Fall Means Football and Grilled Pierogies and Kielbasa

I love football season. Not just the NFL and following the Pittsburgh Steelers, but also the . Of course, I'm an even bigger fan of high school halftime because we've been involved in  forever and my youngest son is the . 

Fall is without a doubt my favorite time of the year. When the weather cools down, it's just so welcome to me after the heat of the summer. The colors are beautiful, and there's a feeling of coziness and settling in that makes me feel very homey and content.

I watch the Pine-Richland Rams every week, but I'm less a fan of watching professional games in person. I've attended only three  games and have not enjoyed any of them.

The first was in a blizzard. The second was on a 120-degree day and our seats were directly in the sun. The third time we won our seats in a raffle, and they were so high up that the players all looked like ants. You needed hiking poles to get to those seats.

My husband has a fear of heights, and the seats were so high that he sat there for about 10 minutes and said, "I can't do this anymore." We watched the game at a nearby sports bar.

Watching the games at home is much better. It's climate-controlled, you don't have to climb steps, you don't need binoculars and you don't have to take a second job to afford parking. I'm not even going to talk about the price of food and drinks

I still like tailgating — that's the only fun part. So, we "tailgate" at home. It's not really tailgating, of course, because we're in the house. But I do like making  on Sundays as we settle in for a day of sports.

It's almost like having a party one day a week. Even my non-sports-fan sons appreciate the food, although they do wander off in disinterest once they've eaten.

I always plan to start the food by noon so I am done by kickoff at 1 p.m. I stick to a fall/football theme as well, lots of kielbasa, , wings, burgers or meatballs, stuffed peppers, chili dogs — the good stuff. And we totally go all out for the Super Bowl, even when our Steelers aren't there.

It may be a smaller party than you see in the stadium parking lot, but we can jump up and down, scream and yell, hug [or kick] the cat, and go to the bathroom without having to say, "Excuse me, excuse me," as we scooch past a long row of people. We can also pause or rewind the action if something distracts us.

Although, from what I've seen of tailgating at the stadium, I think a lot of those fans can't even see by the time they get into the game. We may not be as exciting, but at least we're not driving home after six hours of drinking.

Another good reason to try home tailgating: It's definitely safer here.

Recipe: Grilled Pierogies and Kielbasa

This recipe is from Food Network Magazine and was given to me by my friend Beth from Atlanta. She took one look at it and thought, "Kelly will love this during football season." She was right.

Ingredients:

• 1 pound kielbasa [pork or turkey, cut into 4 pieces]
• 2 tablespoons whole grain mustard [I used Dijon]
• 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 large white onion, cut into 6 wedges
• 1 pound frozen pierogies, do not thaw
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1/4 cup roughly chopped fresh parsley

Directions:

1. Preheat a grill to medium. Grill the kielbasa, turning, until marked, 8 - 10 minutes. Transfer to a baking sheet or platter.
2. Meanwhile, whisk the mustard and vinegar in a large bowl. Slowly whisk in 2 tablespoons olive oil until smooth.
3. Toss the onion and pierogies with the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill, covered, until the pierogies thaw and the onion begins to soften, about 5 minutes. Turn the pierogies and onion and continue to cook until the pierogies are cooked through and the onion is tender, 4 to 6 more minutes. Transfer to the baking sheet or platter.
4. Slice the kielbasa into one-inch pieces and add to the bowl with the mustard dressing. Roughly chop the onion and add to the bowl along with the pierogies and parsley. Season with salt and pepper and toss.