30 Tailgating Recipes That Score

Grated Parmesan cheese gives extra cheesy flavor to this blend of crispy corn and rice cereals, canned shoestring potatoes, crisp breadsticks and bite-size cheese crackers.

Cheesy Snack Mix

Assemble these hefty ham-and-cheese sandwiches at home, then grill them on-site for a warm game-day meal. The recipe is from Dave Sutton of Menomenee Falls, Wisconsin.

Dave's Pigskin Special

This dish honors "Big Irv" Favre, the late father of former Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre. Red beans and rice is a tradition in Mississippi, Brett's home state, and makes a great addition to Midwest tailgate parties.

Big Irv Favre's Red Beans and Rice

Good food and friends are what tailgating is all about, says Debbie Pamperin of Suamico, Wisconsin. Debbie plans her Green Bay Packer tailgating experiences with this in mind. The Hot Spinach Artichoke Dip recipe, originally from one of her co-workers, has been a crowd-pleaser at her tailgate parties.

Hot Spinach Artichoke Dip

Nina Swan-Kohler of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, loves easy-to-make dishes that travel well to football games or other events. Tex-Mex Cheesy Chicken Chowder is one of her favorite recipes. "It uses a variety of convenience foods that are stirred together in one big pot, and brings out the great flavor of all the ingredients," Nina says.

Tex-Mex Cheesy Chicken Chowder

More soups and stews

These succulent chicken wings might disappear as fast as you can grill them. The recipe comes from Danny Edwards Famous Kansas City BBQ, formerly Li'l Jake's Eat It and Beat It. The tiny, no-frills eatery has served weekday lunch crowds in Kansas City for more than two decades. You"ll enjoy sharing the recipe with your weekend tailgating friends.

Spicy Chicken Wings with Blue Cheese Dressing

Cookies and bars are great to tote to tailgating events or potlucks. Canned pumpkin and chopped pecans add seasonal flavor to Sour Cream Pumpkin Bars, while rolled oats, chocolate pieces and shredded coconut combine to make deliciously chewy Oatmeal and More Cookies.

Sour Cream Pumpkin Bars

Oatmeal and More Cookies

More fall cookies

More bar cookies

This hearty soup, an update of an Amish favorite, comes from an Iowa City, Iowa, reader and football fan. Flavored with bacon and onion, it's a great soup for family dinners or tailgate parties.

Iowa Corn Chowder

Mustard, mayo and dill pickle spice up this grilled ham, pork, salami and Swiss cheese sandwich. Our recipe gives step-by-step instructions to make this a tailgating success!

Cuban Griller

Combine just three ingredients with a beef roast, and let the roast bake in your oven until it's tender enough to slice or shred. Serve on toasted onion buns or Kaiser rolls, if you like.

Oven Barbecue

Cajun seasoning is a blend of black and cayenne pepper with onion, garlic and other herbs. It adds kick to this appetizer mix of peanuts, popcorn and pretzels.

Cajun Snack Mix

Steep your grilled brats in this onion-and-herb beer mixture for an easy way to keep them warm while tailgating. Beer-Braised Brats get a liberal dose of cranberry-pickle relish for extra color and tang.

Beer-Braised Brats

Caramels, oats and milk chocolate pieces blend in these gooey sweets from a West Des Moines, Iowa, reader.

Caramel Blonde Brownies

The Coney Island Lunch Room in Grand Island, Nebraska, has served its all-American chili dog since 1933. In honor of this Cornhusker State edible institution, we created this recipe for Beefy Chili Dogs. Stewing the hot dogs in the seasoned meat mixture makes them extra juicy. Top them with cheese.

Beefy Chili Dogs