Don't get yourself in a Harold and Kumar situation - enjoy the slider at home with our perfected recipe"Crave on!" exclaimed vice president of White Castle Jamie Richardson as he signed off on an email exchange.

We bet you know what craving he's talking about. It's that mouthwatering thought of something small, something tender, and something that's a perfect balance of meat, onion, bun, and pickle - it's the White Castle slider craving. You don't really need to say much more than that, because everyone understands. The mini burgers are so unique, original, and delicious that anyone who's enjoyed a White Castle slider can't help but take part in the slider-mania that has spread across the country in the form of restaurants, freezer staples, and even a Hollywood movie.

Click here to see How to Make Your Own White Castle Sliders at Home

So what's so good about them? Well, for starters, they're the number-one menu item of the fast-food chain that only has 409 restaurants across the country, a far cry from many of the other popular chains. The unique and almost unattainable

Follow this game plan for delicious pregame grub, and watch guests huddle up near the food, whether you're at home or on campus (it's easily transportable!)

Game-Day Menu
Mini Muffulettas
Deli-Fried Chicken Tenders with Jalapeño-Mustard Dipping Sauce
Warm Gumbo Dip
Confetti Pasta Salad
Graham Nut Clusters

Tailgating Tips

• Prepare sandwiches the day before the game. Place in zip-top plastic freezer bags, and refrigerate overnight.
• You can also prepare slaw up to a day ahead, omitting apples. Chop the apples. Combine 2 cups water and 3 Tbsp. lemon juice, and pour over apples. Cover and chill apples and slaw in two separate containers overnight. Drain apples, and stir them into slaw just before serving.
• Just before parking on campus, stop by a grocer's deli counter or the drive-through window of your favorite restaurant for fresh, hot chicken tenders.
• Rinse gallon milk jugs and use as a spillproof way to transport cajun lemonade. And be sure to pack a

Apple pieIt's a fall ritual...stocking up on crisp, juicy new apples at an orchard, the farmer's market, or even the supermarket. In addition to classic varieties like McIntosh and Delicious, this is the time of year when you can find unusual ones like Northern Spy, Smokehouse, Late Strawberry, and Winter Banana. And while there's nothing better, at least in my humble opinion, than biting into an in-season sweet and tart variety, inevitably the novelty wears off and you're left with a bushel, or at least a basket, that needs to be used up. That's when your thoughts turn to pie. And I'm here to help.

1. Choose types of apples that while juicy and delicious, hold their shape. Out of season I usually recommend Golden Delicious and Granny Smith that are available all year round. But this month, why not try Cortland, Jonagold, Pippin, or Winesap?

Related: Simply Delicious Apple Recipes

2. For your crust, use mostly butter for flakiness and a small proportion of Crisco for tenderness.

By Chef Meg Galvin, Healthy Cooking Expert at SparkPeople.com

Sauces can make or break a dish, both in taste and in nutrition. Take the classic cream sauce, for example. Delicious, yes. Healthy, no way! The ingredients are usually white flour, butter, and heavy cream, with some whole milk added for good measure.

Thankfully, we can improve on the classics to make them a welcome addition to the healthy kitchen.

Let's edit the name ever so slightly. Rather than a cream sauce, we're creating a creamy sauce.

Rather than heavy cream, start with flavorful liquids that have little to no salt, such as homemade stock.

I often make a quick stock by pouring boiling water over dried mushrooms, which serves two purposes: the steeping liquid becomes the stock, and the mushrooms add texture to the sauce. When combined with a roux, that flour-and-fat combo that is cooked to create a thickener, the thin stock yields a velvety sauce the plenty of "mouth feel"--no cream needed.

Thankfully, you can

Break out your soup pots for fall and try a couple healthy recipes to warm you up.By Zester Daily Staff

Fall weather inspires us to get out the soup pot and fill the kitchen with good hearty aromas.

RELATED: How about a classic chicken soup?

Here from her cookbook "The Very Best of Recipes for Health" are a pair of great soup recipes from Zester Daily's healthy cooking authority Martha Rose Shulman.

RELATED: Here's another great fall veggie soup.

Pureed Red Pepper and Potato Soup

Yield: Serves 6 to 8

There was a time, about 20 years ago, when pureed red peppers were all the rage. It was so overdone by restaurants that eventually it fell out of fashion. But there was a reason that red pepper puree was so popular, and that's because of its intense rich flavor. This beautiful orange soup is a reminder of that.

RELATED: Try a bean and vegetable soup to warm up.

Make sure to strain it after you puree it, a quick step that absolves you of the more involved process of peeling the peppers.

Ingredients

2 tablespoons extra virgin

Lemon Pasta with Fresh Tomato Basil Mozzarella Pasta

I always love a light blend of pasta for either a whole meal or side dish. Here is one of my very favorites with lots of topping suggestions! Sauce and Full Recipe for this one CLICK HERE Garnish for photo above: chunks of fresh mozzarella cheese grape tomatoes cleaned and cut in half long shredded Parmesan cheese Fresh basil leaves Other suggestions for topping this pasta: Grilled Salmon Black Olives Freshly Sauteed Spinach Grilled Haddock or Cod on top of the pasta Grilled or Roasted Chicken Breast Roasted Peppers and Artichoke Hearts Leftover Steak Grilled Scallops or Shrimp

Two glasses of red wine are tilted.With the end of summer behind us, that first snap of fall has hit. While there may be a few more weeks of warm weather left, that day when you need a coat will be here before you know it. You'll want to be able to reach for the right wine to pair it the season's first cool evening.

Be prepared for the end of warm weather, the beginning of fall and, with any luck, a little bit of an Indian summer to laze away a few more precious weekends before we return indoors for our annual hibernation.

Crisp White Wines
You might want to ratchet up the intensity of your crisp whites and look for wines that will be just as fab at 55 degrees as they will be in 80 degree weather. A nice Pinot Bianco is a great choice. There are tons of great options available from Italy, Alsace, Oregon and other regions, like Austria, Germany and Hungary. Pinot Blanc is a star on the rise. Taste some in the coming months!

Two to Try:

2010 Tenuta Costa Lahnhof Pinot Bianco Alto Adige, $19
A fairly rich style of Pinot