Husker Football Tailgate Report: Week 6 – Wisconsin

The good news – the game is at 2:30 and the weather should be great! The bad news – it’s Wisconsin. Yeah, I have a burr under my saddle about them. And I would LOVE LOVE LOVE for my beloved Huskers to kick some Badger butt! I’m looking forward to De’Mornay Pierson-El getting a larger role this week. It was a shaky start last week but I know he’s feeling good and that usually means good things will happen.

As you know by now, weather dictates what you should and shouldn’t bring. For example, with hot summer tailgating I stay away from the meat and cheese trays. No one likes sweaty cheese, even in Wisconsin. If you have a potato salad or a dip with mayonnaise, bring a bigger bowl so you can keep them on ice. Desserts fare much better in the sun unless there is icing involved. Bring on the cookies, rice crispy treats, and giant cookie bars.

Along with the snack theme, MIX it up! It can be as simple as peanuts and colored candy. Or go the cheater route and open a bag of chex mix. The original recipe is rather simple and makes way more but the advantage to mixes is that you can put in what YOU want. Start with peanuts, throw in some candy corn (or something sweet), toss in some pretzels, maybe some bugels or chex cereal, add some craisins, dried fruit or raisins and there you go. Don’t forget the little cups for serving.

Husker football tailgate mix (Photo Kelli Anne)

This week one should naturally think of brats (it’s Wisconsin, duh). It can be as simple as going to the local grocery store and sampling their many choices. The Hy-Vee meat section carries a lot of varieties. I like the pineapple brat for a bit of sweet. You can go hot n spicy, really spicy with a chorizo, or try one of their most popular, the green onion. If you want to go a little more upscale, get the Reuben brat from Stoysich in Omaha but don’t forget 1000 Island dressing for a topping. It’s FANTASTIC!

Regardless of what you choose, there are great options. Don’t forget the sauerkraut and other fixins. Tailgate like you know what you’re doing. If you’re more into munching rather than grilling, toss those little smokies in some BBQ sauce in a little crock pot, serve with toothpicks. Everyone loves little smokies.

The jello shot this week took me a while. Now that it’s fall I like to mix in the apple cider and orange jello with a stronger alcohol. Last year it involved Fireball. This year I decided to get a little creative and I came up with the Pesky Badger. The ingredients are what brought me the inspiration. BrAnDy, oranGe jEllo and apple cideR. (yeah, I thought that was pretty clever too!)

Pesky Badger jello shot ingredients (photo Kelli Anne)

Bring 1 1/4 cups of apple cider to a boil and pour into a large measuring cup (I use a 4-cup size and it makes the liquid easy to pour without much mess) with a package of orange jello. Stir until it dissolves and then mix in 3/4 cup of brandy. Pour it into the shot cups and chill. And much like anything else when it comes to those badgers, too much of it can leave you with a bad feeling in the morning. NOT THIS YEAR!

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We’re halfway through the Husker football season and you can still get sunburned at the game so bring the sunscreen, toss in a few extra beverages in case unexpected visitors drop by, and always be respectful fans to the out-of-towners. It’s a long drive or flight from WI and we want to represent to them how friendly BIG RED fans are on gameday.

I’m looking forward to FB Janovich getting more time with the ball as well as RB Ozigbo. Can’t decide which of those is my favorite this year. In the meantime, yell loud, be proud and GO BIG RED!