Cincinnati Chili Spice Pack 41

This idea of names reminded me of a Distinct Food Memory (tm) that I had in the early 70s. This was the first time I had nachos.

I have Wisconsin-based relatives, so in the core of my being, I am a Cheese Rat. So are my kids, which is kind of funny, in a way.

These Wisconsin relatives always had new and exciting ways of serving and eating cheese. On one of our trips there, when I was about 12, one of my uncles asked us if we'd ever had nachos before. His version, then, was some Doritos (those were the first popular tortilla chips available, to my knowledge) tossed in the oven with some shredded cheese.

Since then, on a Food Network show, they've attributed the origins of nachos to a Texas college football stadium (I can't remember if it was UT or A&M) where the "nuclear orange" cheese sauce was served over tortilla chips.

I've always preferred my uncle's version over the nuclear cheese sauce version, but I'd have to admit, I far prefer any kind of nachos served in just about any restaurant today, loaded with salsa, shredded chicked or chili, sliced jalapenos, etc.

Food evolves, I guess, sometimes for the better.