The last two weeks: Game day food, recipes, cookbook giveaways, EYBD Previews and more!

The Super Bowl is this Sunday in the US. Millions of Americans will be glued to their television screens for the football action and the commercials. Usually, every year, I make wings and other finger food but I am doing something different this weekend*.

I bought a spiral ham which I will warm and glaze, two racks of ribs to oven bake and sauce up, beer cheese (I’ll share that recipe at the bottom of this post) will be placed in a fondue warming dish, and homemade pretzel bites for dipping. This spread will be on the dining room table with rye bread, Hawaiian rolls, mustard, assorted chips and brownies. I’ve decided to not spend my Sunday working in the kitchen. Before game time everything will be ready and warm in the oven ready for the coin toss.

Using my leftover ham, I am planning Poppy seed ham sandwiches on Hawaiian sweet rolls for Tuesday with homemade fries and White bean & ham soup with corn bread croutons for Wednesday. Monday’s dinner will be mac and cheese using any leftover beer cheese and ribs.

*Please note: it should go without repeating that it is recommended that gatherings should be curtailed until this pandemic has run its course. It has been a year of no socializing and everything I write bears that in mind. Every year we watch the Super Bowl by ourselves – our family of three (which includes a 16 year old boy who can eat a rack of ribs by himself). Our friend, Jon, who lives alone has been eating meals with us since the pandemic began will be here too. I always overdo snacks and food so we can have leftovers and it is just what I do. My menu and food suggestions are just for our family with leftovers for the week! We hope you enjoy your weekend safely.

Other gameday food ideas:

What is your go-to game day food? If not a fan of sports, what is on the menu for binge watching Bridgerton?

The last two weeks on the blog

Since our last roundup, Darcie has written these articles:

Darcie’s weekly food news antipasto is shared every Sunday #foodnews brings up these information-packed posts from the most current to the first one. The monthly newsletter went out last week and if you missed it in your inbox you can find a copy here.

Jane posted the following:

This week I have posted:

Be sure to check out the February Great Big Cookbook Club Summary which has been updated. And as always I continue to update our Kindle deals post so check the blog for new sales.

Jenny and the EYB Team


Featured Recently Indexed Titles


Member Photos from the Last Two Weeks

Crispy prawns with a mango & tomato dip  from Simply: Easy Everyday Dishes from the Bestselling Author of Persiana by Sabrina Ghayour submitted by member raybun

Chocolate tart from Patisserie at Home by Melanie Dupuis and Anne Cazor submitted by member JulieCruz

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Two Weeks of Featured Online Recipes

Chocolate dipped brownies from RecipeGirl by Lori Lange and Ina Garten

Roast pork panini with olive salad from The Kitchn


EYBDigital Previews

Recently we uploaded our 891st EYBDigital Preview where a selection of full sample pages is available for the following cookbooks.

Learn more about EYBDigital Previews.

Note: To learn why you cannot add all EYBDigital Preview recipes to your Bookshelf, please read this Help page.


Cookbook Giveaways
Click on the Bold Blue Link Below to Enter

  • Enter our US/CA giveaway to win one of two copies of Phoenix Cooks: Recipes from the City’s Finest Chefs by Christina Barrueta which expires on February 10th, 2021.
  • Enter our US/CA giveaway to win one of two copies of Miami Cooks: Recipes from the City’s Favourite Restaurants by Sara Liss which expires on February 10th, 2021.

*Publishers thank us for our continued patience while awaiting the arrival of prizes as warehouses are not operating at full capacity yet and it appears things will only get slower as the winter season takes hold. The cookbook giveaway roundup shares all current giveaways.

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Easy tasty beer cheese

1 eight ounce package of cream cheese
1 twelve ounce bottle of beer
Few dashes of hot sauce
Pinch of garlic powder
Pinch of onion powder
12 to 16 ounces of cheddar (or pepper jack)

I play with this combination all the time and judge the amount of cheese and beer by the consistency of the cheese sauce. I like it thick but easy to dip our pretzel bites or fries into without resistence.

In a medium size sauce pan over medium heat, add the cream cheese to soften using a spatula to break it up. After a minute or so, add the beer – I start with half the bottle and add more if needed. Using a whisk I let the beer warm up and help melt the cream cheese. I then add the hot sauce and pinches of garlic powder and onion powder. At this time, I add about 12 ounces of the cheddar and continue to whisk adding beer as needed. Taste and adjust for seasoning. If using as a dipping sauce, you may want to place over a tea light warmer to keep it dippable or put into a mini crockpot to keep warm. I use this sauce in my mac and cheese as well – so good and easy.

If you do not have a fondue pot, warmer or mini crock – the warmer in the photograph to the right could be thrown together with things in your kitchen. Be sure to place it on a fire proof plate to protect your table and prevent any accidents. Of course, you can always zap the sauce in the microwave for a few seconds to loosen up.

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