This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #GameForBasketball #CollectiveBias This post is not medical advice.

We are a basketball family. From both my mom’s and my dad’s side we have height - and lot’s of it. (I’ve got three brothers over 6’4″ tall and two sisters who almost hit the 6’0″ mark!) Mom gave most of us these crazy calf muscles, which make buying knee-high boots challenging for the girls, but give us serious moves on the court. We’re avid Chicago sports fans. Oh, and one of my sisters plays college ball up in Wisconsin!

Put all that together and you’ve got the recipe for a seriously dedicated basketball family, which makes the month of March a pretty exciting time for all of us. Beyond the usual bracket wars we engage in, this year we got to watch our sister dominate on the court during her first game in Sioux City, Iowa by scoring 20 points, nearly 1/3 of the team’s total and helping them advance to the second round. It was an amazing game!

One thing we do every year for her team is host a post-game team party at my parent’s house. The team manages to play at least one game per season nearby, so while the men’s team plays, the women’s team comes over to the house for a carb-loading, delicious dinner. Since it’s a once in a season opportunity we go ahead and pull out all the stops!

The menu for a post-game team party needs to include a number of easy to eat but carbohydrate-rich foods, since these girls have just finished leaving it all on the court. Re-hydration is also crucial, which is why there is always copious amounts of water and electrolyte-filled flavored drinks. They always arrive hungry and ready to replenish what they lost in the game.

This year’s post-game team party menu included:

• 3-cheese mac ‘n cheese bites (a family favorite after many varied recipe attempts)
• Squash and black bean stuffed mushrooms
• Salmon and muenster cheese sliders
• Cheesy chicken quesadillas
• Popcorn
• Cheese balls
• Tortilla chips with salsa and guacamole (which they devoured before it even made it’s way to the buffet)
• Mandarin oranges
• Electrolyte-infused drinks
• Water

Beyond the food Advil is always an essential. Why? Well, let’s put it this way, when we hosted the team, one girl arrived with a black eye from taking an opponent’s elbow to the face, one had a huge bruise forming on her outer thigh from a flailing leg on a rebound jump, three girls had deep scratch marks down their arms from some perfectly manicured talons on the opponents, and the wounds go on and on. Beyond the wounds, their muscles are aching from pouring it all out on the court. Advil let’s all of us be ready for anything, but it also helps get these girls back on their feet. Afterall, nothing’s stronger, longer lasting or better on your tough aches and pains than Advil, when compared to other over the counter brands. I grabbed a ton of the party supplies and the Advil at WalMart, using this coupon.

Since these girls are in college and don’t get a family meal very often, we make sure to set two long tables so they can have an actual sit-down meal with one another. The stories they share and the game re-cap is so much more exciting to hear when they lived the game you watched from the sidelines.

These stuffed mushroom bites were an unexpected hit and oh so easy to make.

Ingredients:

• 1 package of mushrooms
• 1 package of butternut squash chunks (you can buy the whole squash, but this is easier)
• 1/2 can of black beans
• 1/2 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese
• salt to taste

Directions:

• Preheat over to 350*
• Put squash chunks in a pot on the store with water. Cook slowly to soften.
• When squash is soft, eliminate most of the water and mash the squash.
• Add black beans to the mashed squash.
• Remove the mushroom stems to create a little bowl. (You can use the stems for something else or chop them finely and add them to the squash, black bean mixture.)
• Place the mushrooms on a baking sheet.
• Scoop the squash mixture into the mushrooms.
• Top with mozzarella cheese.
• Bake for 10 minutes, till cheese is well melted.
• Plate and serve.

 

Want to make your own 3-Cheese Mac ‘n Cheese Bites? It’s simple and doesn’t take that long to create this team-favorite. For any fan of macaroni and cheese this is a go-to party item for almost any occasion. Honestly, my family pretty much makes these for every event we host, at last that’s been the case lately. They are too good to pass up.

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups of crushed butter-crackers
• 2 cups of white cheddar, grated
• 6 tablespoons of unsalted butter, melted
• 4 1/2 cups of cooked elbow noodles
• 1 5.2oz garlic and herb cream cheese package
• 2 large eggs
• 1/4 cup of milk
• 1/4 cup of sour cream
• 1/2 cup of cream cheese
• Salt to taste
• Dash of red pepper flakes

Directions:

• Pre-heat oven to 350*
• Mix the crackers, half the shredded cheddar, and 4 tbsp of butter. Press into the bottom of a cupcake pan, entirely covering the base.
• Mix elbow noodles, Boursin cheese, cottage cheese, half the shredded cheddar and 2 tbsp of butter, so that the noodles are evenly coated.
• In a separate bowl whisk the remaining ingredients (eggs, milk, sour cream, salt, red pepper flakes).
• Pour the liquid mixture over the cheese-coated noodles and mix to evenly distribute.
• Scoop the noodle mixture into the cupcake pan, placing it on top of the crushed cracker base.
• Cook for 15 minutes, watching for when the noodles begin to brown just slightly.
• Remove from oven and allow to cool for about 5 minutes before removing from the pans. (If you don’t wait the bites will fall apart - been there, done that.)
• Plate and enjoy!!

How do you prepare for anything this March? Do you use Pfizer products to keep you in the game?