Seems to me that Super Bowl parties are the “unofficial” diet breakers.  Right when you get into the flow of eating healthy, here comes the Super bowl party and all of those fabulous recipes that come with it!! Traditional game day foods are crowd pleasers, but they can also be some of the worst foods for you health-wise. If you are going for a lower carb lifestyle, here is some good news, with these simple makeovers; you don’t have to find new foods to serve on Super Bowl Sunday!  

Turkey Bacon and Avocado Taquitos

6 slices mozzarella cheese

3 slices deli turkey, I like the Carvers thick cut

3 slices cooked bacon

½ ripe avocado, thinly sliced

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  Line a large baking sheet with a silicone mat, or cooking spray. 

Place the round mozzarella slices on the baking sheet.  Bake 5-7 minutes.  When the edges have browned and the cheese is bubbly, remove from the oven.  

Allow them to cool about 1 minute, just so they are cool enough to handle but still pliable.  

Place the turkey, cooked bacon and avocado on one side of the cheese round and roll them up tight, seam side down.  

Serve with your favorite low carb dressing.  

Cheesy Pizza Bread

1 cup shredded mozzarella

¾ cup Parmesan cheese

1 egg

Pinch garlic powder

Italian herbs to taste

Combine all of the ingredients in a bowl.

Transfer mixture to a sheet pan lined with parchment paper and form it into an even layer (you can use a sprayed cake pan if it is not too thick).  

Bake at 180 degrees until golden for 20 minutes or until bubbly and cheesy.  

Low Carb “Big Mac” Bowl

Burger Bowl 

1 pound ground beef

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon pepper

½ cup diced onions

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

18 ounces cabbage, thinly shredded

16 dill pickle slices

Special Sauce

½ cup mayonnaise

4 tablespoons dill pickle relish

2 tablespoons yellow mustard

1 teaspoon white wine vinegar

1 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon onion powder

1 teaspoon garlic powder

For the Burger Bowl, In a skillet over medium-high heat brown the ground beef. As it cooks add the Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. 

When it is almost cooked through add the onions and continue cooking until the ground beef is cooked through and the onions are translucent. Drain the grease and set aside.

In the same skillet add a small amount of olive oil and the shredded cabbage. Sauté until cabbage is slightly softened. Salt and pepper to taste.

Divide the cabbage between 4 bowls, top each with a 1/4 portion of the ground beef.

Sprinkle each with 1/4 cup of shredded cheese and top with 4 pickle slices each.

Pour the special sauce over each bowl and serve. 

For the Special Sauce, In a small bowl whisk together all of the ingredients and set aside.

Bacon Wrapped Zucchini Wedges

Cooking spray

4 zucchini, cut into wedges

16 strips bacon

Ranch or Blue cheese for serving

Preheat oven to 425 degrees and spray a baking sheet with cooking spray.  Wrap each zucchini wedge in bacon and place on a baking sheet.  

Bake until the bacon is cooked through and crispy, about 35 to 40 minutes.  Serve with your favorite low carb dressing or sugar free ketchup.  

Baked “Turkeyroni” Chips

These are my favorite; they are crunchy and spicy once baked.

5 ounces Pepperoni slices, turkeyroni if you can find it, or uncured

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Place an oven safe cookie rack on top of a large baking sheet (I general use my slotted broiler pan, grease goes to the bottom.  

Arrange pepperoni slices on the rack. 

Bake for about 5-7 minutes, until crispy.  Cool to crisp up even more.  

Italian Sub Roll-ups

½ cup mayonnaise

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 small clove garlic, minced

1 teaspoon Italian Seasoning 

6 slices ham

12 slices salami

12 slices pepperoni, sandwich sized

6 slices provolone

1 cup shredded romaine

½ cup sliced pepperoncini

Make creamy Italian dressing (shortcut, combine mayonnaise with your favorite Italian oil and vinegar based dressing).   In a small bowl, whisk mayonnaise, vinegar, oil, garlic and Italian seasoning until well blended.  

Assemble the sub, layer a slice of the ham, two pieces salami, two slices pepperoni and a slice of provolone.  

Add a handful of the shredded romaine and a few pepperoncini in the middle.  Drizzle with the creamy Italian dressing, then roll them up and serve.  Repeat until you have 6 roll ups.  

Nacho Cheese Crisps

1 8 ounce package sliced cheddar

2 teaspoons taco seasoning

Preheat oven to 250 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.  Cut each slice of cheese into 9 squares and place in a medium bowl.  Add taco seasoning and toss to coat.  

Lay cheese slices in an even layer, no overlapping, on prepared baking sheet.  Bake until crisp and golden, about 40 minutes.  They will become crisper as they cool.  Let cool 10 minutes, then remove from the parchment paper.  

Crock Pot Buffalo Wings

4 pounds chicken wings

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

12 ounce bottle Buffalo Wing Sauce, your preference, Frank’s, Texas Pete

Combine the chicken wings, vinegar, and buffalo sauce in a crock-pot and stir well to coat the wings.

Cook on high in the crock-pot for 3 hours stirring occasionally.

When the wings are almost finished in the crock-pot, preheat the oven to Broil on high.

Grease an oven pan with a wire rack.

Using tongs, gently remove the wings from the crock-pot onto the wire rack in a single layer. Using a basting brush, brush the wings with sauce from the crock-pot.

Broil for approximately 8-10 minutes until the wings are golden brown.

Remove from oven and turn all the wings over, basting again with leftover sauce in the crock-pot.

Broil on this side for another 5-8 minutes until the wings are golden brown.

Remove from oven and serve immediately with blue cheese dressing and celery.