America's favorite football mom shares her favorite hacks for easy game day hosting.
The NFL Playoffs are officially upon us, and this year’s postseason will look a bit different from recent years.
Defending Super Bowl champs Kansas City Chiefs will be missing from the action for the first time in 11 seasons. Surely, this is a disappointment to Donna Kelce, the mother of tight end Travis Kelce and one of the team’s biggest cheerleaders. But Donna’s spirits were still high when I spoke with her about another heated competition that’s ramping up right now.
Donna has partnered with Pillsbury to reveal the four finalists—two savory and two sweet—for the iconic brand’s 53rd annual Bake-Off Contest. When pressed for details, Mama Kelce herself declined to pick favorites, but she did share what she feels are the key factors that make game day snacks a hit.
What food is always on Mama Kelce’s game day spread?
First, she goes for “concise, small bites” that aren’t overflowing with ingredients that are going to fall off. I’m imagining loaded crostini heaped with chopped tomatoes that keep plunking onto your plate as you try to take a bite—not ideal for football viewing and mingling at parties!
Beyond convenience, of course, there’s the matter of “flavor, flavor, flavor,” Donna said. She doesn’t rely solely on a dipping sauce to deliver on taste because it “just gets all over the place.” In other words, the chicken wings should be the main event, not the ranch you dip them in.
When it comes to Mama Kelce’s spread, she leans on recipes from when her football star sons, Travis and Jason, were growing up and just getting started on their athletic journeys.
“Crescent roll Brie was probably the easiest for me, because I always have crescent rolls in the refrigerator, and you can top it with things like cherry jam, some almonds or bacon and throw it in the oven,” she said. “It’s quick, so delicious, and I always get compliments on it.”
What were Donna Kelce’s go-to weeknight dinners for Travis and Jason?
Donna also got plenty of compliments while cooking comforting dishes for her sons growing up, she told me. Weeknight dinners often consisted of classics like sloppy joes, casseroles, pork chops and one somewhat unusual dish: hamburger pie.
“It’s so simple,” she shared. “You take ground beef, salt and pepper it, throw in a can of tomato soup and put mashed potatoes on top of it, like a casserole. That was one of their favorites. Oh, and there was a can of green beans in there too. I tried to get at least one vegetable in there!”
What did Mama Kelce think of the food while filming The Traitors?
For fans of reality television, the Super Bowl and the Pillsbury Bake-Off aren’t the only “big games” kicking off the start of this year. The popular Scotland-set competition show The Traitors hosted by Alan Cumming just launched its fourth season on January 8, and Mama Kelce is among the celebrities competing for a lucrative prize pot and bragging rights.
Each day on the Peacock series begins with a lavish breakfast spread shared by all the players. Tension is served with a side of eggs as they discover who was “murdered” by the traitors the previous night. Though you’ll have to watch the show to see if Donna is a traitor or faithful, I did get to ask about the food.
“They take care of us very, very well,” Donna said. “Breakfast was awesome to come into, and there was nothing we wanted for.”
Related:
