On the last Thursday in July, hot dog lovers across the United States start topping their hot dogs with delicious chili to celebrate National Chili Dog Day.
Wrapping up National Hot Dog Month, the chili dog brings the heat. Add onions, cheese, or chili sauce for more variety. With a hot dog, the condiments are endless.
Also known as a coney dog or chili con carne, the first person to make a chili dog probably tried it around the turn of the 20th century. Even then it was likely a meat and tomato sauce, not the full-on firehouse chili we know today. Get Jen’s Easy Chili recipe.
Even now, the chili dog gains gourmet status depending on where you go. Add the best ingredients, all-beef franks, and pretzel bun, too. My favorite is traditional chili piled on with fresh purple onion, and extra sharp cheddar cheese.
Experiment with the sausage seasonings or the type of chili. For example, switch to a flavorful brat seasoned with chipotle and top it with buffalo chili. Let your imagination go wild. Of course, a traditional chili dog is always an option, too.
Chili dogs are a meal all on their own. Grab one at the ballpark or set up a chili dog bar. Invite friends and family to create colossal and delicious chili dogs with all their favorite toppings. Host a chili cookoff and supply the franks, buns, and special toppings for the judges to add to their chili dog. Crown the winner with bragging rights!
Post on social media using #NationalChiliDogDay and encourage others to join the celebration.
National Hot Dog Day in July, celebrates a summertime staple on a bun. Enjoy one piping hot and add some relish and mustard to go! One thing we want to know – is it a sandwich or not?
Celebrated every year during National Hot Dog Month, this day pays homage to the frankfurter, the footlong or wienie, wiener, wienerwurst or even red hot. They taste just as great no matter what we call it.
Over 25 million hot dogs are sold at baseball stadiums each year.
We make them a variety of ways. They’re portable and easy to make. While many of us prefer them grilled or toasted over a fire, we also boil, pan-fry, and rotisserie-cook them. The list of toppings are numerous – from the basic ketchup, mustard or relish to onions, mayonnaise, cheese bacon, chili and sauerkraut – the list keeps growing. Adults and children alike love them, too.
Then there’s me. My family likes them but I simply cannot. My mother says I’ve rejected them since day 1. Normally toddlers get these cut up as a easy food, apparently I have been refusing them since then. I’ve tried lots of brands and styles of cooking, and a variety of toppings, but the outcome is always the same. So if you love these wonders of food enjoy one for me would you? Can I have a Brat instead?
On May 31, 2012,a world record was set for the most expensive hot dog. The “California Capitol City Dawg” sold for $145.49 at Capitol Dawg in Sacramento, California. The “California Capitol City Dawg” features:
A grilled 18″ all-beef, in natural casing frank from Chicago
served on a fresh-baked herb and oil focaccia roll spread with white truffle butter, then grilled
topped with whole grain mustard from France, garlic and herb mayonnaise
sauteed chopped shallots, organic mixed baby greens, maple syrup
marinated/fruitwood smoked uncured bacon from New Hampshire
basil olive oil/pear-cranberry-coconut balsamic vinaigrette and ground peppercorn
Proceeds from the sale of each 3 lb. super dog were donated to the Shriners Hospitals for Children.
7-Eleven sells the most grilled hot dogs in North America – 100 million annually.
HISTORY OF NATIONAL HOT DOG DAY
The National Hot Dog and Sausage Council created National Hot Dog Day. The day was established in 1991 to coincide with a hot dog lunch on Capitol Hill every year on a Wednesday in July.
Share your favorite toppings. Do you like yours blackened or just done? Tell us where the best hot dogs near you are. Give the restaurant or vendor a shout out. What makes them special? Is it their toppings? Do they use a better frank? We want to know.
Have a hot dog and post on social media using #NationalHotDogDay to encourage others to join in.
National Beans ‘N’ Franks Day on July 13th encourages us to make our favorite recipes during National Hot Dog Month. Since we are also indulging in a Baked Bean Month, this is a great way to combine them. This simple recipe cooks up a delicious dish in no time and goes well with summertime barbecues, too!
Also known as “beanie weenies,” both dishes are similar to pork ‘n’ beans, but substitute hot dogs or frankfurters for the pork.
Baked beans became popular during the Civil War in the United States. They would later become one of the first canned convenience foods on the market in the 1890s. As a result, baked beans became a staple of the chuckwagon. However, it is unknown when adding franks to the beans became a culinary technique.
The franks, or frankfurters, can be beef, pork, or a combination of both. The ground meat is blended with spices and seasonings before being cured. These sausage style wieners or hot dogs come with or without casings. Before adding them to the beans, the franks are sliced into bite-sized pieces.
While beans and franks is one name, Van Camp’s owns the trademark to the Beanie Weenies name. Another brand name is Franks & Beans.
