It’s game day and we’re making these jalapeño popper football-shaped stuffed cheesy breadsticks! This appetizer is a deliciously perfect dish to pass.
What We’re Making for The Super Bowl
We know what we’re making to serve during the Super Bowl this year, and it’s these super fun jalapeño popper football cheesy breadsticks!
This appetizer features pre-made pizza dough stuffed with a jalapeño popper spread, shredded Crystal Farms cheese and twisted before it’s baked to cheesy breadstick perfection — all in the shape of a football. Dip these cheesy breadsticks in salsa, guacamole or queso and ENJOY!
why you’ll love it
Festive: bring a smile to everyone’s face when you show up to game day with a football-shaped dish to pass!
Family-friendly: this appetizer is a fun recipe to get the kids involved with! They’ll love rolling out the pizza dough, spreading the filling and twisting the breadsticks.
Deliciously cheesy: it wouldn’t be a Cheese Knees appetizer without CHEESY goodness. We’re using shredded cheese and cream cheese for this appetizer. Dip your breadsticks in queso to get extra cheesy 😀
All Things Crystal Farms
We’re back with another cheesy recipe collaboration with our friends at Crystal Farms, who sources all of their dairy from family farms across the midwest — and they’ve been supporting family farms for over 95 years.
Made with love from the midwest — just like the ultimate Super Bowl appetizer that features our favorite Crystal Farms shredded cheese — these football cheesy breadsticks.
WHY WE LOVE CRYSTAL FARMS
We love that farm and family is at the heart of everything Crystal Farms does — every step starting with sourcing from family dairy farms throughout the midwest to making high-quality cheese the whole family can enjoy.
WHERE TO FIND CRYSTAL FARMS CHEESE
Crystal Farms cheese is available at major grocers nationwide, and if you’re in the midwest like us, you’ll likely find an AMAZING variety of their cheeses in store 😀 Check out their store locator to see exactly what’s available near you.
FEATURED CHEESE IN THIS RECIPE
Crystal Farms offers such an amazing variety of cheeses — from shreds to chunks to slices, and even cheese sticks and cheese wraps. For this recipe, we’re using their 3 Pepper Shredded Cheese. It’s a zesty blend of cheddar cheese with chipotle peppers, Monterey jack cheese with habanero peppers, and Monterey jack cheese with jalapeño peppers.
Football Cheesy Breadsticks Ingredients
- Crystal Farms 3 Pepper Shredded Cheese
- Cream cheese
- Sour cream
- Pre-made pizza dough
- Fresh jalapeños
- White onion
- Garlic cloves
- Taco seasoning
- Melted butter
- Salt
How to soften cream cheese
Looking for a quick method to soften cream cheese? Check out our post – How to Soften Cream Cheese – 4 Ways! Here you’ll learn 4 unique (and quick!) methods to softening cream cheese the perfect amount for baking and cooking.
How to Make Football Cheesy Breadsticks
Prepare Football-Shaped Dough
Cut out football-shaped stencil: use parchment paper (or any kind of paper!) to create a football-shaped pattern. We made our pattern 19-inches long by drawing it out with a pen. Do your best to cut it into a football shape.
Roll out pizza dough: roll out both of the pizza dough sheets out into large rectangles that are 21-inches long.
Cut dough into football shape: lay the football stencil down onto the pizza dough and use a pizza cutter to cut along the football pattern to cut the pizza dough into 2 football shapes.
Make Jalapeño Popper Filling
Heat a large skillet over medium/high heat, and add olive oil. When the olive oil is fragrant, add the jalapeños, onion, 2 cloves garlic, salt, and taco seasoning to the pan and toss with olive oil. Sauté all of the ingredients together.
Remove the pan from heat and then add the cream cheese to the pan. Mix all of the ingredients together until the cream cheese has completely softened.
Assemble Football-Shaped Stuffed Breadsticks
Spread the jalapeño popper filling: Scoop the cream cheese mixture onto the pizza dough that is on the baking sheet. Use a spatula to spread the mixture out onto the dough all the way to the edge. Then, sprinkle on the Crystal Farms shredded cheese. Place the second football-shaped dough on top of the cream cheese mixture.
Cut the breadsticks: start on the closet side to you. Use a pizza cutter to make 1-inch bread stick slices. Instead of cutting all the way to the other end of the football, leave a 1 ½ -inch section in the center of the football. Repeat on the other side of the football.
Twist the breadsticks: take each breadstick and carefully twist each row of pizza dough and cheese.
