Favorite Things-Kettle Cooked Potato Chips

One of my favorite snacks to eat is kettle cooked potato chips. Since today is National Potato Chip Day, I thought this post would be appropriate. I would like to post the origins of potato chips from Wikipedia:
Many different "recipes" have been "invented" at different times and in different places. Some believe that the original potato chip recipe was created by chef George Crum at Moon's Lake House near Saratoga Springs, New York, on August 24, 1853. Fed up with a customer who continued to send his fried potatoes back complaining that they were too thick and soggy, Crum decided to slice the potatoes so thin that they could not be eaten with a fork. As they could not be fried normally in a pan, he decided to stir-fry the potato slices. Against Crum's expectation, the guest was ecstatic about the new chips and they soon became a regular item on the lodge's menu, under the name "Saratoga Chips." They eventually became popular throughout New York and New England. One version of this story credits John Harvey Kellogg (the brother of the Dr. Kellogg who founded the company which bears the family name) as the customer who wanted them thinner; another wrongly identifies him as Cornelius Vanderbilt.
The owners of the restaurant Schweizerhaus in Wurstelprater, Vienna's largest permanent amusement park, claim that their site is where what they call Rohscheiben (raw slices) was invented.[citation needed]
An earlier reference to what are now known as potato chips is Alexis Soyer's recipe in "Shilling Cookery for People" (1845). Here raw potatoes, "almost shavings" are fried. Earlier still, Mary Randolph's book "The Virginia House-wife" (1824) has a part titled "To fry Sliced Potatoes" where raw potatoes are cut into slices or thin shavings and fried "till they are crisp."
In the 20th century, potato chips spread beyond chef-cooked restaurant fare and began to be mass produced for home consumption; Dayton, Ohio-based Mike-sell's Potato Chip Company, founded in 1910, calls itself the "oldest potato chip company in the United States".[1]
Before the airtight sealed bag was developed, chips were stored in barrels or tins, which allowed them to go stale and damp. Then Laura Scudder invented the potato chip bag by ironing together two pieces of waxed paper, thereby creating an airtight seal and keeping the chips fresh until opened. In 1934 Akron, Ohio, potato chip maker K.T. Salem was the first to distribute chips in glassine waxed paper bags. Today, chips are packaged in plastic bags, with nitrogen gas blown in prior to sealing in order to lengthen shelf life and provide protection against crushing.

I don’t know why I like kettle cooked chips so much, it’s probably because they are crunchy, they can hold dip really well, and don’t get stale quickly. We will leave my love of stale popcorn for a different post. Now I think the best plain kettle cooked chips are Cape Cod brand. However, earlier this week, I was very excited to try Miss Vickie’s Creamy Buttermilk Ranch flavored chips. Let me just tell you, they are great! My snack time will be even better and complete with a nice bowl of French Onion dip, most any brand will do or Hidden Valley Ranch powered dip mixed with sour cream, YUMMY! I have to limit the amount of chips I eat, because of course they are not the most nutritious items, but with most brands now having no trans fat chips, I feel slightly better. Join in on the celebration of Potato Chip Day, today!