“I could just have chips and salsa for dinner every day.” ~Mia Hamm
Chips & salsa, nachos & me. A love story. Or at least a story I love.
If you know me at all, or have been following me on any social media, you know I love chips and salsa. In fact, I have always loved chips and salsa. Chips of almost any kind, actually.
As a kid, before tortilla chips were as plentiful in grocery stores as they are now, I was all about potato chips and dips. Or Fritos and bean dip. There is just something about the crunch of chips partnered with a savory accompaniment. My mom didn’t let us eat as much of any kind of chips as I would have liked, but when we did have them, they were a real treat.
Minimum Wage & Baskets of Chips
My first real job was in a Mexican restaurant. I was a busgirl (actual title) and would also wash dishes in the kitchen when needed. I got paid real money, with taxes taken out and everything, sometimes I got tipped out by the nicer and smarter waiters and waitresses (they weren’t called servers yet there), and also got free meals which included all the chips and salsa I wanted. And I wanted a lot!
The restaurant had these mobile carts that the floor staff would roll along from table to table to refill a table’s basket with more chips and salsa. From what I remember there was one cook in the kitchen who was responsible for keeping mounds of fried tortilla chips at the ready. I don’t remember where the salsa came from but it never ran out either.
It was a kind of food heaven. I often joked that I would have worked for the chips and salsa alone.
If it weren’t for real life bills and societal expectations for civilized adults, I would still be happy to work for chips and salsa.
Nacho Average Love Affair
What about my love of nachos? What’s not to love? It’s chips and salsa, but with added stuff! Maybe beans, maybe meat, lots of melted cheese and jalapeños and then repeat a time or two. It’s really a food love affair. I mean, death-row-last-meal worthy for even an innocent until proven guilty girl like me kind of food love affair.
(Note, I like to pretend I have to choose my last meal on earth. Isn’t it fun to think about all the things you’d eat if you had nothing to lose…?)
To Eat or Not to Eat
Alas, I’m not on death row. Of course, I’m thankful for this fact but it does mean that I can’t eat as if I have nothing to lose. Lots to gain is more like it.
I’m not fourteen years old anymore with rolling carts of all the chips and salsa I can eat, with not the smallest thought of self control and I suppose that’s a good thing. I would certainly be a target for those Wilford Brimley diabetes commercials if I was still living that food dream.
No, on most days I have to practice both self-control and portion control when it comes to chips. And on those special not most days, I let myself go, and enjoy as many as I can. Those days are few and far between, but they are some of my favorite days.
Super Sunday
One of my favorite days where chips don’t get counted or controlled is Super Bowl Sunday. I usually start in the morning, snack all day, switch to nachos as the National Anthem starts, load up on more chips, cheese and toppings during the halftime show (which I don’t watch) and then finish up just as Tom Brady is winning another championship.
It’s a day I look forward to all year, and definitely the best thing I ate last week.
Oh, and go Cowboys!
Elda XO
