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Cooking On The Couch: Healthy Eats For Tailgating

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) - None of the local teams made it to the NFL playoffs this season, but that wont stop die-hard football fans from catching all the action.

That means some serious tailgating food, which, let's face it, is not usually the healthiest!

But, Daina Falk of thehungryfan.com says its possible to have your snacks and eat them too. She stopped by The Couch with some of her recipes.

WATCH: Falk's Full Segment On The Couch

Healthy Buffalo Wings

This recipe makes six servings (six wings per person).

Ingredients:

36 chicken wing pieces (one wing makes 2 pieces - the "flat" and the "drum"), cut into two pieces, skin removed
3 tablespoons vegetable oil (or olive oil)
1 tsp kosher salt
1 cup oat flour (Oat flour is gluten free. Feel free to use all-purpose flour).
1 1/2 tablespoons white vinegar
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
2 teaspoons Tabasco sauce
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons Louisiana hot sauce

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.
In a bowl toss the wings with 1 tablespoon of the vegetable oil and salt. Place into a large Ziploc bag, add the flour, and seal. Shake well to coat the chicken evenly.

Remove wings from the bag, shaking off any excess flour, and spread the wings out evenly on oiled foil-lined baking pan(s). There should only be one layer of wings (don't stack)! Bake for about 20 minutes, turn the wings over, and cook another 20 minutes, or until the wings are cooked through and are browned.

While the wings are baking, mix all the ingredients for the sauce in a pan. Place the pan over low heat, bring to a simmer and stir occasionally. Remove from heat.

After the wings are cooked, transfer them into a large mixing bowl. Pour the sauce over the hot wings and toss to coat completely.

Serve!

A Healthier Take on Chips and Dip

Ingredients
2 medium to large sweet potatoes or yams, cleaned and sliced ¼" - ½" (horizontally if you want long chips and vertically if you want more round chips).
*It's at your discretion how thinly you slice it because ideally you will use a mandoline or hand slicer to get the chips nice and thin. The thickness of the potato is really based on how comfortable you are holding the potato while you slice.
1-2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
Lawry's Seasoned Salt
Paprika
Black Pepper

Preparation
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
Place the sweet potato chips onto a rimmed baking sheet (you will likely need 2). Drizzle the potatoes with the oil. Make sure that you only have a single layer of potatoes. (If you layer them they will not cook evenly). Sprinkly (lightly!) with the seasoned salt, black pepper, and paprika.

Bake the spuds, flipping them at least once, until they are crisp and browned. Some people like the centers of their chips softer, which will usually entail baking for 22-25 minutes. I prefer the entire chip to be crispy so I bake 25-27 minutes.

Once you remove the cooked taters from the oven, sprinkle them with any additionally-needed seasoning and serve!

Daina's Healthy Mac n' Cheese

Makes approximately 15 servings

Ingredients

1 medium head of cauliflower, cut into small chunks
2 cups of butternut squash, cut into small chunks
3 large fresh sage leaves, minced
Water
Sea Salt
Black Pepper
1 28 gram package of 2% Reduced Fat Mild Cheddar Cheese (you will use only half the pack)
1/2 cup fontina cheese, shredded
1/2-3/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Cook your pasta to al dente in a deep pot filled with boiling water.

While the pasta is cooking, puree the cauliflower in a blender with splashes of water and boil the squash until soft in another deep pot. Once the squash is soft, drain, put back into the pot and mash until smooth and free of lumps. Add in the cauliflower, the sage, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1 teaspoon black pepper. Stir well.

Add into the pot the majority of the cheddar cheese (leaving some to sprinkle on top) and the fontina and simmer while stirring until all the cheese is melted in smoothly. Remove from heat.

Once the pasta is cooked, drain, and add into the cheese/veggie mixture. Salt and pepper to taste if necessary. Pour into a large casserole dish/Pyrex and top with the remaining cheddar cheese and the Parmesan. Bake for approximately 30 minutes.

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