Game Day Food: Boneless Buffalo Wings, Homemade Crackers, White Bean Dip

We had a great Saturday yesterday.  Bryant had to work a bit in the morning but it was just enough time for me to get my workout, farmers market visit and all other chores done before he came home.  The rest of the day was spent hanging out and relaxing.  And the evening, of course, was spent watching college football (and the Huskies won!).  I find that lots of unhealthy food is often served during game day.  Luckily, with a few tweaks, you can make several dishes a lot healthier and still keep the taste.  These boneless wings use chicken breast and are baked instead of fried, saving tons of calories and fat. They're really good, too - you can probably get pretty creative with the sauce but my favorite is BBQ and Bryant's is hot sauce.

Another thing we often have while watching a game is crackers.  However, if you're like me (read: cheap), I'm reluctant to shell out $3 for a small box of crackers so I typically only get them when they're on sale AND I have a coupon. However, I stumbled across this great recipe to MAKE my own crackers.  It's only a few ingredients and it doesn't take much time at all!  It's a great basic recipe but you could add so much to it - I used whole wheat flour, oat bran, flaxseed meal and dried rosemary.  You could really get creative with these; I'll definitely be making them again in the future!

Finally, this white bean dip is a great basic dip for the crackers.  I've made this several times before and it's made from just a few healthy ingredients - beans, olive oil and lemon juice. 

Boneless Chicken Wings
Adapted from: AllRecipes
Serves 3-4

• 1 cup white whole wheat flour
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
  
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1 egg
• 3/4 cup milk (I use skim)
• 3/4 - 1 lb skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2 inch strips
• 1/4 cup sauce (we use 2 Tbsp. hot sauce and 2 Tbsp. BBQ sauce)
  
• 1 tablespoon butter

-Preheat oven to 400 F.Cover a baking sheet with aluminum foil and then coat with cooking spray.
-In a medium bowl, combine flour, salt, black pepper, cayenne pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and paprika. In a small bowl, whisk together the egg and milk.  Dip each piece of chicken in the egg mixture, and then roll in the flour blend. Repeat so that each piece of chicken is double coated. Place on prepared baking sheet.  When all the chicken has been coated, spray top of chicken pieces with cooking spray.
-Cook for 15-20 minutes until tops are slightly browned. 
-Meanwhile, combine 2 Tbsp hot sauce with 1/2 Tbsp butter in a small bowl.  Microwave sauce on High until melted, 20 to 30 seconds. (If you don't have a microwave, place sauce and butter in an oven-proof ramekin or bowl and put in oven for approximately 2 minutes until butter has mostly melted).  Repeat in a separate bowl/ramekin with 2 Tbsp BBQ sauce and remaining 1/2 Tbsp butter. 
-Once chicken is cooked, place half the chicken in one bowl and half in a second bowl.  Pour BBQ sauce mixture over the first bowl and mix to coat.  Repeat with hot sauce mixture over second bowl of chicken.
-Serve with blue cheese dressing or yogurt sauce, carrots, and celery.



Homemade Wheat Crackers
Taken from: AllRecipes
Makes 30-40 crackers (if the dough is rolled thin enough)

• 1 cup and 2 tablespoons whole wheat flour (or try substituting oat flour, wheat germ, flaxseed meal, oat bran, white whole wheat, etc or any combination of these)
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons and 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1/2 cup water
• Any additional add-ins: sesame seeds or other kinds of seeds, dried rosemary or other dried herbs, etc
• kosher or sea salt for sprinkling

-Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). 
-In a medium bowl, stir together the whole wheat flour (or substitutes), all-purpose flour, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and any add-ins. Pour in the oil and water; mix until just blended. 
-On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough as thin as possible - no thicker than 1/8 inch. Place dough on an ungreased baking sheet , and mark squares out with a knife, but don't cut through. (I had to cut my dough in half and bake on two baking sheets because I had so much.)
-Prick each cracker with a fork a few times, and sprinkle with salt. 
-Bake for 15 to 20 minutes in the preheated oven, or until crisp and light brown. Baking time may be different depending on how thin your crackers are. When cool, remove from baking sheet, and separate into individual crackers.


White Bean Dip
Taken from: Ellie Krieger

• 1 (14-ounce) can white beans, rinsed and drained OR 3 cups of cooked dried white beans
• 1 garlic clove (if you have roasted garlic, that would be delicious!)
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
• Salt and pepper
• 1/4 cup parsley leaves or dried parsley

-In a food processor, combine the beans, garlic, olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper and process until smooth.
-Taste and adjust accordingly. (Add in additional lemon juice, olive oil, salt and/or pepper. You could also thin out a little by adding a little bit of water.)
-Mix in parsley, if desired, and serve with crackers and cut vegetables.