Well it’s nearly that time of year again and whether you are hosting the party or heading over to someone else’s cabin you want tasty snacks that are shareable and crowd pleasing. Here I’ve made two dishes that are perfect for any game day spread.
For the first dish I couldn’t quite settle on a name. Queso con Carne de Alaska? Queso con Alces (moose)? Basically you can call this whatever you have sitting around in your freezer. I’m not a huge fan of wild game but I think the flavors of this spicy cheese dip help to mask the gaminess a bit. I used bison because that’s what I had on hand, but if you have ground moose, caribou, or venison that would be pretty fantastic too. Another thing to note is that in general I am always a big proponent of making cheese sauce from scratch (and just about everything else), but for Superbowl Sunday who wants to be stuck in the kitchen cooking! So here I’ve opted to use Velveeta…it’s basically the only day of the year I do. Once you’ve put everything together I highly recommend keeping it warm in a crock pot, nobody wants to see this cheesy goodness congeal back into a yellow block.
Secondly we’ve got a delicious and uniquely Alaskan BBQ sauce with which to bathe cocktail sausages in. Cocktail sausages are one of my favorites on any party or potluck snack table, so I’ve made a recipe that can be made that day or ahead of time incorporating the Alaskan Brewing Company’s Smoked Porter.
Game Day Snacks
Ingredients
For the Cheese Dip:
- 1 lb. ground meat (beef, moose, etc.)
- 1/2 Tbsp garlic powder
- 1/2 Tbsp onion powder
- 1 can of Rotel diced tomatoes and green chilies (10 oz.)
- 1 package of Velveeta Original flavor (32 oz.)
- 1 Tbsp hot chipotle pepper sauce (or whatever you prefer)
For the BBQ Sauce:
- 1/2 cup ketchup
- 2 Tbsp molasses
- 2 Tbsp brown sugar
- 2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 2 Tbsp soy sauce
- 1 Tbsp whole grain mustard
- 1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 Tbsp hot chipotle pepper sauce
- 1 Tbsp garlic powder
- 1 Tbsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1/2 tsp. fresh ground pepper
- 2/3 cup Smoked Porter (Alaskan Brewing Co.)
Instructions
For the Cheese Dip:
- Begin by browning the meat in a large pan. Add powdered onion and garlic and a pinch of salt. Once the meat is well cooked, drain if necessary. When the meat is drained add the can of tomatoes and the hot sauce. I used spicy chipotle hot sauce but other hot sauces can be substituted. Lastly dice the Velveeta in roughly one inch cubes and slowly add them to the meat mixture, a little at a time, stirring as they melt until they are all incorporated. Keep warm in a crock pot. Serve with chips.
For the BBQ Sauce:
- Combine Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, and vinegar in a sauce pan. Add powdered garlic and onion and stir until there are no lumps of either powder. Add ketchup, molasses, brown sugar, mustard, and salt and pepper. Lastly add the beer, slowly as it will foam up. Stir gently and reduce by half on a low simmer. Once the sauce has thickened up a bit add the sausages and let them heat through.
We are both born and raised in Alaska, land of the midnight sun and fishing at 2am. We love to find new ways to use fresh ingredients or put a modern spin on an old Alaskan classic. We hope you will enjoy tasting Alaska.