pepper, to taste
To serve
Toasted pumpkin seeds
Method
Preheat oven to 180C.
Line a baking tray with baking paper.
In a bowl add pumpkin, olive oil, honey, salt and pepper and mix well.
Pour pumpkin onto the prepared tray and bake for 40-45min until very tender.
Set aside to cool slightly.
In a blender add the pumpkin, cashew nuts, lemon juice, cumin and chilli flakes and blend until smooth. Add extra olive oil if needed. Season to taste.
Pour into a bowl and top sprinkle with toasted pumpkin seeds.
HOMEMADE PIZZA
Instead of ordering in, why not try making your very own pizza. The base can be made in advance and the rest can be done over half time, winning!
Wholemeal Pizza with Spinach, Tomato and Goats Cheese – recipe from my FILWF Cookbook
Serves: 4-6
Pre: 10 minutes
Cooking: 30 minutes
Ingredients:
3½ cups wholemeal self-raising flour
125g fresh ricotta cheese
1½ cups skim milk
Topping:
2 cups baby English spinach, roughly chopped
2 x Roma tomatoes cut into 1cm thick round
200g goats cheese or ricotta, mozzarella or parmesan cheese
1 cup basil leaves, ripped
EV olive oil for drizzling
Method:
Pre-heat the oven to 160-180C depending on your oven. In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, ricotta and milk. Mix until dough is soft and formed.
Place the dough on a floured board and knead for 5 minutes until smooth and elastic. Allow to stand for 1 hour, wrapped in a clean tea towel.
Divide the dough into two and using a floured rolling pin roll to ½ cm thick.
Place on a non-stick baking tray and drizzle with a little olive oil.
Place ½ -1 cup spinach on each pizza followed with slices of tomatoes and sprinkled with 50-100g of crumbled goats cheese, on each pizza.
Cook in the oven for 15 – 30 minutes or until golden brown on top.
Some other topping ideas include:
- Hummus base, roasted pumpkin, Danish feta and pine nuts
- Salmon, rocket, red onion, capers and yoghurt
- Grilled eggplant, capsicum, zucchini, pesto, olives and parmesan
SKEWERS
Skewers are the perfect fit here because they can also be made in advance, kept in the fridge and thrown on the grill or BBQ during half time.
Having a range of skewers with various flavours and ingredients can create excitement amongst guests because most people like variety! Here I am sharing 2 skewer ideas sure to please:
Miso Salmon/beef, Mushroom and Spring Onion Skewers
Makes 4-6 skewers
Ingredients
500g salmon or beef fillet, cut into 2cm cubes
12 baby button mushrooms
1 small bunch spring onions, cut into 3-4cm lengths
Marinade
1 tbsp. soy sauce
1 tbsp. miso paste mixed in hot water
½ tsp. ginger, grated
1-2 tsp. honey or mirin
2 tbsp. olive oil
Method
Mix the marinade ingredients together in a small bowl and adjust to suit.
In a large bowl, add salmon/beef, mushrooms, spring onions and pour over the marinade.
Skewer each ingredient onto skewers starting and ending with the spring onions. Aim for approx. 2-3 mushrooms per skewer.
Drizzle over any remaining dressing.
Set aside in the fridge or cook on a preheated grill for a few minutes each side, until the salmon is cooked to your liking and the mushrooms are soft.
Lime and Honey Haloumi Skewers – recipe from my FILWF Cookbook
Makes: 4 – 6 skewers
Ingredients
250g haloumi, cut into lengthways
½ lemon, juiced
½ lime, juiced
¼ cup honey
½ tsp. smoked or sweet paprika
½ tsp. cinnamon, ground
4 – 6 grape tomatoes
Method
In a bowl, mix together all of the ingredients and marinate haloumi for 20 minutes.
Pre-heat BBQ or griddle pan until hot.
Skewer the haloumi and tomatoes and cook for 3-5 minutes on each side.
