Easy Game Day Recipes

Football is officially back! For some of us that means a cozy day on the couch watching our favorite teams and for others it might be designated nap time. Regardless, we all know that one of the best parts about football season is the food. 

Sunday is an important day of the week beyond just football. It’s a chance to relax and set yourself up for success for the upcoming week. A lot of that depends on what we choose to fuel our bodies with, and this year we’re taking you for a plant based spin! We’re bringing you three, tried and true, plant based recipes for game day that will take your snack game to the next level. 

Cashew Queso

This has been in my family’s weekly rotation for years because it has an incredible taste and it’s easy to transform the flavor based on whatever you’re serving it with. 

If you’re using it for Italian night, throw some fresh Basil in it instead of the chipotle and maple. Taco night? Chop up a jalapeño and throw it in the blender (leave the seeds in for extra spice!).

Ingredients

• 1 cup cashews
• 1 tsp minced garlic
• 1 tsp salt
• 3 tbsp nutritional yeast
• 1 canned chipotle pepper 
• Dash of maple syrup
• 1 cup hot water

Directions

1. Add everything to a blender and blend on high for 30 seconds, until completely smooth. Add salt for saltiness, nutritional yeast for cheesiness, or another chipotle pepper for spice. 

Photo credit: Eat with Clarity

Taco Stuffed Peppers

This is another recipe that is not only easy to make but easy to adapt to people’s taste buds. My four year old despises anything spicy so we make two peppers with just rice and beans. Boring but hey, I’ll take what I can get these days. 

For 8 pepper halves:

• 4 bell peppers (Choose all different colors for an elevated final look)
• 1 cup white rice (or your favorite type of rice/quinoa)
• 15 oz can of black beans, drained & rinsed 
• 15 oz can of pinto beans, drained & rinsed
• 1 cup frozen fire roasted corn
• 8 oz salsa 
• 1/2 large onion, minced
• 2 tsp garlic, minced 
• 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
• Favorite taco seasoning blend. I typically use:
  • 1 tsp each of smoked paprika
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • 1 tsp salt 
  • 1/2 tsp pepper
  • 1/4 tsp each of garlic & onion powder
  • 1/4 tsp chili powder (more if you like spicy)

Directions:

1. Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Cut each pepper in half and remove stems & seeds. Try to keep them in a cup-like form to hold the contents. You can achieve this by carefully using a small knife to cut out the stems instead of pulling them off by hand. Place in 9×13 dish.
2. Saute the onion & garlic on medium heat in olive oil, until lightly browned. About 3-5 minutes. Set aside.
3. In a large mixing bowl, add all ingredients except for bell peppers and mix together. Taste and adjust flavor to your liking. 
4. Fill each bell pepper and lightly press to ensure they’re completely full. They’ll be quite full and almost overflowing, that’s a good thing!
5. Cover with tin foil and bake for 35 minutes. Remove foil and continue baking for 10 minutes. 
6. Serve with your favorite taco toppings and enjoy.

Suggested toppings:

• Avocado
• Coconut yogurt (Cocoyo is my go-to plant based sour cream and it’s full of probiotics. A little pricy but worth the splurge every now and then.)
• Cashew Queso or another plant based cheese
• Hot sauce 
• Jalapeños 

Photo credit: Minimalist Baker 

Stuffed Mushrooms

Our last recipe are stuffed mushrooms by FromMyBowl. These are rich, the perfect sized snack, and a full of warming, fall herbs. Don’t stress over the ingredients and use what’s in your pantry. We don’t use the rosemary, sage, or celery, and swapped the pine nuts for cashews and they still turned out amazing! 

Did you try these recipes? Leave us a review below! Check out our reel on Instagram to see how everything turned out & for honest reviews by a four year old.