Home cooks make beans and franks, too. Recipes can include beans, hot dogs, brown sugar, onion, mustard, barbecue sauce, and spices. The United States isn’t the only place recipes are found, either. Around the world, beans and franks enjoy wide popularity.
Beans and franks go well with coleslaw, grilled corn on the cob, and vegetable kabobs. Add some iced tea and pie to complete the meal. Make it a picnic for a day out.
Have a picnic or cookout. Make your favorite beans ‘n’ franks recipe to share. Don’t have one? Here is a recipe for you to try. Or just open up a can and heat it up. Post on social media using #BeansNFranksDay.
National Cheddar Day adds some cheesy goodness on February 13th!
Grilled cheese would be buttered bread without melt-able slices piled high; burgers would be lackluster without a perfect ooze; mac & cheese would just be…mac, to be frank. So many of our iconic American dishes simply wouldn’t be the same without a slice of cheddar’s deliciousness.
CHEDDAR HISTORY
There’s some history to this love of cheddar as well. How exactly did cheddar become a staple in so many of our favorite foods? Let us tell you!
Cheddar first rolled into being in the village of Cheddar in Somerset, England in the 12th century. While cheddar accounts for more than a third of all the cheese sold in the United States, it is a royal hit in the United Kingdom where it was created. In fact, more than half of the cheese sales in the UK go to cheddar.
In 1894, renowned cheesemaker Peter McIntosh brought his cheese-making skills to Tillamook County, Oregon where it rains a lot and the grass was always green. He taught the locals all he knew, and in due time he earned himself the nickname “Cheese King of the Coast.” Today, there are more cows than people in Tillamook, and those local farmers have since formed the farmer-owned cooperative we know today as the Tillamook County Creamery Association.
No wonder cheddar finds its way into so many recipes or a simple snack. That rich, creamy and sometimes crumbly flavor is what keeps us coming back for more, bite after delicious bite.
After over a century spent perfecting its award-winning cheddar recipe, Tillamook founded National Cheddar Day on February 13, 2019, to celebrate its 110th birthday and share a passion for cheddar with cheese-lovers nationwide, giving cheddar a day to shine on its own. ( You have to try thier ice cream!)
Founded on the coast of Oregon this farmer-owned cooperative continues to produce the most consistent, best tasting, high-quality dairy products made the most natural way possible. Guided by its values and the belief that everyone deserves real food that makes them feel good every day, Tillamook has earned top awards for their cheese, ice cream, sour cream, butter, and yogurt products made the Tillamook Way. Committed to unwavering values that never sacrifice quality for profit, Tillamook is excited to share National Cheddar Day with cheddar lovers everywhere for years to come.
If you’re local to Tillamook or traveling to the Pacific Northwest, add the Tillamook Creamery as a destination to see just how cheddar is made; sampling a thing or two as well. Today, nearly one million visitors make the trip to the Creamery each year! That’s a whole lotta chedda.
Hashtag it! Show the world just how much you love cheddar by sharing your favorite creation with #NationalCheddarDay on social media.
On National Cheese Lover’s Day, don’t feel bleu, throw a feta or act capricious. January 20th is a gouda day to kummin over and have some sharp cheddar, munster, or fontina!
There is no firm evidence of how cheese making was discovered. but legend tells us it was likely by chance that someone created the first cheese. Thousands of years ago, people transported milk and stored it in sheep’s stomachs. Left to sit a few days, the proteins would separate into curds and whey. From there, preserving the solids with salt may have seemed a logical next step. Salt was a highly valued preservative in ancient times.
The earliest record of cheese making dates back to 5,500 BCE in what is now Poland. Today there are over 1,400 varieties of cheese.
Basic Cheese Making
The basic principles behind making cheese are quite simple. Let the milk sour (or scientifically, coagulating the casein protein). Then separate the curds (solids) from the whey (liquid). The curds are then salted and left to age.
Bacteria, enzymes or fungi may be added at various stages. These along with the type of milk, temperature, time, and moisture are all controlled to produced the desired taste, color, and texture. Herbs and spices may also be added.
The nutritional value of cheese varies depending on the variety. Cottage and mozzarella cheese are at the lower end of fat and calories per serving while mascarpone and cream cheese pack it on. Marscapone makes desserts like tiramisu rich and creamy.
For cheese lovers who think one day is just not enough to celebrate cheese, the calendar is full of cheesy celebrations. Check out this shortlist of tasty cheese-based celebrations:
Enjoy some cheese with your lunch or as a snack. Share your favorite cheesy recipes or puns. Try a new cheese pairing. Visit your favorite cheesemonger and be sure to give a shout out, too. Use #CheeseLoversDay to post on social media.
