Previously on PlayingtheField.net

Oh football, my football, you’re finally back.  It’s been a cruel, cruel summer full of heartbreak and despair.

Who can eat (or even breathe) during the third overtime of a Game Five in the Stanley Cup Finals? Who can plan a whole day around watching a baseball team that is 25 games back? (Jumpin’ Jesus Christ  Jehoshaphat Buccos! The Pirates finished 17 out last season and managed to get worse! Fuck you baseball, you promised you would be better after the trade deadline!  Change the banner to “In the Canyon 16 years ” now and be done with it!)  Who feasts before a WBNA game? Who plans parties around the Olympics besides hausfraus and Chester the Molester?

No one.

Which is why football is the a heart of American sports.

Every weekend means alumni and fanatics traveling around the country to watch just one game. Every weekend means a day spent with friends, family, and fellow fans.  Every weekend between September 1 and February 1 is Thanksgiving.

And just like both football and Thanksgiving, you cannot go into the weekend without a game plan. Not unless you’re Jim Zorn and you enjoy frozen turkey.

We here at the Original Friday Football Foodie are here to help you map out your own X’s and O’s, because I truly live in horror of the scenario I described at the beginning of last season , “Can you whip-up something besides the number for Domino’s, (GOD HELP ME
DO NOT TELL ME YOU ORDER DOMINO’S), that will feed you and your crew?”

You and football deserve better.

This week : Tostada Cups, Mint Juleps, and new product review: Michelob ULTRA Pomegranate Raspberry.

What you will need, after the jump.

Pretty much whatever you have handy that you would love to have on a tostada.  It’s still early in the season so you have plenty of time for experimenting with new formations.

For 24 servings, I recommend two or three cans of black beans, ground beef  or chicken if you like, (although I think meat make the cups soggy and heavy), onions, salsa, olives, cheese, various peppers, cumin, and sour cream.  Anything you think either Nate Newton or Casey Hampton would put on their tostada. The only three must-haves are shortening, fajita sized tortillas, and muffin pans.

Chop onions, roasted red peppers, and olives.  If you prefer a spicier kick, also chop up a couple of chipotle peppers packed in adobo sauce. (Do not go overboard with the chipotle as they are roasted jalapeño peppers with a fancy name. Like Ed Hochuli and Mike Carey calling the same game, it is too much heat!)

Oil up your muffin pan and fold the tortillas into little cups that line the pan. Don’t worry if they stick up like little Michigan Stadiums up out of the bowls.

Fill cups with a couple tablespoons of beans, and toss in onions and spices. Ingredients that need to cook longer should be in the bottom of your cups.

Peppers and onions, living together in perfect harmony like their red and black teammates Matt Leinart and Kurt Warner.

Salsa! (Something that currently is the subject of the Madden ’08 forums.)

Sarah: 1 1/2 cups will be more than enough, but since packages of
shredded cheese come in 2 cup sizes, I will not judge if you use the
whole bag.

Keith: Yinz can take the girl out of Pittsburgh…

Bake at 375 degrees for about 30-40 minutes.

Serve with sour cream or guacamole. (Or as seen here, with a South American guacamole recipe my corner market makes with sour cream in the quac. The deli guy watches a fair amount of Futbol, so his magical guacamole is always welcome at my parties.)

For the same reasons Mint Juleps are the perfect Derby refreshment, they make a great football beverage. A drink you sip slowly, letting the ice slowly melt and stretch your cocktail even further.  (It also provides a nice lasting buzz that will continue past the Sunday Night Game with Olbermann and Patrick and right into Entourage.)  Everyone has a mint julep recipe they prefer, but I like this one since it cuts down on the little leaves that might get stuck in your teeth.

You will need a good quality bourbon (the second bottle is in case Texas Gal shows up), sugar, mint, and crushed ice.  To make this style of julep, prepare a a mint-infused simple syrup.

Boil one cup of water with four or five sprigs of mint leaves.  Tear and crush the leaves beforehand so they will release more oil. (Don’t abuse them too badly though, or Sarah Palin will lead chants of “Drill baby, drill!” in your kitchen.)

For each cup of water you boil, add two cups of sugar.

Stir until the sugar is dissolved and let cool.  Keep this mix in a squeeze bottle or jar so you can sweeten tea during the week.

Pour a generous shot (or two) over your crushed ice.  Unfortunately I do not have julep cups, but any sort of rocks glass will do.

Sweeten to taste with your mint simple syrup using a cocktail strainer to keep out the leaves.

You might want to start cheering for SEC football and or find yourself subscribing to Garden and Gun magazine. It’s okay to give into these urges while under the spell of bourbon, but try to avoid having too many as to avoid an ill-advised Gator tattoos.

And finally, a review of Michelob ULTRA Pomegranate Raspberry beer.

Do you miss New York Seltzers?  Yeah, me too.  Fortunately Michelob has produced a beer as light, crisp, and packing the punch of your favorite childhood “grown up” drink!  I bet the Clearly Canadian version (known by the small maple leaf on its label) has twice as much alcohol.

Have a suggestion or request for a future Friday Football Foodie? Please let us know!

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