Friday, February 24, 2017

Happy National Tortilla Chip Day



Today, February 24, is National Tortilla Chip Day, a day to celebrate the crunchy snack loved by millions across the nation. Who doesn’t love tortilla chips?

The tortilla chip is most commonly served with salsa, chile con queso, guacamole, cheese dips or other dips. In my novella, Bad Luck Partners, in the Season of Promises Holiday Boxed Set, my characters Laney and Chance share tortilla chips, salsa, guac, and wine during a life-changing New Year’s Eve. Trust me, we’d all like a New Year’s Eve like theirs. 



I thought I’d do a little research into the history of the beloved chips. Corn tortillas are made from corn, vegetable oil, salt, and water. They can be made with white, blue, or red corn.

Like most people, I always figured tortilla chips were Mexican. Not so. The chips, typically made from corn tortillas that have been cut into wedges and then fried, were first mass-produced in Los Angeles in the late 1940’s. The story is that the triangle-shaped chips were made by Rebecca Webb Carranza as a way to use the misshapen tortillas that were rejected from the automated tortilla manufacturing machine she and her husband used at their Los Angeles deli and tortilla factory. (Wikipedia)

Carranza realized that once the discarded tortillas were cut into triangle shapes and fried, they became a popular snack. She then sold them for a dime a bag at the El Zarape Tortilla Factory. (Wikipedia)

Tortilla chips are often complimentary appetizers in Tex-Mex and Mexican restaurants in the U.S. and elsewhere. Their popularity outside of California saw a steady rise in the late 1970s when they began to compete with corn chips, the dipping chip of choice during the first three quarters of the 20th century. I remember when Fritos corn chips were popular in the 1960’s. I’d never heard of tortilla chips let alone tortillas. The first time I tasted tortilla chips, they were so exotic, as was all Tex-Mex and Mexican food. Now I love the chips and I love Mexican food. I even make a Mexican meal once a week. The United States is one of the main markets for tortilla chips. (Wikipedia)

Another popular dish made with tortilla chips is nachos. The dish was first created around 1943 by Ignacio “Nacho” Anaya. Nachos are tortilla chips served with melted or shredded cheese and often additional toppings are added, such as meat, salsa, refried beans, tomatoes, diced onion, lettuce, olives, jalapenos, guacamole and sour cream. Yum! Love nachos! (Wikipedia)



HOW TO OBSERVE

Go and get your favorite dip and enjoy some tortilla chips.  Use #NationalTortillaChipDay to post on social media.

And you can buy Season of Promises Holiday Boxed Set and read about how tortilla chips brought Laney and Chance together.

Bad Luck Partners

In Sin City, a couple, unlucky in love, gamble on each other. Win or lose?

Holidays have never brought Las Vegas hotel concierge Laney Sikora anything but bad luck in the romance department. The worst was her fiancĂ© dumping her on Valentine’s Day. Via text. She’s determined to spend New Year's Eve alone with no romantic entanglements. But when her hunky new neighbor locks himself out of his apartment, she can’t leave him standing in the hallway. What's a girl to do?

 Las Vegas is just a pit stop for Chicago native and radio personality Chance Carlisle while he waits for his agent to land him something bigger in L.A. But in the meantime, he keeps bumping into—literally—his adorable, but accident-prone, neighbor. Their private New Year’s Eve celebration leads to a plan: they’ll become the Bad Luck Partners, dating only on holidays and special events, avoiding holiday heartbreaks and matchmaking mamas.

But Fate might have something else in mind for the klutzy cutie and the hotshot talk show host. Can their temporary partnership become a forever deal?
 




Visit me at www.caramarsi.com to read about all my books.






8 comments:

  1. This is a holiday I can sink my teeth into! Love tortilla chips! How better to shovel cheese and salsa to my mouth! Wonderful post! Thanks for sharing!

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  2. There's seriously a day for this? Okay with me. I love tortilla chips and anything Mexican.

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  3. I love tortilla chips and salsa, especially from a local Mexican restaurant. I remember as a kid when Frito Lay came out with their version of the chip, it was round and sold in a can. But then it disappeared and came back as Doritos.

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  4. Thanks, Melissa, Tina, and Vicki. This is a day I can sink my teeth into also. Tina, you'd be surprised the strange things that have national days. Vicki, I do remember Fritos but didn't know they came back as Doritos. I guess Fritos learned people wanted tortilla chips.

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  5. I can eat tortilla chips anytime. It's a serious addiction I'm not fighting. Great post!!!

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  6. Thanks, Jean. I can eat tortilla chips any time too!

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  7. I love tortilla chips! My favorites have a hint of lime but I can't buy them too often or I eat the entire bag, lol:)I love them with guacamole or just plain salsa. Thanks for the great post.

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  8. Paris, I know what you mean about not buying the chips too often. I love the ones with lime. I can't have tortilla chips or potato chips in the house because I can't help but eat too many.

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