This week starts a new series on Sugar & Butter!

It’s football season.

Ladies, you know this because your man has disappeared into the makeshift football arena otherwise known as the living room, not to emerge on any given Saturday or Sunday for the next four months. You know it’s the living room, but they…they truly believe in their minds and hearts that they are sitting two rows up from the 50 yard line. I’m not sure how, but their ability to create such fantasies is fascinating. And weird. 

However, we love them. To support them during football season and during, let’s face it, the most exhausting of all the sports (all that cheering makes them famished, honestly), I’ve developed this recipe series:: Fantasy Football Food. Named in part for the league that probably half of our men are participating in online (if you have no clue what I’m saying, count your blessings) and for the dreams that come true during football season, I’ll focus on great manly game day food. And yes, you’ll enjoy this stuff too. That’s a promise. While I can’t guarantee that your man’s team will win, resulting in unparalleled joy and a desire to do whatever chore you need him to do with pleasure, I can guarantee that I will guide you safely through the season with a different recipe every week. 

These Italian Meatball Heroes are pretty easy to make but really messy. Real plates are necessary as are double napkins. And make sure you let him know that eating these requires two hands so drop that remote. Pretty please. 

Makes 4 sandwiches

Ingredients:: 

• 1 pound spicy or sweet Italian sausages, casings removed
• 1 (23- to 24-ounce) container purchased fresh marinara sauce, divided
• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese (about 1 1/2 ounces)
• 1/3 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley, divided
• 1/3 cup chopped fresh basil, divided
• 4 (5- to 6-inch-long) pieces French baguette, split horizontally
• 1 cup (packed) coarsely grated whole-milk mozzarella cheese

Directions:: 

1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Mix sausage, 1/2 cup marinara, Parmesan, 2 tablespoons parsley, and 2 tablespoons basil in large bowl. Using wet hands, shape mixture into 8 meatballs. Bring 2 tablespoons parsley, 2 tablespoons basil, remaining marinara, and meatballs to boil in large skillet. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer until meatballs are cooked through, turning often, about 20 minutes.
2. Place baguette bottoms on baking sheet; spread each with about 2 tablespoons sauce from skillet. Cut meatballs in half in skillet; overlap 4 halves on each baguette bottom. Spoon remaining sauce over meatballs, then sprinkle mozzarella over, dividing equally. Bake until cheese melts, about 5 minutes. Sprinkle with remaining parsley and basil and cover with baguette tops.
    

There is a place, a magical place, right by my office that makes a great panini. I always eat only half so that I can have the other half later. And it tastes just as good the second time around.

However, um…things are tight, right? I can’t eat a restaurant panini every day (or even every week) so I felt inspired to come up with my own.

Sun dried tomatoes and spinach artichoke spread add a sweetness to the saltiness of the prosciutto. The double cheese is hello, amazing. And the ciabatta is just the right texture to stand up to the gooey cheese. The real secret is using a spinach artichoke dip or spread versus oil or mayonnaise. I get mine from Whole Foods – it is all about the actual spinach and artichoke, and not the fat. Love. 

I think I succeeded and I even think that mine was a little better.

And that I should have kept the leftovers for myself rather than give them to Ryan.

It’s tough being Ryan…

Makes about 4 servings

Ingredients::

• 1 Ciabatta loaf, cut in quarters, quarters sliced in half long way 
• 1/2 cup sun dried tomatoes
• 4 oz. gruyere cheese, sliced 
• 4 oz. mozzarella cheese, sliced
• 2 1/2 oz. prosciutto
• 1 container store brand spinach-artichoke dip

Directions::

1. Cook prosciutto in small skillet on medium-high for about 2 minutes, or until it is crispy and browned. 
2. Spread spinach artichoke dip on inside half of all pieces of ciabatta. Layer cheese with sun dried tomatoes and prosciutto on four of the slices of bread. 
3. Place one “blank” piece of ciabatta with one “layered” piece to form a sandwich. Using a skillet  (on medium) or a George, place sandwiches on heat for about 4 minutes, until cheese is melted and sandwich is warm throughout. 

You can find prosciutto at most grocery stores in the specialty meat section.

I am dork and forgot to take a picture, but this is more or less what it should look like. I know, I know...

In case you haven’t heard, we’re in a recession.

As tough as that is, the one thing that hasn’t budged is my food budget. Keeping my blog, keeping my cooking career moving in the right direction, and eating well are all top priorities for me. The challenge is doing all of that with the best food possible, on a non profit worker’s budget. Solution? 

Please run, don’t walk, to your nearest Whole Foods for tonight’s dinner. Unless you’re a vegetarian, in which case this meal is not for you! I found these Blue Cheese Burgers on sale at Whole Foods (in the fresh meat section) this week and they are so good! The beef is grass fed, with no antibiotics or preservatives added. The organic broccoli is found in the frozen food section. The roll – Whole Foods bakery.

For an easy mostly-organic meal that costs less than $3 (yes, you heard me right kids) a serving, follow these simple steps. 

Step 1:: 

Cut in half one whole wheat organic roll.

Step 2:: 

Place George Foreman grilled blue cheese burger on top of roll. Yes, that is in fact yummy blue cheese INSIDE the burger. Honestly.

Step 3:: 

Top with ketchup - obviously.

Step 4:: 

Steam up some frozen vegetables as a side.

Easy peasy, good for you, good for our earth, and recession proof. Hello love.