Dining with the Doc: Super Bowl Snacks

Are you ready for some football?!  The big game is just around the corner and whether you'll be hosting a party or attending someone else's, here are some great dishes to make for your friends and family. These tasty and nutritious recipes are guaranteed to score a touchdown! Instead of traditional chicken wings which are usually deep fried, I'm serving Grilled Buffalo Shrimp with Blue Cheese Dipping Sauce.  Everyone loves shrimp- they make great finger food and they cook up really fast on the grill.  By grilling instead of deep frying, you're also cutting loads of calories and fat.  To add great flavor, I toss them with hot sauce and just a tablespoon of butter which is significantly less than the full stick of butter that many recipes call for.  I serve the shrimp along with a cooling blue cheese sauce and fresh veggies.

Tired of the same old chips and salsa?  Try my Game Day Guacamole and Spiced Pita Chips to get the crowd cheering. Avocados are naturally creamy and provide a healthy amount of monounsaturated fats and fiber as well as several vitamins and minerals. I like to leave my guacamole relatively chunky and serve it in a molcajete, which is a traditional Mexican mortar and pestle made from volcanic stone. To scoop it up, try my baked spiced pita chips instead of store-bought chips. I use whole wheat pitas, brush them with a little olive oil and dust them with spices before a quick bake in the oven. They're crispy, easy to make, and the smoky spices complement the flavors in the guacamole perfectly.

Enjoy the game and let's go Giants!

Grilled Buffalo Shrimp with Blue Cheese Dipping Sauce
Makes 24 shrimp or 6 servings

Blue Cheese Dipping Sauce:

½ cup reduced fat sour cream

¼ cup buttermilk

¼ cup crumbled blue cheese

¼ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

¼ cup chopped scallions

Kosher salt and black pepper

Grilled Buffalo Shrimp:

24 extra jumbo (16-20 count) shrimp (about 1 ¼ lbs.), peeled and deveined, with the last shell segment and tail attached

2 teaspoons olive oil

1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

Kosher salt and black pepper

¼ cup hot sauce such as Frank’s

1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted

1 lemon, cut into wedges

6 celery stalks cut into 4-inch sticks

4 carrots cut into 4-inch sticks

Preheat a grill or grill pan over medium high heat. 

To make the blue cheese dipping sauce, mix the sour cream, buttermilk, blue cheese, Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice and scallions together in a small bowl.  Season the sauce with salt and pepper to taste.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Toss the shrimp in a bowl with the oil, lemon juice, ¼ teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon pepper.  In a second bowl, mix the hot sauce and butter together.

Spray the grill with nonstick cooking spray.  Grill the shrimp 3-4 minutes on each side until cooked through.  Place the shrimp in the bowl with the hot sauce and butter mixture and toss to coat them with the sauce.  Serve buffalo shrimp on a platter with celery sticks, carrots and lemon wedges.  Serve blue cheese dipping sauce on the side.  


One Serving: Calories 183; Fat 8.78g (Sat 4.19g); Protein 16g; Carb 10.2g; Fiber 2.4g

Game Day Guacamole

Make 1½ cups or 6 servings

1 clove garlic, chopped

Kosher salt

1 ½ tablespoons fresh lime juice

2 avocados, peeled and diced

1 small plum tomato, diced chopped

1/3 cup finely chopped white onion

1 Serrano pepper, finely chopped

2 tablespoons chopped cilantro

Using the flat side of a knife, mash the garlic and ½ teaspoon salt together on a cutting board to make a paste.  Place the mixture in a bowl (or molcajete) and add the lime juice,  avocado, tomato, onion, pepper and cilantro.  Stir gently to combine.  Season the guacamole with salt to taste.  Serve with spiced pita chips. 


One Serving: Calories 104; Fat 8.95g (Sat 1.2g); Protein 1.4g; Carb 6.9g; Fiber 4.3g

Spiced Pita Chips

Makes 24 chips or 6 servings

3 whole-wheat pitas

1 ½ tablespoons olive oil

½ teaspoon chili powder

¼ teaspoon ground cumin

¼ teaspoon kosher salt

Brush both sides of the pitas with olive oil and cut each pita into 8 wedges.  Place them on a baking sheet and sprinkle them with the chili powder, cumin and salt.  Bake at 350 degrees F for 15 minutes turning once halfway through.  Remove from oven and cool.  The chips will crisp up further as they cool. 


One Serving: Calories 101; Fat 4.18g (Sat 0.47g); Protein 3.1g; Carb 14.2g; Fiber 2.1g

What tasty snacks are you making on game day?  Leave a comment below and let me know!