Shredded Buffalo Chicken Wraps: Football Foodie Quick Hit

We’re getting ready to head out to the Steelers-Cards game this weekend, so I’ve already started planning what snacks I can make ahead of time for tailgating on Sunday. Since we’re leaving on Saturday and have a six-hour drive through the desert, our tailgating treats have to easily portable. I’m thinking the pumpkin sage crackers, sriracha crackers, some homemade potato chips, honey roasted pecans and maybe some bourbon bacon popcorn.

And that’s just for the car ride out.

I wish Phoenix wasn’t so far away, nor in the middle of an unrelenting desert, because putting together today’s Quick Hit has me craving these wraps something fierce. If we were tailgating just a little closer to home this weekend, these would be on the menu. You won’t judge if I make these for the World Series tonight? Habs-Penguins? There has to be at least one college game on tonight, no? New episodes of “Community” and “Parks & Rec” enough reason?

Shredded Buffalo Chicken Wraps

Why I love these wraps that you get a great taste of everything in each bite, which is why the word “shredded” is so important, I’ve put it in the title. Shredding the celery and the carrots gives you a crunchy sweet foil to the spicy chicken and the tangy blue cheese. They are much easier to eat during a game and definitely easier on your halftime schedule since you make these ahead of time, no need to worry about heating up oil for frying while the game is going.

You will need:

3/4 cup Franks Red Hot Sauce Original (Yes, the original. They make a buffalo style sauce, but there is no need for “soybean oil and buttery flavoring” when you have next…)
2 tablespoons butter
2-3 cloves chopped garlic – really – use as much or as little garlic as you like.
2 cups shredded cooked chicken (Buying a rotisserie chicken from the local deli is the perfect amount.)
2-3 stalks of celery
2-3 carrots, peeled
3-4 scallions, chopped
4 ounces of either spreadable blue cheese or 2 ounces of cream cheese blended with 2 ounces of blue cheese, softened
3-4 lavish wraps or 5-6 tortilla wraps, depending on size

Trader Joe’s makes a fine spreadable blue cheese that works great on these wraps. If you can’t find that, take equal parts blue cheese and cream cheese — or if you’re like me, a little more blue cheese than cream cheese — and blend them together until creamy.

Most lavish wraps are a little uneven in shape, so take a pizza wheel or a sharp knife and cut off the edges to get them as close to a rectangle shape as possible.

In a large skillet, melt the butter over medium heat and add the garlic. Saute for a few minutes and then add the cooked chicken, stirring to coat all the meat with the garlic butter mixture.

After a few minutes, add the Franks Hot Sauce and start shredding the chicken. The meat will absorb all the garlic, butter and hot sauce nicely. Once done, remove from the heat.

(And if this looks familiar, it’s the same Buffalo chicken recipe I’ve posted before in Buffalo Chicken Wontons and Buffalo Chicken Dip.)

While the chicken is cooling down. Shred about a cup each of celery and carrots then rougly chop the scallions.

Skim the thinnest layer of the blue cheese spread you can across the lavish, leaving about an 1/2-1 inch boarder on all sides. Then make a very thin layer of seasoned chicken, celery, carrots and then top with a sprinkling of scallions.

Tightly roll together and repeat with the remaining wraps.

Wrap in wax paper or plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 3-4 hours, if not overnight.

Slice into 1 1/2 – 2 inch pieces and serve.