Thanks to Avalon Catering for sharing these Game Day party recipes with us.

Game Day Brisket Chili

4 oz Spotted Trotter bacon, chopped
4 lb brisket, cubed (use both the 1st & 2nd cut, but trim away some of the excess fat)
1 ea yellow onion (large), diced
4 ea garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 Sweetwater 420
1 qt beef broth or stock, homemade if you have it
2 c crushed tomatoes
2 T chile powder
2 t cumin, ground
2 t coriander, ground
2 T kosher salt
2 c black beans (canned is okay, we used dried Riverview farms beans)
1 lb sweet potatoes, peeled & diced

Preheat oven to 350F. When hot, put the excess brisket trim in a pan and render out some of the fat.

In a large pot over medium heat, use your brisket fat to cook down the bacon. When starting to get crispy, remove the bacon pieces and set aside. Next, turn the heat up to high and add the brisket. Cook until browned, then add onion and garlic, and sweat until translucent. Return the heat on the pot to medium and add all but the final 2 ingredients. Bring the chili to a simmer, then turn the heat to medium-low and let it cook slowly. After about 2 hours of cooking, add the sweet potatoes (raw), bacon pieces, and black beans (cooked). Continue cooking the chili for about another 2 hours, very slowly, and stirring every now and then. Adjust seasoning to your taste.

Serve with cornbread and your favorite chili toppings.

Makes ~12 cups

*To note: if you are using dried beans, soak overnight in water and salt, with a 1qt to 2t ratio. When you start the chili, rinse the soaked beans thoroughly, then cover with fresh water in a sauce pot. Cook until tender then add to the chili.

Cornbread

This recipe is scaled for a large cast-iron skillet (~9″). You can also use a glass or aluminum baking pan.

2 c Cornmeal
1 c AP flour
1t baking soda
1t baking powder
2 T kosher salt
7 oz unsalted butter (14 T), cubed
1 c buttermilk
3/4 c whole milk
1 ea egg

Preheat oven to 425F.

Sift together dry ingredients. In another bowl, mix wet ingredients (except butter).

Put your skillet or baking pan into the oven with butter to melt. Meanwhile, mix your wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. When the butter is completely melted, remove the skillet and whisk butter into the batter. Quickly return the batter to the skillet and place back into oven. Bake 13-15 minutes until browned.

Kale, Rainbow Chard, & Artichoke dip

1 ea yellow onion, diced
3 ea garlic cloves, minced
2 oz unsalted butter
1 bu kale, cleaned (we used red russian kale, however, curly or lacinato kale will work as well)
1 bu rainbow or green chard, cleaned
2 ea 14oz cans artichoke hearts, drained, and chopped
1 lb cream cheese
2 oz parmesan cheese, grated
1/4 c milk, or as needed
4 t kosher salt
1 1/2 t worchestershire
2 t lemon juice
dash tobasco

Directions:

Heat the butter in a saute pan over medium-high heat. Sweat onions & garlic until translucent, 2-3 minutes, stirring frequently then cool.

Bring a pot of water to boil and salt liberally. Prepare a bowl or container with ice water, also salted liberally. Submerge the kale in boiling water until wilted then immediately transfer the kale into the ice water. When cooled, remove the kale and squeeze the remaining water out. We find this easiest to do with a kitchen towel. Once well drained, chop the kale and set aside. Repeat the same process for the chard.

In a mixing bowl, cream together the cream cheese and onion mixture. When thoroughly mixed, add remainder of ingredients and thin with milk as needed. Adjust seasoning to your taste.

To serve: Bake at 350F until warm and melty. Serve with crackers, pita, your favorite bread, or vegetables as a healthier option.

Makes ~8 cups…enough for a crowd

*To note: Tender winter greens – found at any of your local farmers markets – of all varieties can be substituted into this dip. At Avalon, we frequently utilize the greens that come attached to root or bulbous vegetables including turnip, kohlrabi, or even beet greens in addition to the kale and chard.

Spicy stout mustard

2/3 c yellow mustard seeds
1/2 c cider vinegar
1 c Porter beer
3 T dark brown sugar
1 1/2 t kosher salt
1/2 t tumeric
1/8 t allspice

Overnight, soak the mustard seeds with vinegar and half of the porter.

Bring the remaining ingredients (including the other 1/2c of porter) to a boil then cool. Add all ingredients into the blender and puree until smooth.

Makes ~2 cups

*We recommend using this mustard with your favorite sausages and other charcuterie.