Red Hots - Get your Hot Dogs Here...

By Diane Forrest (and Terry)

Today is National Hot Dog Day.  When I think of hot dogs, several things come to mind, the first being America.  Ever hear the phrase 'as American and baseball, hot dogs, apple pie and Chevrolet”?  That was an advertisement slogan for Chevrolet back in the 70's and I guess it stuck with me, because I think of hot dogs as the all American food.   My son recently went to Atlanta to watch his first professional baseball game with the Braves playing.  The first thing I asked him was, "Did you get a hot dog?"   You could have heard my gasp across the house as he informed me that he had gotten a pretzel instead!  How was that possible??? Pretzels and baseball don't go together!!!

A hot dog is simply a sausage in a roll, usually topped with a variety of condiments.  It's hard to determine the exact origin.  One story states that street venders used to sell the sausages and provided customers with white gloves to use so they would not get burned.  However, they would leave with the gloves.  They began putting the sausages in rolls to save on the cost of gloves.  In 1893 they began selling them at baseball games and amusement parks.  Today, over 30 million hot dogs are sold at baseball games.

There have been many nicknames for hot dogs that have popped up over the years. A hot dog can often be seen under the names of frankfurter, frank, red hot, wiener, weenie, durger, coney, or just "dog". They are very popular with children for their easy handling and can be found on children's menus in several restaurants.

Many regional areas have their own signature hot dog.  Some different types include:

Chicago Dog - A beef hot dog made with 100% pure beef and topped with pickle, relish, tomato, sport peppers, celery salt and mustard all served up in a soft, warm poppy seed bun.

New York Dog - A beef hot dog made with 100% pure beef and grilled to perfection and topped with spicy brown mustard, grilled onions and crunchy sauerkraut in a soft, warm bakery bun.

All-American Dog - It's a beef hot dog made with 100% pure beef that's grilled to perfection and topped with ketchup, yellow mustard, and relish and chopped onions and served in a soft, warm bakery bun.

Chili Cheese Coney -  It's a grilled beef hot dog made with 100% pure beef and topped with warm chili and melted cheddar cheese served in a soft, warm bakery bun.

Baja Dog - This dog's got bite. With melted pepper jack, tomatoes, chopped onions and spicy jalapenos in a poppy seed bun.

On July 4th every year, Nathan's Famous hot dog company holds a hot dog eating contest.  This year the winner, Joey Chestnut, ate 62 hot dogs in 10 minutes making him the winner for the 5th consecutive year.

You can't watch an episode of Matlock without seeing him down a dog or two "all the way” My favorite way is simply a line of mustard down the middle of the wiener.  When I’m really hungry, I will get a chili cheese dog with a side of onion rings and a chocolate milk shake.   My husband liked his cooked on a stick over a campfire.   Since I couldn't build a fire every time he wanted a hot dog, but did have a gas stove, I would put a couple of dogs on a long fork and hold them over the flame until they were properly burned.

And lets up not forget Alice Cooper's monster hot dogs, just down the street from the Arizona D-Backs ball park in Phoenix, AZ.  A few years ago while visiting my sister, we tackled this monster...three of us...and could not finish it.

However you like your hot dogs, why not grab one today in honor of National Hot Dog Day and let us know your favorite way to eat them.

"HOT DOGS, Ar-mour HOT DOGS

What kind of kids love Ar-mour HOT DOGS?

Big kids, lit-tle kids, kids who climb on rocks

fat kids, skin-ny kids, ev-en kids with chicken pox

love HOT DOGS, Ar-mour HOT DOGS

The dogs kids love to bite!"