Fantasy Football Draft Party by the Pool with #SnickersMinis

HIMself loves some Fantasy Football. He’s not very good at it, but he does enjoy the competition. So we decided to host a Fantasy Football pre-draft party Florida style…by the pool with laptops. Since this is a practice round for the real online draft, it mimics the process. People swam a little, ate a lot and kept a close eye on their computers. We love the online draft because there are so many resources for our hours and hours of research. I can’t wait to see what our rosters look like this year!!! Here’s the invite:

Our league is made up of neighbors in the Club Villas of Amelia Island Plantation. The ages range from college to seniors…and everything in between. Some of us do it for fun. Some of us join in for the great food and friendly gatherings we have during the season. And some, who shall remain nameless, do it for the C O M P E T I T I O N!!!

Draft day started as a beautiful summer day and finished with an amazing sunset over the marsh. HIMself and I were up early gathering last-minute items for the draft party. We made a quick trip to Walmart to pick up another bag of Limited Edition SNICKERS® Brand NFL Minis #SnickersMinis (since I used the first bag to make the cupcakes). The Snickers were the inspiration behind the party theme with the logos of all the NFL teams on the bite size candy packages.

We also needed some pretzels and cool drinks for our guests to enjoy while they made their draft choices. It is always a friendly (WINK WINK) and intense time when the jousting delicate debating and crafty negotiations begin in earnest. So we needed some really cool drinks on hand and plenty of food as things heat up. I thought the pool would be the best place to have this little session so we could jump in if necessary to cool down.

When we got home the action turned intense. HIMself was grilling the mini burgers for the sliders. I was prepping the buns, slicing the tomatoes and onions and whipping up my special sauce. He filled the peanut bowl and the baskets with pretzels, popcorn and the Snickers Minis. I arranged the drinks in the cooler. Not sure how I managed to get everything on the table just as the guests started to arrive….because HIMself was by this time already deep into his Fantasy Football roster scheming, calculating and cunning.

IT’S ON Fantasy Football Draft Party Time

The bragging boasting crowing know-it-all discussions began as soon as people began to trickle in. Everyone seemed a little tight-lipped when asked who their picks would be. Since this was a preliminary draft party…the real draft comes a little later…everyone was having fun sharing stats and looking at the various fantasy football sites online. You can see how serious they are here…

All this seriousness requires good food to fuel the frenzy. You can see the spread below. There were the three Ps…peanuts, pretzels and popcorn appetizers. My famous sliders as the main course. Snickers minis and Snickers Cupcakes with Salted Caramel frosting for dessert. With some arm twisting, I will share my recipes for sliders and cupcakes with y’all as they are great for football parties (fantasy or otherwise), tailgating or even your Super Bowl spread. Enjoy!

Sliders with Rebecca’s Special Sauce

These tiny burgers are easy to make. You can even prepare them ahead of time and assemble them right before serving. My special sauce is a hit every time I serve it. Try it…you will be pleasantly surprised!!!

INGREDIENTS
1 lb. Ground Round
1 lb Ground Turkey
1 pkg. Kings Hawaiian Mini Sub Rolls (cut in half)
Sea Salt & Fresh Ground Pepper to taste
Sliced Tomatoes and Sweet Onions
2T Horseradish
1/2 C Greek Yogurt (plain)
2T Orange Marmalade

TECHNIQUE

Start grill. Mix the ground meats well and shape into burgers about 2-1/2″ round. I use a large ice cream scoop to make them all the same size. Put them on a medium hot grill for about 4 minutes a side. While the burgers are grilling cut the sub rolls in half to make slider rolls. Lay the bottom bun face up on the serving tray.

Mix the Horseradish, Greek Yogurt and Marmalade in a bowl. Place a teaspoon of sauce on bottom bun and add a tomato slice over the sauce. When the burgers are done, add them on top of the tomato. Top with onion slice and bun. Serve while warm.

Snickers Cupcakes with Salted Caramel Frosting

INGREDIENTS
2 cups sugar
1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup Cocoa
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1-1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup boiling water
24 frozen Snickers minis

TECHNIQUE
Heat oven to 350°F.

Stir together dry ingredients in large bowl. Add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla. Beat on medium speed for 2-3 minutes. Slowly stir in the boiling water (the batter will be pretty thin).

Fill paper baking cups 1/2 full with batter. Place one frozen candy bar in batter. Add an additional 2 tablespoons batter on top to ensure the candy bar is covered.

IMPORTANT: Make sure that you freeze the candy to be placed inside of the cupcake. If they are not frozen they will melt too quickly and fall to the bottom of the cupcake.

Bake 22 to 25 minutes.

Salted Caramel Frosting

INGREDIENTS
2 sticks salted butter; room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 box (16 oz.) confectioners’ sugar
1/3 cup caramel topping; plus more for drizzling
1/2 teaspoon salt (optional)
26 Snickers minis for topper

TECHNIQUE
Cream the butter in the bowl of an electric or stand mixer. Add the vanilla extract, salt and caramel syrup and combine well.

Begin adding in the sugar and mixing thoroughly after each addition. After all of the sugar has been added and mixed thoroughly, give it a taste and decide if you want to add in more caramel syrup. For thicker frosting you can gradually add in a little more sugar.

See a Cupcake Piping How-To from My Baking Addiction on Vimeo.

Dust with grated chocolate and place a Snickers Mini on top. Enjoy!!!

Who Dished It Up First
Cupcakes adapted from The Novice Chef Jessica’s 100 Grand Cupcake recipe
Salted Caramel Buttercream adapted from My Baking Addiction

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I am a member of the Collective Bias™ Social Fabric® Community.  This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias™ and #SnickersMinis #CBias  All photos, ideas, recipes and opinions are my own.