Cheer on Your Team with These 14 Game Day Recipes

Cheer on your team and dig into your favorite game day foods: dips and chips, sticky ribs, spicy chili, wings and more.

By
Sara Bir
Sara Bir
Sara Bir
Sara is a chef, culinary educator, and author of three cookbooks, The Pocket Pawpaw Cookbook, Tasting Ohio and The Fruit Forager's Companion. The latter won a 2019 IACP Cookbook Award.
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Published September 09, 2021
Sara Bir
14 Game Day Recipes Perfect for Hosting a Crowd

Simply Recipes

Are you a sports person? Great! Can I tell you a secret? I’m not. I’m just here for the food. I know I'm not the only one!

No worries, I won’t spoil your game day fun. I’ll just add to it with all these amazing recipes perfect for cheering on your favorite team.

Don your game day attire! Break out the face paint and foam fingers! Load up your kitchen with snacks, chili, and all the finger foods. It's time to support your team win or lose and what better way to celebrate or sulk than with a spread so big you can enjoy the leftovers for the rest of the weekend!

Cheer your team on, and dig into all your favorite foods: melty dips, sticky grilled ribs, spicy chili, crunchy nachos, and more.

 

  • Bacon and Blue Cheese Guacamole

    Best Guacamole Recipe with Bacon - guacamole with bacon and chips
    Cindy Rahe

    Why stop with regular guac? This deluxe guacamole is loaded with bacon and blue cheese and works best for sturdy chips. If you’re low-carbing it, try roasted cauliflower as a dipper instead.

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  • Loaded Sheet Pan Nachos

    Pulling a loaded chip away from a sheet pan of nachos
    Alison Conklin

    Sheet pan nachos are heaven-sent: you get more nachos per square inch to satisfy your gang, who doubtlessly will devour them in no time.

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  • Peanut Butter Buckeyes

    Peanut Butter balls or Buckeye balls
    Irvin Lin

    You don’t have to be an Ohio State fan to adore peanut butter buckeyes. What’s not to love about peanut butter and chocolate? As a kid I scarfed way more than my fair share of candy buckeyes at tailgate parties my parents dragged me to.

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  • Spinach Artichoke Dip with Bacon

    Easy Spinach Artichoke Dip with Bacon in a white casserole dish
    Aaron Hutcherson

    Oozy and creamy, this dip welcomes chips and raw veggies. Make the dip and refrigerate up to a day in advance, then bake so it’s piping hot at kickoff.

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    Continue to 5 of 14 below.

  • Sausage Rolls

    Sausage Rolls Recipe
    Sheryl Julian

    These monster rolls feature hefty fresh sausages wrapped up pigs-in-a-banket-style. Use our homemade pizza dough recipe or buy refrigerated dough at the store.

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  • Slow Cooker Honey Buffalo Chicken Wings

    Honey buffalo chicken wings cooked in a crock pot and served with blue cheese dressing
    Irvin Lin

    Make a big batch of wings in your slow cooker to free up the oven for casseroles and such. That way the wings can stay warm in the cooker so your guests can graze on them—the best way to enjoy wings.

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  • Pineapple Glazed Ham Balls

    Pineapple Glazed Ham Balls
    Elise Bauer

    You’ll get all your porky food groups here (ham, bacon, and ground pork), plus a sweet and tangy glaze. These are begging for you to poke them with a plastic-frilled cocktail pick and gobble them up.

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  • Buffalo Chicken Chili

    Bowl of buffalo chicken chili with toppings
    Aaron Hutcherson

    Can’t decide between buffalo wings and chili? Enjoy both in this recipe mash-up that gets the deluxe treatment with a bevy of toppings. We’ve got slow cooker, stovetop, and Instant Pot cooking directions, too!

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    Continue to 9 of 14 below.

  • Korean BBQ Pork Ribs

    Korean Baby Back Rib Recipe partially sliced on a cutting board.
    Cecilia Hae-Jin Lee

    Parboil these ribs, then marinate in a sweet, salty, umami-rich marinade up to 8 hours in advance of game day grilling. 

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  • Candied Bacon

    Bacon Candy Recipe
    Nick Evans

    Candied bacon was meant to be shared. Come on, it’s game day—now’s your big chance to have an excuse to make this sweet and salty snack.

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  • Pickle Slaw

    Pickle slaw with cabbage, carrots, and pickle juice in a bowl
    Nick Evans

    Game day gatherings can be a little heavy on the meat and carbs. Nothing wrong with that, but a light and crunchy coleslaw offers a pleasing contrast to all the rich fare. This one has pickle juice in the dressing, plus chopped pickles in the slaw.

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  • Pressure Cooker Chinese Pulled Pork

    Pressure Cooker Chinese Pulled Pork
    Coco Morante

    Terrific for making in advance and for bringing to potlucks, this pulled pork offers a delicious change of pace from the BBQ sauce doused versions. Serve these on slider buns or go big with homemade hamburger buns.

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    Continue to 13 of 14 below.

  • Gluten-Free Monster Cookie Bars

    Close up of an overhead view of Bar Cookies of the Gluten Free Monster Variety.
    Kalisa Marie Martin

    Make oaty, peanut buttery monster cookies in this easy to bake bar format. Want to really make a statement? Order chocolate candies in your team colors and make monster cookies that’ll truly show your loyalty.

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  • Buffalo Blue Cheese Deviled Eggs

    Deviled Eggs with Blue Cheese
    Elise Bauer

    A game day party isn’t complete without deviled eggs. Give your deviled eggs a spicy makeover with blue cheese and buffalo sauce. That’s a surefire way to impress your guests.  

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