Super Bowl LIV is a superb match-up: the Kansas City Chiefs vs. the San Francisco 49ers.
So, needless to say, we need a menu equal to this championship challenge.
Our game plan involves serving up team-themed dishes for the big event being played in Miami at 6:30 p.m. on Sunday.
We’re kicking off with Kansas City which, as we all know, is famous for its barbecue. The 20,000-member Kansas City Barbeque Society, dedicated to the art of succulent slow-cooked meats, didn’t pick that spot for its home base for nothin’.
We’re offering Kansas City-Style Baby Back Ribs that are baked in the oven with the area’s distinctive spiced, molasses-enriched, tomato-based sauce, so no one will have to stand outside at the grill and miss even a moment of the excitement.
But despite the ease of preparation, they’ve got all the fabulous flavor of the outdoor-cooked classic.
Our accompanying Chiefs-inspired dessert is a light, brightly flavored No-Churn Lemon Bar Ice Cream ready for scooping into cones.
Missouri’s state dessert has officially been the ice cream cone since 2008. But unofficially, it’s been a fan favorite since its debut at the 1904 World’s Fair held in St. Louis, though the idea had been patented by New York City-based Italo Marchiony in 1903.
Gold – represented by the lemon curd shining through the creamy, cookie-studded base – is one of Kansas City’s team colors, along with red. (But don’t get that confused with the 49ers’ scarlet and gold, okay?)
We’d debated whether to devise a version of the red velvet- and lemon-swirled Chiefscake flavor served at Kansas City’s own Betty Rae's Ice Cream, but again decided to go with convenience over complication when picking our party fare.
Switching sides, San Francisco is justly known for its tangy sourdough bread.
But there’s another local loaf that needs a better p.r. team: Dutch Crunch bread, with a golden brown crackly crust.
According to Casey Brand, writing for American Food Roots, the name refers to the “topping created by painting dough with a paste of rice flour, yeast, sugar, salt, and a fat such as butter or oil. The bread rises as it bakes in the oven, but the gluten-less rice flour paste does not, causing the topping to crack.”
Dutch Crunch breads are most often used for sandwiches, so we’ve made sliders inspired by San Francisco’s Arguello Market, which claims to make the world’s best turkey sandwich with lettuce, tomato, Pepper Jack cheese, and slices of California’s prized avocados. (Once again, we’re making life easy by starting with frozen bread rolls.)
And for dessert, who could resist caramel-frosted cupcakes made from a brownie mix?
But we didn’t just pick any ol’ package off the shelf: We chose one from San Francisco’s own legendary Ghirardelli Chocolate, an institution for over 168 years.
So, whether you’re hanging out to watch the game, the ads, or our personal favorites — Baker Meowfield and the Courageous Cougars in Kitten Bowl VII and Puppy Bowl XVI’s battle for the Chewy “Lombarky” Trophy — don’t fumble the food on Sunday.
With our line-up, you’ll score big points with all your fellow football fanatics.
Dutch Crunch Rolls
16 rolls from a 3-pound package of frozen yeasted thaw-rise-bake dinner rolls
1 ¼-ounce packet active dry yeast
¾ cup warm water, divided
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
¼ teaspoon salt
¾ to 1 cup white rice flour (not sweet or glutinous rice flour)
Place the rolls onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. Cover lightly with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place for at least 2 hours, or until doubled in size.
Place an oven rack in the top third of the oven. Preheat oven to 350F.
Prepare the Dutch crunch topping by combining the yeast, ½ cup warm water, sugar, vegetable oil, salt, and ¾ cup rice flour in a medium bowl. Beat together well to form a smooth, thick batter that drips off your whisk in thick clumps (it should be similar to the consistency of cream of wheat). Add up to another ¼ cup of rice flour, if needed, to achieve the desired consistency. Let the mixture sit for 15 minutes.
After resting, the mixture will have puffed up a bit and thickened; stir in the remaining water.
Dollop the topping in equal amounts over the rolls, gently spooning it all over the tops without deflating the rolls.
Bake the rolls on the top oven rack for 10 minutes, until puffed and crackled. Bake them on the middle rack for 15 to 20 more minutes, or until golden-brown with a crisp crust. Cool before slicing, if using for sandwiches.
