Football's back: 21 great make-ahead game day recipes

1/20

Imagine serving homemade soft pretzels fresh from the oven.... Make these in advance and then reheat for a few minutes as guests arrive.
Recipe: Homemade soft pretzels
(Katie Falkenberg / For The Times)

2/20

Or you can go this route. These can be made a day ahead of time. Serve with a mustard dipping sauce.
Recipe: Homemade hard pretzels
(Katie Falkenberg / For The Times)

3/20

No fewer than six types of peppers are put to work here. Making this a day ahead will help the flavors marry.
Recipe: Salsa from Coronado’s Costa Azul
(Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times)

4/20

This refreshing ceviche must marinate for several hours before serving. Perfect for make ahead!
Recipe: Javier’s ceviche de pescado
(Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times)

5/20

Times Test Kitchen director Noelle Carter says these are irresistible and worth the effort. Better yet: They can be made a day in advance.
Recipe: Deschutes Brewery’s beer nuts
(Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times)

6/20

Everybody loves deviled eggs. Or they will after they try this simple recipe. Hardboil your eggs the day before and assemble the morning of your party. Refrigerate until game time.
Recipe: Deviled eggs with tarragon and cornichons
(Gary Friedman / Los Angeles Times)

7/20

You have to plan ahead with this recipe, but most of the cooking is hands off.
Recipe: Hickory-smoked baby back ribs
(Bob Chamberlin / Los Angeles Times)

8/20

If you don’t have chicken wings, then it’s not really a football party. These need to marinate overnight, so you can get all the prep work out of the way. Fry them off shortly before guests arrive.
Recipe: Thai peanut chicken wings
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

9/20

These need to marinate overnight too. Which means you get most of the messy work out of the way long before guests arrive. Bake ‘em to a crisp on game day.
Recipe: Super wings
(Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times)

10/20

Use store-bought flatbreads as a shortcut! Prep the fig mixture the day before and then pop in the oven right before guests arrive.
Recipe: Fig, prosciutto and blue cheese pizzas
(Kevin P. Casey / Los Angeles Times)

11/20

These are great dipped in some homemade ranch dressing. (Keep clicking!) Better yet: The potatoes can be prepped up to three days in advance of game day.
Recipe: Smashed fries
(Anne Cusack / Los Angeles Times)

12/20

Homemade is best, and this dip is even better if made several hours in advance.
Recipe: Creamy ranch dipping sauce
(Anne Cusack / Los Angeles Times)

13/20

This is great for feeding a crowd. Serve with lots of optional toppings such as sour cream, diced red onion and grated sharp cheddar cheese.
Recipe: Bowl of red chili
(Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times)

14/20

This chili is skinny on calories but not on taste. You can make it a day ahead and reheat. Or start it about three or four hours before guests arrive. (Giving you plenty of time to clean up the kitchen.)
Recipe: Turkey chili
(Glenn Koenig / Los Angeles Times)

15/20

This recipe comes with a warning: Make plenty. Trust us. You can prep the bread several hours in advance and then serve freshly baked from the oven.
Recipe: Cedar Creek’s garlic bread
(Glenn Koenig / Los Angeles Times)

16/20

We like this recipe because it’s best made ahead of time -- that makes it easy on the party hosts.
Recipe: Vertical Wine Bistro’s Israeli couscous
(Ricardo DeAratanha / Los Angeles Times)

17/20

We’re suggesting you serve brownies or bar cookies at your football party because they can all be made ahead -- and the one baking pan approach is easier on the cook. These dark chocolate brownies are sure to be a hit.
Recipe: Midnight chocolate brownie bites
(Robert Lachman / Los Angeles Times)

18/20

Fresh lemon curd is slathered over a rich shortbread crust. Make them a day ahead of time.
Recipe: Joan’s on Third’s lemon bars
(Bob Chamberlin / Los Angeles Times)

19/20

Combine pecans and coconut in a sweet topping then bake it over a rich shortbread-like crust. Can be made a day ahead of serving.
Recipe: Paradise bars
(Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)

20/20

Each bar is like a perfect miniature pecan pie baked over a wonderfully crumbly graham cracker crust. Make a day ahead of time -- but only if you think they will last until kickoff.
Recipe: Julienne’s graham cracker chewy bars
(Gary Friedman / Los Angeles Times)

By Rene Lynch

Sept. 5, 2013 11:19 AM PT

Can you hear it? It’s the sound of a new NFL season.

The Denver Broncos host the Baltimore Ravens on Thursday night as pro football returns, and you know what that means: The race is on to find new nibbles and snacks to appease the football fans in your household.

We pored over the Los Angeles Times Test Kitchen archives for recipes that will help you do just that. But we also upped the ante by selecting recipes that can be largely made in advance. That way you can get all the messy prep work out of the way a day or two ahead of time, and just polish off your dishes as guests are heading for your front door.

PHOTOS: 21 great make-ahead recipes for game day

We’ve got plenty of party favorites like chips and homemade salsa and guacamole. (You can prep most of the guacamole ingredients ahead of time, but wait until the very last minute to slice open your avocados or else they’ll brown on you.) And, of course, we’ve got hickory-smoked baby back ribs and wings, including he-man sized super wings and Thai peanut wings. There’s a chili recipe, too, that would go great with our can’t-miss garlic bread.

We also included some unexpected party favorites, such as homemade pretzels -- hard and soft -- which would be so nice served alongside a selection of cheeses and mustards. We’ve also got sweet-and-salty beer nuts, deviled eggs, fig and blue cheese pizzas and more.

As you click through the photo gallery, you’ll find recipe links contained in the pop-up captions.

PHOTOS: 21 great make-ahead recipes for game day

Of course, we included dessert. We selected several of our favorite bar cookies and brownies because we love the easy, one-pan approach. After all, you don’t have much time to spare.

One warning, though: If your house is anything like our house, you want to hide those tropical paradise bars, midnight chocolate brownie bites, and ooey-goey graham cracker bars as soon as they cool.

Or else there might not be any left for your guests!

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