THE Best Hot Wings, Just in Time for the NFL Playoffs

My hot wings are baked, not fried. Not that you're gonna save any calories, because I use a stick of butter for the sauce. And serve them with bleu cheese and ranch dressing.

Yikes, right?

Well, honestly, you have no business eating hot wings if you're worried about the calories. Hot wings are throw the diet to the wind and splurge for the big game food.

The advantage to baking, and not frying, is that baking is so much lower maintenance. I'm rarely in the mood to stand over a fry pan. So I bake instead, and I can guarantee you that everyone who tries these wings absolutely loves them. If I do say so myself. . .

For this recipe, you will need:

4 dozen chicken wing pieces, exluding tips.
Olive oil
Louisiana (or other) hot sauce, 2 12 ounce bottles (just to make sure you have enough!)
Spices of your choice: I use seasoned salt, pepper, red chili flakes, garlic powder, cayenne pepper and/or paprika
Butter, 1 stick
Bleu Cheese and/or Ranch Dressing

First of all, you'll prepare your wings. Take them out of their packaging and put them all on a big platter. Liberally season the wings all over with a generous coating of your chosen spices. I just sprinkle each spice over all the wings and them toss them around together with my hands to make sure they're covered evenly. With the red chili flakes and the cayenne pepper, I add pinches at a time to make sure I'm not using too much. I like a REALLY hot wing, but not everyone else I'm serving does, so I take care with these spices.

Next, divide the wings put them into two gallon-sized ziploc bags (they won't all fit in one) and pour in about 3 tablespoons of olive oil into each bag. Zip the bags and shake the wings around to coat with the olive oil. Next, pour about a half-cup of the hot sauce into each bag and shake again to coat. Leave the wings in the refrigerator for at least a couple of hours to marinate.

When you're ready to prepare the wings, preheat the oven to 375 degress. Usse two baking sheets and place wire cooling racks inside them. Spray the surfaces with PAM (or other) cooking spray. Spread the wings over the racks inside the baking sheets and bake the wings for about 40 minutes.

When the wings are done, melt a stick of butter in a large mixing bowl. Then add a cup and a half of hot sauce and mix well. Throw the wings into this sauce mix about 6-8 at a time and coat them well. Next, the wings go on a platter. When you've got them all coated and transferred to the platter, they're ready. Serve with the bleu cheese and ranch dressing, for dipping. I also serve with celery and carrot sticks, for dipping in the dressings.

Also, make sure you reserve the butter and hot sauce mixture, in case your family/guests want extra for their wings. My older son likes to mix some of the sauce in with ranch dressing and then dip his wings. I've tried that, too, and it's pretty delicious!