Well, it’s finally here! One of my favorite weeks of the year….the first three rounds of March Madness!!!! Now that they have expanded the field from 64 to 68 teams our viewing pleasure gets to begin a few days earlier with two play-in games on Tuesday and two on Wednesday. As most of you know, Mike and I are obsessed with college basketball. Mike being a HUGE Cyclone fan and myself being a loyal and faithful Hawkeye fan. Along with golf, following our favorite college basketball teams is one of our favorite hobbies and a passion we’ve shared since meeting over 10 years ago.
We enjoy a nice cold beer every now and then which conveniently goes along well with both basketball viewing and golf 😉
We’ve even pulled T.J. into this obsession at an early age. Nothing makes his mama more proud than when he puts on a Hawkeye sweatshirt instead of a Cyclone shirt. My greatest pride to date came this past weekend as we cheered on the Cyclones as they took down the competition to bring home the Big 12 Tournament Title. Whenever Mike told T.J. to yell, “Go State!” (which he has done several times before), he refused and would pump his fist and yell at the top of his lungs, “Go Hawkeyes!” That’s my boy 🙂
One of my favorite pictures because he’s in his Hawkeye gear and you can’t see it but he’s holding a putter that he had been practicing with. He’s definitely our son 🙂
This year my Hawkeyes started out strong but hit a bad slump over the past month of the season, losing 6 of their last 7 games. Because of this, they barely made the tournament and will be playing in the first round in a play-in game on Wednesday. Mike’s Cyclones faired a little better and came in at a 3 seed kicking the tournament off on Friday night. I know where we’ll be for both games and for much of the tourney…planted in front of our T.V., brackets in hand, and cheering our hearts out.
Many of you may be hosting or attending game viewing parties and scrambling to find a good appetizer idea that is simple to put together and easy to eat while cheering on your favorite team. Well, look no further because this avid basketball fan has you covered! We are pros when it comes to putting together good basketball viewing spreads…since its basically our life in the winter time. Here are 10 dishes that we have enjoyed frequently and are sure to be a hit with all those March Madness Maniacs in your life!
3. GUACAMOLE + MIKE’S BEAN NACHO RECIPE 🙂
5. HONEY SRIRACHA CAULIFLOWER BITES
7. SPINACH & BACON STUFFED MUSHROOMS
10. TEQUILA SUNRISE
Here’s to good food, successful brackets, and thrilling basketball games!!! Hope you find a recipe you can enjoy throughout this exciting tournament!!! Go Hawkeyes! 😉
Debbie's Midwestern Kitchen 
Oh goodie—all in one post!!!! Makes my March Madness snack making really easy! Since I have only tried one of these I had better get busy!!! Thanks, Debbie!
I hope you enjoy them! You’ll have to let me know if you make any of them. And Go Hawks! You and Mike could be rivals if both North Carolina and ISU win their first rounds…which they should. Then they’ll be squaring off on Sunday 🙂 I’m so excited!
These look delicious and I’m very intrigued to check out the Avocado Fries. Go Cyclones!