Note: San Francisco’s Arguello Market serves what it calls the World’s Best Turkey Sandwich. Place lettuce and slices of red onion and tomato onto the mayonnaise-smeared bottom of a sliced Dutch Crunch roll. Pile on thick slices of oven-roasted turkey (both light and dark meats), then top it off with slices of Pepper Jack cheese, pickles, and sliced avocado.
Yield: 16 rolls
Source: Adapted from American Food Roots
Caramel Pecan Brownie Cupcakes
Brownies:
¼ cup water
⅓ cup vegetable oil
1 egg
1 18.5-ounce package Ghirardelli Caramel Turtle Premium Brownie Mix, divided
Frosting:
½ cup butter, at room temperature
2 cups powdered sugar
2 teaspoons milk
Pinch of salt
¼ cup candied pecans
Make the brownies: Heat the oven to 325F. Line a muffin pan with 9 paper baking cups.
Place the water, oil, and egg in a medium bowl and stir until fully mixed. Set aside the caramel pouch from the brownie package, then add brownie mix to the bowl and stir until well blended. Spoon the batter into the lined muffin cups.
Bake for 23 to 27 minutes, until a toothpick tester comes out with a bit of chocolate but not gooey. Cool thoroughly.
Make the frosting: Using an electric mixer, mix the reserved caramel with butter on medium speed. Add the powdered sugar, milk, and salt; blend until smooth.
Frost the cupcakes and garnish with candied pecans.
Yield: 9 cupcakes
Source: Adapted from ghirardelli.com
Kansas City-Style Baby Back Ribs
2 2-pound racks baby back pork ribs
¼ cup plus ⅓ cup packed light or dark brown sugar, divided
¼ cup chili powder
3 tablespoons sweet paprika
1 tablespoon salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
Sauce:
1½ cups chopped onion
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
6 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1½ cups ketchup
½ cup cider vinegar
⅓ cup yellow mustard
¼ cup molasses (not blackstrap)
3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon hot sauce, or to taste
1 teaspoon liquid smoke, optional
Line a large heavy rimmed baking sheet with foil and put rib racks side by side in pan.
In a bowl, whisk together ¼ cup brown sugar, chili powder, paprika, salt, pepper, and cayenne and rub onto both sides of racks. Let ribs stand, meaty sides up, at room temperature, 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 325F. Cover pan tightly with foil and bake ribs 1½ hours.
Make sauce while ribs bake: Cook onion in oil in a 3- to 4-quart heavy pot over medium-low heat, covered, stirring occasionally, until tender, 10 to 15 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Add remaining ingredients, including remaining ⅓ cup brown sugar, and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, 15 minutes. Cool sauce slightly and purée in a food processor. Set aside 1 cup sauce for serving.
Remove foil cover and turn racks over so bone ends curve up, then baste ribs with pan juices and spread generously with some sauce. Continue to bake, uncovered, 30 minutes.
Turn racks over, then baste again with pan juices and top generously with more sauce. Continue to bake until tender when pierced with a small knife, 30 to 45 minutes.
Broil ribs, meaty sides up, 4 to 6 inches from heat, until browned, 2 to 3 minutes. Serve with reserved sauce.
Yield: 6 to 8 servings
Source: Kemp Minifie, epicurious.com
No-Churn Lemon Bar Ice Cream
2 cups cold heavy cream
1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
1 tablespoon lemon zest
¼ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
⅛ teaspoon fine sea salt
1 5.5-ounce package shortbread cookies, coarsely chopped, or 1½ cups chopped vanilla sandwich cookies (such as Golden Oreos)
1 10-ounce jar lemon curd (about ¾ cup), well-stirred
Cones, for serving
Line an 8-inch square metal baking pan with plastic wrap. Place pan in freezer.
In a mixing bowl, whip the cream at medium-high speed until stiff peaks form; set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the sweetened condensed milk, lemon zest, lemon juice, vanilla, and salt. Fold one-third of the whipped cream into the mixture to lighten it, then fold in the remaining cream until well-blended. Fold in the chopped cookies.
Spoon half of the mixture into the chilled baking pan. Dollop with half of the lemon curd. Use a butter knife to lightly swirl curd into the ice cream. Repeat with the remaining cream mixture and lemon curd. Freeze uncovered until firm, 4 to 6 hours.
Scoop and serve in cones.
Yield: 6 servings
Source: Adapted from Midwest Living
First Published January 29, 2020, 2:33 a.m.