Finally, melt 2 tablespoons of butter and add the last cloves of minced garlic. Use a pastry brush to brush the garlic butter all over the top of the football.
Bake
Place the football in the oven and bake for 20-22 minutes or until the football is golden brown.
Garnish & Enjoy
Create the “laces” of football by squeezing sour cream out of the corner of a Ziploc bag. Serve your football with salsa, guacamole and queso dip. ENJOY!
Easy Ingredient Swaps
Make it less spicy: While this recipe calls for seeding the jalapeños, those who want a super mild taste can swap the jalapeños for diced green chiles.
Use another variety of shredded cheese: Crystal Farms has a plethora of shredded cheese varieties. Use your favorite!
Make it gluten free: Make this recipe GF by swapping out the pre-made pizza dough for a GF variety. Please note this may affect the bake time.
Swap sour cream for Greek yogurt: As always, feel free to swap out the sour cream for plain Greek yogurt 1:1.
Dips for Football Cheesy Breadsticks
- Salsa
- Guacamole
- Sour cream
- Queso (try our slow cooker queso or stovetop queso!)
Football Cheesy Breadsticks
Ingredients
- 2 sheets pre-made pizza dough (preferably pillsbury brand but any pizza crust will work)
- 1.5 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 large jalapeños seeded and minced
- ¼ large white onion minced
- 3 cloves garlic peeled and minced, separated
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons taco seasoning
- 4 oz. cream cheese room temperature
- 1.5 cups Crystal Farms 3 Pepper Shredded Cheese
- ¼ cup sour cream
- 2 tablespoons butter melted
Optional Dips
- ½ cup guacamole
- ½ cup salsa
- ½ cup queso dip
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375ºF and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Next, use parchment paper (or any kind of paper) to create a football-shaped pattern. We made our pattern 19-inches long by drawing it out with a pen. Do your best to cut it into a football shape.
- Lay a piece of parchment paper down onto the counter top and sprinkle flour down on top of the parchment paper. Roll both of the pizza dough sheets out into large rectangles that are 21-inches long.
- Lay the football pattern down onto the pizza dough and use a pizza cutter to cut along the football pattern to cut the pizza dough into 2 football shapes.
- To start, place one of the football-shaped pizza doughs on the parchment-lined baking sheet. Set the pizza dough aside.
- Heat a large skillet over medium/high heat. Add olive oil. When the olive oil is fragrant, add the jalapeños, onion, 2 cloves garlic, salt, and taco seasoning to the pan and toss with olive oil. Sauté all of the ingredients together for 4-5 minutes.
- Remove the pan from heat and add the cream cheese to the pan. Mix all of the ingredients together until the cream cheese has completely softened and all of the ingredients are mixed into the cream cheese.
- Scoop the cream cheese mixture onto the pizza dough that is on the baking sheet. Use a spatula to spread the mixture out onto the dough all the way to the edge. Then, sprinkle on the shredded cheddar cheese.
- Place the second football-shaped dough on top of the cream cheese mixture.
- Cut what will be the breadsticks out with a pizza cutter by finding the midpoint of the football.
- To cut the breadsticks, start on the closet side to you. Use a pizza cutter to make 1-inch bread stick slices. Instead of cutting all the way to the other end of the football, leave a 1 ½ -inch section in the center of the football. This is important.
- Repeat on the other side of the football.
- Take each breadstick and carefully twist each row of pizza dough and cheese.
- Finally, melt 2 tablespoons of butter and add the last cloves of minced garlic to it and mix. Use a pastry brush to brush the garlic butter all over the top of the football.
- Place the football in the oven and bake for 20-22 minutes or until the football is golden brown.
- Remove the football from the oven and let it rest.
- Finally, create the sour cream laces. Place the sour cream into a Ziploc and trim the tip of the bag off -- similar to a pastry bag. Create the “laces” of football with sour cream.
- Serve the football with salsa, guacamole and queso dip.
Tips & Notes
- The measurements we give for football are just a guide. Make the football approximately the same size as ours, it does not have to be exact.
- Feel free to use gluten free pizza crust to make a gluten free version of this football.
- For extra spicy filling, leave in some jalapeño seeds.
- Be sure you spread the cream cheese mixture all the way to the end of the dough or the ends will get too crispy.
Watch It
Nutrition facts
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Disclaimer: This post is sponsored by Crystal Farms Dairy Co. We were compensated and all opinions are our own. Thank you for supporting The Cheese Knees!
