Eat Like An NFL Player At Taste Of The NFL
Football fans ready for some football and a feast can still get tickets for Taste of the NFL, a Super Bowl-sized soiree featuring celebrity chefs and NFL athletes who are cooking classic and creative culinary creations on Feb. 1 at Pier 12 of the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal.
Chopped host Ted Allen, E & J Winery's Gina Gallo, and Bizarre Foods host Andrew Zimmern are attending the charity event, which is held annually in the Super Bowl host city.
More than 35 chefs, including one from each of the 32 NFL markets, are paired with 35 current or alumni NFL players from each NFL team to whip up 50,000 sample-size treats. Each guest receives a commemorative wine glass to sample the E&J Gallo wines, which are paired with each dish.
More than one dozen New York-area NFL players and chefs are cooking for the 23rd annual Taste of the NFL's 3,000 patrons.
Football fans can tackle pre-game bites from the New York Giants' Bill Ard and Chef Kamal Rose of Tribeca Grill, who are preparing Italian wedding soup and New York-style cheesecake. The New York Jets' Freeman McNeil and Chef Taku Sato of Nobu 57 are serving rock shrimp tempura with a spicy sauce.
New Orleans Saints Morten Anderen is teaming up with Chef Tory McPhail of New Orleans' Commaner's Place, site of last year's Taste of the NFL, to make Louisiana sweet potato "bacon" confit with sweet potatoes prepared with smoked European sea salt, barbecued onions, grilled garlic, and ripped winter kale.
The Miami Dolphins' John Offerdahl is making Nueske smoked duck tartine with mango rum chutney with Chef Allen Susser of Burger Bar by Chef Allen in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. and the Philadelphia Eagles' Jerry Sisemore is making "Jack McDavid's Special BBQ" with Chef Jack McDavid of Jack's Firehouse in Philadelphia. Susser and McFavid are the longest-running Taste of the NFL chef participants, cooking for the cause since 1992.
A special Flavors of Brooklyn section will feature NFL Hall of Famer Don Maynard preparing several yet-to-be-revealed dishes with some of the borough's top chefs. Five not-yet-revealed restaurants are participating.
The evening's highlights include food and wine pairings, meet-and-greets with NFL athletes and special guests, the unveiling of a cake creation by Cake Boss' Joey Faugno and Mauro Castano, a musical performance, and silent auction.
Tickets are $700 and can be purchased here. Proceeds benefit the Food Bank for New York City, Community Food Bank of New Jersey, and Bed-Stuy Campaign Against Hunger in Brooklyn.
Click here to see what dish each NFL athlete and chef pairing are preparing for Taste of the NFL.
Lauren Mack is the New York City Travel Editor. Follow her on Twitter @lmack.
The following are the dishes each NFL athelete and chef are preparing for Taste of the NFL 2014.
Team/Athlete: Arizona Cardinals (Roger Wehrli)
Chef/Restaurant: Eddie Matney, Eddie's House (Scottsdale, Ariz.)
Dish: brown sugar cured salmon on a Sonoran potato pancake with chipotle cilantro crème
Team/Athlete: Atlanta Falcons (Chris Draft)
Chef/Restaurant: Kevin Rathbun, Rathbun's (Atlanta, Ga.)
Dish: Moroccan-spiced Skuna salmom with cranberry cous cous
Team/Athlete: Baltimore Ravens (Qadry Ismail)
Chef/Restaurant: Nancy Longo, Pierpoint (Baltimore, Md.)
Dish: crab cakes, micro greens and heirloom tomato salad with bacon rémoulade.
Team/Athlete: Buffalo Bills (Andre Reed)
Chef/Restaurant: Mike Andrzejewski, Seabar (Buffalo, N.Y.)
Dish: Buffalo's famous "Beef on Weck" (sushi-style smoked salmon bacon with sweet corn foam, balsamic pearls, and coriander)
Team/Athlete: Carolina Panthers (Richie Brockel)
Chef/Restaurant: Bill Shutz, Bonterra Dining & Wine Room (Charlotte, N.C.)
Dish: braised North Carolina pork belly with micro collard greens, sweet potato mousse, sorghum molasses, and smoked South Carolina peanuts
Team/Athlete: Chicago Bears (Jerry Azumah)
Chef/Restaurant: Carrie Nahabedian, NaHa (Chicago, Ill.)
Dish: leg of lamb shawarma with house-made Greek yogurt, pickled cucumbers and red onion, tahini, mint, and pita
Team/Athlete: Cincinnati Bengals (Anthony Munoz)
Chef/Restaurant: Jean-Robert de Cavel, Jean-Robert's Table (Cincinnati, Ohio)
Dish: confit chicken salad with orzo pasta, white beans, arugula and radish.
Team/Athlete: Cleveland Browns (Al "Bubba" Baker)
Chef/Restaurant: Rocco Whalen, Fahrenheit Restaurant (Cleveland, Ohio)
Dish: Cleveland-style lobster tolls (Maine lobster, brioche roll, spicy mayo, and sesame)
Team/Athlete: Dallas Cowboys (Everson Walls()
Chef/Restaurant: Kent Rathbun, Abacus (Dallas, Tex.)
Dish: Szechuan pepper crusted Creekstone strip steak with Hawaiian purple sweet potato and mushroom soy glaze
Team/Athlete: Denver Broncos (Floyd Little)
Chef/Restaurant: Troy Guard, TAG (Denver, Colo.)
