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Hometown Snack Down: Add Local Flavor To Super Bowl Party

Tribune photo by JASON BEHNKEN

Whether it's Hawk's Boiled Peanuts or a sampling from Mr. Empanada, Tampa offers some unique options.

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By JEFF HOUCK | The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 22, 2009

When it comes to celebrating with food on Super Bowl Sunday, it's tempting to take the easy way out. A 2006 survey by ACNeilsen showed that $33 million in snacks are purchased for the big game, in addition to $21 million on beer and $16.5 million in prepackaged meats.

But if you're going to spend that kind of money on Super Bowl eats, shouldn't you get a taste of the place where the game is being played? Especially when that place is your town?

This goes above and beyond the usual Tampa mealtime staples, of course. After all, a warm, pressed Cuban sandwich is more than a snack. It's essential to enjoying the flavor of Tampa. And a pot of black bean soup is the perfect alternative to the same ol' pot of football chili.

But when it comes to snacks, we offer these tempting, tasty, locally made alternatives to bags of nasty nachos and goopy plastic cheese.

EAT THE SHELL

Paul Hawk of Hawk's Boiled Peanuts in Tampa has been making Southern-fried peanuts for more than a year in regular, Cajun, garlic and salt-n-vinegar flavors. The company is better known for the peanuts it boils at its facility near Tampa International Airport and sells in Crock-Pots at convenience stores and produce stands. Although it might seem like an odd idea, eating the fried shell along with the peanut enhances the nutty flavor and adds texture and body.

Bags of the fried nuts go for $2.99 at Rick's Custom Meats in Lithia. They're a relatively new item in this area, but they sell well in Alabama and Louisiana.

"I'm always trying new ideas," Hawk says.

TASTE OF TAMPA

In 1984, Albert and Audrey Perez decided to open Mr. Empanada on North Armenia Avenue with a group of investors. Their inspiration: They remembered when they were growing up, a man sold the crispy, savory Latin pastries from the back of his bike as he pedaled through West Tampa and Ybor City. The business took off, and the Perezes and their investors sold it in 1990.

In 2003, after Albert retired from Delta Air Lines and Audrey retired from the Internal Revenue Service, they reopened the business at 4836 N. Armenia, a few blocks away from the original spot, selling pastries filled with beef and cheese, Italian sausage, crab, guava and cream cheese, apple and chicken with broccoli and cheese. They have since franchised the business to six more locations. Check www.mrempanada.com for locations.

"They seem to be the perfect party food," Audrey says. "I've had people tell me that if they don't get to a party with empanadas in the first 10 minutes, they don't get any. They go that fast."

NUTTY FOR LUTZ

She wanted something homemade to give to friends and relatives for the holidays, so Debra Chatfield of Lutz began roasting nuts more than a decade ago.

"One year my father got ill and I didn't have a lot of time," Chatfield says. "Why not make nuts?"

She brought the nuts to a party one year. "Someone called me after and asked, 'Where did you buy those nuts?' After that, I thought maybe I ought to be selling these."

So began Lutz Nuts Co. in 2004.

The brand is best known for its "Bodacious Blend," a savory nut mixture of cashews, pecans almonds and hazelnuts. Chatfield dry roasts them, adds garlic slices, shallot rings, fresh rosemary, cayenne and then throws in some other spices.

She started making granola about three months ago, using natural, locally produced honey from Eden's Nectar.

The nuts are sold at Abby's Health & Nutrition at 14374 N. Dale Mabry Highway in Tampa. The Chatfields also can be found selling their products at downtown markets in Tampa and St. Petersburg, and during the week in Gulfport, Dunedin, Safety Harbor and Clearwater. Visit www.lutznutz.net/ for mail orders.

MMMMMMM MOOKIE'S!

A staple at local fairs and festivals, Mike "Mookie" Wilson lures patrons with the aroma of sweet, salty kettle corn.

"A lot of people don't get their food made in front of them," he says. "The combination of the sweet and salty is activated when you start eating it. And since human beings like to keep eating as a survivor species, once a person starts, they're going to keep eating."

It's not an item someone can usually make at home. Although somewhat like cooking in a wok, the convection of cooking in a copper kettle requires extremely high heat to melt the sugar.

"If you tried to make it on your regular stovetop, the sugar would burn," says Wilson, who lives in Odessa with his wife, Fran.

They also sell their popcorn online at www.mookieskk.com, and make custom packages for both corporate and individual buyers.

"I can make a gallon of corn in about a minute and a half," he says.

CUPCAKE TIME

The decision at Chris's Cookies & Gifts is a tough one. Do you go with the delicious cookie or a decadent cupcake? The Super Bowl Host Committee made its choice, contracting with Chris' to supply 3,000 cupcakes for the NFL's tailgate party before the Super Bowl. Co-owners Amy Gramling and Candace DeHaven will be making key lime, guava and rum cake flavored mini cupcakes for the bash.

The business has been a mainstay on at 3215 S. MacDill Ave. in Tampa for more than 25 years, selling everything from pirate-decorated iced cookies during the Gasparilla festival to party trays and sampler baskets. How good are they? Office workers in downtown Tampa have been known to make special excursions to buy oatmeal cookies iced with orange frosting.

Order online at www.cookiesandgifts.com.

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