Football menu scores touchdown

The Kitchen Diva

by Angela Shelf Medearis

I love football, and the Super Bowl on Sunday is the perfect time to gather with family and friends. I'm not at all surprised by a survey where 72 percent of the participants remembered what they ate, but couldn't remember who won the game the year before. According to the National Football League, Super Bowl Sunday ranks second behind Thanksgiving as the biggest day of food consumption. It's also the most popular at home party event of the year, surpassing even New Year's Eve.

I've discovered an easy way to feed a house full of hungry football fans. I use a pre-cooked, smoked brisket and a good-quality, packaged salsa like the Pace brands. From these two main ingredients, I can create a smorgasbord of delicious dishes on a budget. This super game-day menu uses brisket in a variety of ways and features a jicama salad with a spicy, salsa dressing. The recipes are quick, easy and guarantee that you'll be free to enjoy the party along with your guests.

Salsa brisket

Brush the pre-cooked brisket with 11⁄2 cups of Pace Triple Pepper Salsa. Follow the baking directions on the brisket package. Allow the heated brisket to cool before slicing. Serve half of the sliced brisket with a bowl of the Triple Pepper Salsa and a basket of rolls. Shred the rest of the brisket, and use it in the recipes below.

Sassy salsa fajitas

Wrap a small portion of the shredded salsa brisket in a warm, flour tortilla and top the fajita with shredded lettuce and cheddar cheese, or some of the jicama salad below, and top with Pace's Four Cheese Salsa Con Queso.

Salsa Joes

Combine the shredded salsa brisket with Pace's Pico De Gallo. Pile the meat mixture on toasted hamburger buns, or in pita bread.

Salsa beef salad

Combine the shredded salsa beef with Pace's Pico De Gallo. Pile the salsa beef on top of pita or tortilla chips, top with some of the jicama salad, and sprinkle with Cheddar cheese.

Salsa quesadillas

Pre-heat the oven to 425 F. Take 10 (6-inch) flour tortillas and place them on a large baking sheet that has been lightly sprayed with oil. Heap several tablespoons of the shredded salsa brisket in the center of each tortilla. Add 2 tablespoons of Pace's Four Cheese Salsa and 3 tablespoons of shredded Cheddar cheese. Fold the tortillas in half. Bake 10 minutes until golden and crisp. Cut each quesadilla into thirds. Serve warm with a bowl of Pace Salsa. Makes 30 appetizers.

Salsa stuffed baked potatoes

Bake the potatoes at the same time you're heating the pre-cooked brisket or microwave the baking potatoes until soft. After baking, wrap the potatoes in aluminum foil to keep warm. Serve the baked potatoes with individual bowls of Pace's Four Cheese Salsa, broccoli, shredded cheese and vegetables of your choice as toppings. This is a great recipe for your guests who don't eat beef. Non-vegetarians will also enjoy these baked potatoes stuffed with the shredded salsa brisket.

Jicama salad

Jicama also is known as a Mexican potato or a Chinese turnip and is high in vitamin C. This salad is a delicious topping for the salsa fajitas.

Dressing

1⁄2 cup Pace Salsa Verde

1⁄4 cup olive oil

1⁄3 cup lime juice

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon pepper

Salad

1 small jicama, about half a pound

4 radishes, thinly sliced

1 small purple onion, thinly sliced

5-6 small cherry tomatoes, quartered

1 ripe avocado, sliced

1 small cucumber, seeded and sliced into quarter-inch slices

1 cup sweet white or yellow corn kernels, cooked and chilled (or frozen)

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon pepper

Slice and/or cube all the vegetables. Mix together all dressing ingredients. Add to vegetables. Toss to combine, refrigerate for 30 minutes and serve chilled.

n Angela Shelf Medearis is a culinary historian and author. Her latest cookbook is 'The New African-American Kitchen.' She is the executive producer and host of 'The Kitchen Diva!' cooking show. Visit her Web site at www.divapro.com