Dish: bison pistachio sausage with house bacon mustard, apricot purée, and cabbage slaw
Team/Athlete: Detroit Lions (Lem Barney)
Chef/Restaurant: Brian Polcyn, The Forest Grill (Birmingham, Mich.)
Dish: assorted house-made salumi with roasted autumn salad
Team/Athlete: Green Bay Packers (Donny Anderson)
Chef/Restaurant: Justin Aprahamian, Sanford Restaurant (Milwaukee, Wisc.)
Dish: BelaaVitano Sartori Reserve with smoked grapes and shallot jam
Team/Athlete: Houston Texans (Chester Pitts)
Chef/Restaurant: Bruce Molzan, The Corner Table (Houston, Tex.)
Dish: Paleo shrimp tacos with kimchi coconut sauce, fig chutney, and cilantro micro greens
Team/Athlete: Indianapolis Colts (Ken Dilger)
Chef/Restaurant: Greg Hardesty, Recess (Indianapolis, Ind.)
Dish: winter vegetable borscht, Fischer Farms oxtail and crème fraîche
Team/Athlete: Jacksonville Jaguars (Cecil Shorts III)
Chef/Restaurant: Brian Siebenschuh, Orsay (Jacksonville, Fla.)
Dish: Salt-cured Hudson Valley foie gras with compressed fennel, tangerine, and savory pecan brittle
Team/Athlete: Kansas City Chiefs (Bobby Bell)
Chef/Restaurant: Debbie Gold, Red Door Grill (Leawood, Kan.)
Dish: Kansas City-style Cuban sandwich
Team/Athlete: Miami Dolphins (John Offerdahl)
Chef/Restaurant: Allen Susser, Burger Bar by Chef Allen (Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.)
Dish: Nueske smoked duck tartine with mango rum chutney
Team/Athlete: Minnesota Vikings (Randall McDaniel)
Chef/Restaurant: Tim McKee, La Belle Vie (Minneapolis, Minn.)
Dish: not yet revealed
Team/Athlete: New England Patriots (Steve Grogan)
Chef/Restaurant: Steve DiFillipoo, Davios (Foxborough, Mass.)
Dish: gnocchi bolognese
Team/Athlete: New Orleans Saints (Morten Andersen)
Chef/Restaurant: Tory McPhail, Commander's Palace (New Orleans)
Dish: Louisiana Sweet Potato "Bacon" Confit of sweet potatoes with smoked European sea salt, barbecued onions, grilled garlic & ripped winter kale
Team/Athlete: New York Giants (Bill Ard)
Chef/Restaurant: Kamal Rose, Tribeca Grill (New York City)
Dish: Italian Wedding Soup and New York cheesecake
Team/Athlete: New York Jets (Freeman McNeil)
Chef/Restaurant: Taku Sato, Nobu 57 (New York City)
Dish: rock shrimp tempura with creamy spicy sauce
Team/Athlete: Oakland Raiders (Ted Hendricks)
Chef/Restaurant: Paul Arenstam, Summer Kitchen + bake shop (Berkeley, Calif.)
Dish: organic Becker Lane Farm braised pork chili verde con arroz
Team/Athlete: Philadelphia Eagles (Jerry Sisemore)
Chef/Restaurant: Jack McDavid, Jack's Firehouse (Philadelphia)
Dish: Jack McDavid's special BBQ
Team/Athlete: Pittsburgh Steelers (Andy Russell)
Chef/Restaurant: Anthony Zallo, Bigelow Grille (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
Dish: home-made mortadella (Italian pork sausage) with pickled eggplant, hand-pulled mozzarella and heirloom tomato jam
Team/Athlete: San Diego Chargers (Kellen Winslow, Sr.)
Chef/Restaurant: Jonathan Hale, The Prado at Balboa Park (San Diego, Calif.)
Dish: chili-spiced Mayan hot chocolate; dulce de leche-filled Churros
Team/Athlete: San Francisco 49ers (Chris Doleman)
Chef/Restaurant: David Lawrence, 1300 Fillmore (San Francisco)
Dish: maple-braised beef short rib with white grits and shaved horseradish
Team/Athlete: Seattle Seahawks (Craig Terrill)
Chef/Restaurant: John Howie, Seastar Restaurant and Raw Bar (Seattle)
Dish: Skuna Bay salmon with sticky rice, coconut Thai curry sauce, and a zucchini, carrot, cilantro, and peanut slaw
Team/Athlete: St. Louis Rams (Will Witherspoon)
Chef/Restaurant: Gerard Craft, Niche (St. Louis, Mo.)
Dish: lemon maple custard with shiitake mushrooms and bonito caviar
Team/Athlete: Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Brad Culpepper)
Chef/Restaurant: Marty Blitz, Mise En Place (Tampa, Fla.)
Dish: crispy corn mascarpone polenta cake, braised pork shoulder, smokef apple celery root pepita salad, sorghum cider, and barbecue vinaigrette
Team/Athlete: Tennessee Titans (Michael Griffin)
Chef/Restaurant: Deb Paquette, Etch (Nashville, Tenn.)
Dish: lamb and pork sausage with pomegranate molasses sauce, muhammara (spicy pepper dip), chili plum jam, lime crema, and peanut butternut relish
Team/Athlete: Washington Redskins (Brig Owens)
Chef/Restaurant: Jeffrey "JG" Gaetjen, Ancora (Washington, D.C.)
Dish: "Tasting of the Hog" (porchetta, sausage, and braised pork shoulder in milk sauce
Lauren Mack is the New York City Travel Editor. Follow her on Twitter @lmack.