Snacks are a major requirement for watching any football game with family and friends, so show off your team spirit with foods made especially for game day. These ball-shaped foods and other appetizers will give even rival teams something to agree on! To feed just a few fans, serve up Fudgy Football Brownies and a Spicy Cheese (Foot)Ball. And if you've got a team-size crowd coming over, make an epic Snack Stadium that's got almost every tailgating appetizer you can imagine. Whether you choose to save these football-shaped snacks as a special treat for the big game or make them a tailgating tradition, each one is guaranteed to earn cheers from your crowd.
1. Spicy Cheese (Foot)Ball
Fans of savory food, you'll want to stand guard over this football appetizer all night long. Thanks to a three-cheese combo (cream cheese, cheddar, and Monterey Jack) mixed with corn, jalapeños, and spicy pepper sauce, everyone will be drawn back for more after the first bite. To make it look as realistic as possible, shape it into an oval instead of a traditional round cheese ball. A roll through crispy bacon bits makes it just the right shade of brown to imitate a real football. Use a few cheese shreds for the laces, then serve with crackers and your favorite veggies for dipping.
2. Football Cookie Dough Pops
Does anyone ever say no to edible cookie dough? The trick to making this safe-to-eat-raw recipe is using a mixture of oat and coconut flour (which don't need to be baked) and skipping raw eggs. Once the chocolate chip cookie dough is ready, use football-shaped cookie cutters to slice it. Insert a stick, cover in melted chocolate, and finish with white chocolate laces on top. Then these fun little footballs are ready to sail all the way to a touchdown.
3. Pumpkin Football Cakes
Football rules autumn, so naturally, using another fall favorite to make these football-shape snacks just makes sense. A can of pumpkin (plus cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves) helps make a tasty fall spice cake that's just the right shade for transforming into mini footballs. To make these fun football foods worthy of a star quarterback, bake the cakes in egg-shape muffin cups to create the signature football shape. Slice through the center so you can fill them with a generous smear of buttercream frosting, then pipe frosting laces on top for the finishing touch.
4. Fudgy Football Brownies
Fudgy brownies are a natural fit for turning into cute football-shape snacks. Make a big pan of your favorite fudgy brownie recipe, then use a football (or oval) cookie cutter to make an army of footballs. If you don't have a cookie cutter in the right shape, you can also use a knife to cut out individual ovals while the brownies are in the pan. Pipe on creamy white frosting as laces, and this dessert is ready for a touchdown celebration. If you want to speed up the process, instead of baking from scratch, use a boxed brownie mix, then dress up your dessert.
5. Build an Epic Snack Stadium
For some fans, their home team's stadium is just as iconic as the team itself. Even if you're watching from home, you can easily bring the stadium to your party by creating this massive snack version. Build the "field" out of seven-layer dip topped with shredded lettuce and sour cream yard lines. Fill the stands with trays of all your tailgating favorites, including meatballs, chicken wings, chips and queso, and any other apps you consider a game day must. Finish constructing the stadium walls with stacks of sliced submarine sandwiches. If you really want to go a few extra yards, use a little extra sour cream to pipe your favorite team's mascot into the center of the field, or write their name in the end zone. With so many snacks to go around, no one should go to halftime hungry!