Whether it’s tailgating or homegating, fans of the Buffalo Bills are known to be elite tier when it comes to food. Wingin’ It returns for it’s eighth season of Mad Hatter-esque recipes, taking inspiration from the Buffalo Bills and their opponents.

The departure of Sean McDermott brought a lot of mixed emotions. Interestingly, the vast majority of those mixed emotions stem from the football side of things. I know it’s not universal, but the vast majority of Bills fans have nothing against Sean McDermott the person, and most of folks have a lot of gratitude for the things he did accomplish in his time here. He didn’t win the big one, but he sure as heck won a lot of the littler ones and gave Bills Mafia a whole lotta fun along the way.

I wanted to post a thank you for all the great times he helped bring to us as fans and what better “Skarekrow way” to do that than a special edition Wingin’ It? So what exactly do we have here?

I did a little digging and the Buffalo Bills had posted a little information on getting to know Sean McDermott early on in his tenure here. Apparently, his favorite food is brownies and ice cream. I can do that. Wouldn’t it be great to go a step beyond though? McDermott grew up in the shadow of Philadelphia, and the research began. A candy called “Irish potatoes” was new to me, and I felt it would be just the right thing to add to my sundae.

Irish footballs. One sundae in exchange for many Sundays. Thank you Sean, best wishes unless you’re playing against Buffalo.

Makes: Between 40-50 candies
Active Time: 20 min
Total Time: About 60 min

5 oz mascarpone cheese
4 Tbsp softened butter, unsalted
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
4 cups confectioners sugar
2 cups toasted coconut

2 tbsp ground cinnamon
2 tsp ground red pepper (optional)

You will need: Stand mixer highly recommended (egg beater might work), large bowl and less large bowl, love of the game

The original candy, Irish potatoes, uses cream cheese, rather than mascarpone, and shredded coconut that has not been toasted. I went with the flavors I prefer. The toasted coconut also has a little more crunch than chew. The red pepper zing is of course the Buffalo twist.

As for tips, I have one big one if you’re worried about shape. I have two pictures of the same two footballs. In the first, it’s before it’s coated with cinnamon/pepper. Notice how the shape is a little more elongated than it needs to be. I rolled them by using the bowl and shaking it. That compacts the tips and that initial elongation helps get things closer to “right” during this step. You can make subtle adjustments after rolling and get them even closer.

They’re probably still going to look a little like potatoes, which is why the candy is called that, but that’s okay too.