Scaled-Down Super Bowl Apps

Super Bowl gatherings are bound to be smaller this year, and dips are probably not happening. So what do we serve our pandemic bubbles while we watch the game (and the ads)?

A few ideas, all in the general way of charcuterie: Chicken-Jalapeño-Bacon Bites, Devils on Horseback, and Cornichons Wrapped in Salami. These are pretty much assembly-type bites. There’s a little bit of oven time for a couple, but there’s no real cooking involved. Plus, each of these apps stands on its own, a little package you can pick up and pop into your mouth. No dipping, scooping, or spreading. And certainly no double-dipping.

Chicken-Jalapeño-Bacon Bites are pretty much what they sound like, which is delicious. These are an easy riff on Quail Bites, and if you have quail, by all means use it. We had chicken. The Devils on Horseback and Cornichons Wrapped in Salami both come from Miranda Ballard’s beautiful cookbook Charcuterie: How to Enjoy, Serve, and Cook with Cured Meats. Miranda subbed prosciutto for the bacon in Devils on Horseback (other versions call for the dates to be stuffed with blue cheese, goat cheese, Manchego…), which creates a thinner, crispier bite and differentiates them from the Chicken-Jalapeño-Bacon Bites. And her Cornichons Wrapped in Salami are genius: the easiest appetizer you will ever make, and possibly one of the most addicting, salty and pickle-y all at once.

With this trio of snacks, you’re set to feed a few people. Now what teams are playing in the football game?

Chicken-Jalapeño-Bacon Bites

½ pound boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into 1-inch cubes
1 jalapeño, sliced into 12 rounds
6 strips thin-sliced bacon, each strip cut in half
1 tablespoon brown sugar

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil, and place a metal rack over it. Spray a little nonstick spray over the rack.

Wrap a chicken cube and jalapeño slice tightly with a strip of bacon, and secure it with a toothpick. Repeat until you have 12 appetizers.

Put the brown sugar in a bowl, and gently roll each Chicken-Jalapeño-Bacon Bite in it, brushing off any excess sugar and leaving just enough to leave a light dusting of sugar around the bacon. Place the Bites on the prepared rack, and bake for 15 minutes. Turn the Bites, and bake for another 15 minutes. Cool.

Devils on Horseback
adapted from Charcuterie, by Miranda Ballard

6 slices prosciutto
12 whole roasted almonds
12 whole, pitted dates

Preheat the broiler. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil, and place a metal rack over it. Spray a little nonstick spray over the rack.

Cut each slice of prosciutto lengthways down the middle to make 12 half-slices. For each bite, put an almond in the middle of a pitted date, wrap a half slice of prosciutto tightly around the fruit, and lay it on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat to make 12 bites.

Broil for 3 to 5 minutes, until the prosciutto starts to brown and crisp. Serve immediately.

Cornichons Wrapped in Salami
from Charcuterie, by Miranda Ballard

12 slices salami
12 cornichons
Freshly ground black pepper 

For each bite, just wrap a slice of salami around a cornichon and pop a toothpick through the middle to hold them together. Repeat to make 12 bites. Crack a little pepper over the plate and serve.