National Fast Food Day

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Two all beef patties

Special sauce

Lettuce

Cheese

Pickles

Onions

On a sesame seed bun

By Chef Diane

For those of you who are too young to remember, that was the jingle for McDonald's Big Macs during the 1970's.  I remember this because we had to learn it over and over again when we got our first McDonalds in the small delta town where I lived.  If you called them and said this real fast, you would get a free big mac.  The night before this McDonald's open, my family was invited to a grand opening dinner where everything was free.  This was our first fast food restaurants, so this night was almost as exciting as going to the circus.  I remember I ordered a big mac, strawberry milk shake, fries and a hot apple pie.  I thought I was in heaven.  A school friend's mother would always pick her up some lunch from there, and bring it to her at school, while the rest of us sat amazed, while we ate our peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

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These days, there are fast food places everywhere you look.  According to punchbowl.com, there are over 300,000 fast food restaurants in the United States alone. The first was a hot dog stand on Coney Island that opened in 1867.

Many fast food chains have been in the news lately.  There was an uproar over Chic Filet over controversial statements from the CEO.  There have been menu changes with offering better, more nutritious foods, there have been complaints about toys offered in kid's meals, diets consisting of nothing but subway sandwiches, and a controversial film about supersizing menu items.

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Today is National Fast Food Day.  With the availability, cost, and variety, there is something available for everyone.  There are several ways to celebrate this day.  You can start your morning off with some coffee and a muffin from Starbucks, have a nutritious grilled chicken and fruit salad from Wendy’s for lunch, a fresh fruit frozen yogurt for an afternoon snack from McDonald s, and a low fat subway for dinner.  Or, if you are like me, you can get some chili cheese fries, big macs, and deep dish pan pizzas.  This day only comes once a year, so splurge and enjoy!