Brown Sugar & Root Beer Pulled Pork Slow Cooker Recipe

It took me forever to have pulled pork for the first time – as in, I’m pretty sure I was 27 or 28 by the time I took my first bite of a pulled pork sandwich. It really was love at first bite, as they say, and from that point on I’ve been a pulled pork convert, making this recipe in my slow cooker ever since.

I’ve played around with a few recipes and then really settled on how I like to make pulled pork. It all comes down to the toppings. I like a spicy topping – like those super spicy pickles from Trader Joe’s, jalapenos, a little touch of siracha. So because I like a lot of heat on top of my sandwich, I like to make the pork sweet. Balance, right?

Buffalo Chicken Dip with Shredded Chicken

When I think of a big football game, I think of everything Buffalo flavored – am I alone here? Buffalo wings, buffalo chicken dip, sign me up! Each year since we’ve had our house, we’ve hosted a party for the Big Game and every year I can’t skip the Buffalo Chicken Dip! It basically tastes like football to me.

I really love spicy foods, and I love that you could really make this dip with any spice level you want! You can opt for a hotter-than-buffalo flavor, if you want, or swap in absolutely any flavor wing sauce you like. You could even make two, one for the spice-haters and one for the spice-lovers! I love that a buffalo chicken dip is also just way easier to eat than regular wings, but you get all the flavor. I like to serve up this dip with celery and tortilla chips – you could even add carrots (but I’m having a carrot sensitivity all of the sudden, so I left them out!).

tailgate ready

it’s finally late fall and it’s starting to get really chilly here, especially at 8:30 on sunday mornings when we are tailgating for giants games. since we go to every game i’ve finally got a routine down and thought it could be helpful to share with you my tricks of how i stay warm at football games in the colder months.

i refuse to be the girl who complains about being cold so it’s all about layering, ladies! oh and these bad boys – you’ll definitely want to invest in hand warmers each game – two for your hands, two for your feet.

check out all my tips after the jump!