Game Day Football Party

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #ScoreMoreFans #CollectiveBias
Even though I’m not the biggest football fan, I do love the entertaining aspect of the football season. Come over, hang out, watch the game and let me do what I do best, hostess. My main goal is to create a fun atmosphere, delicious eats and beautiful memories that will last much longer than than watching your team take it to the house. After all, aren’t people and relationships the most important thing?

THE PARTY
I don’t have a favorite team, because… I love them all, so for this party I decided to go with the neutral color scheme of brown, green and metallics. However, if you were wanting to go with specific team colors, this set up would look great with any colors you wanted to use. Paper fans and bunting are an easy way to make it feel like a party, whether you make or buy them, they’re cute but not too girly. I just hung mine on the sides of a “Game Day” banner I made (Free Printout Here). You could really have fun with these and customize them with any color/patterned paper you wanted. Want help setting up your backdrop? Watch me set up mine by clicking here.THE EATS
My husband is a big fan of anything Coca-Cola and RITZ® Crackers are basically a staple in our home (especially with our three-year-old), so I decided to combine the two for a miniature take on sweet Coca-Cola pulled pork bites (look for my recipe below), don’t be nervous, it is so easy to make! I love this as a game day main dish because its so versatile, and did I mention EASY? You can serve it on a roll, in a tortilla, with chips or even on a salad, just let your guests decide.

Anticipating how many dips, chips, sweets and treats are coming, the food situation can get really overwhelming, and honestly messy. I wanted to have this beautiful tablescape ready to welcome my guests and get them right into mingling and watching the game. This area helped the party flow smoothly while I was busy tackling all of the chips and candy. It had fruit-garnished martini glasses, a Coca-Cola beverage fountain, sweet pulled pork bites, a few varieties of green candies, my famous cheese ball (appropriately shaped like a football), RITZ® Crackers and Coke Zeros wrapped in copper glitter paper to match, because they’re gorgeous that way! I love seeing that my guests are enjoying watching the game and visiting, as a hostess I am totally in my element restocking and serving.  And as promised, the easiest and tastiest sweet pulled pork bites that will have your guests chanting for more, in which case, please give them my name. Actually, it should be noted that both of these recipes could be made in advance, so all you’d have to do is assemble, the day of the party!

Sweet Coca-Cola Pulled PorkIngredients:

• 4 lbs pork shoulder
• 1 tbs salt
• 1 tbs cumin
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp dry mustard
• 2 tbs minced garlic
• 1 cup red onion
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1-12oz can red enchilada sauce
• 2 cups of Coca-Cola
• 1 package RITZ® Crackers
• shredded cheese
• sour cream
• cilantro leaves
• cherry tomato halves
• garlic salt

Instructions:

Place the pork shoulder into a slow cooker. Evenly sprinkle the salt, cumin, cayenne pepper, dry mustard and minced garlic over the top. Continue evenly adding the brown sugar, red onion, red enchilada sauce and Coca-Cola over the top. The pork should be submerged, or close to it. Cook for 5-8 hours. Once it is fully cooked, remove pork from the slow cooker, allow it to rest for 7-10 minutes then shred on a cutting board. Return the shredded pork to the slow cooker and continue cooking for another 10-20 minutes.

To garnish, lay out a few RITZ® Crackers and place a small amount of the pulled pork and shredded cheese on top. Using a plastic baggie filled with sour cream, cut the corner and pipe a small dollop onto each one. Finish by adding a cilantro leave, half of a cherry tomato and sprinkle a little garlic salt on the top to taste.Serve immediately, enjoy!

Football Cheese Ball

Ingredients:

• 3 blocks of cream cheese, softened
• 1-10oz can of crushed pineapple, drained and paper toweled (remove all juice)
• 3/4 cup green onions
• 2 tsp seasoned salt
• chopped Pecans
• sour cream
• 1 box RITZ® Crackers

Instructions:

Combine all ingredients until fully incorporated. Place mixture onto plastic wrap and mold into a football shape. Refrigerate until firm (2-3 hours) then gently roll into crushed pecans until fully covered. Using a plastic baggie filled with sour cream, cut the corner to pipe the football laces on top.
Serve with RITZ® Crackers, enjoy!

I was able to find everything I needed for my recipes at Walmart. The RITZ® Crackers greeted me right as I walked into the store, and the Coca-Cola Zero was on the end of the frozen food section, which was very convenient. Make sure to be on the lookout for this deal 2 for $5 on all Coca-Cola 16.9oz 6-packs, to stock up before the game!

What are your fan favorite recipes or traditions for the Big Game?