Frito Pie

The other day at dinner I casually mentioned I heard that fried Frito pie was the winner of the State Fair of Texas "fried" contest.

(Let me take a minute for those of you who don't know, we love to fry and we LOVE to fry at the State Fair. It started innocently enough with a corny dog and over the years we've seen fried ice cream, fried beer, fried coke, fried banana pudding - even fried butter!)

But back to the dinner table. I really didn't think much of what I was saying. Fried Frito pie - weird - but very Texas State Fair. "What's Frito Pie?" I heard from the Yankee across the table from me. I looked at him blankly. "What's Frito pie? You've never had - much less never heard of - Frito pie?" I replied, very confused.  I explained the genius of this (evidently) Southern delight: Fritos, chili, cheese, and maybe onions. I was expecting to hear "Yum!! When are we having that?", but all I heard was "That sounds really unhealthy".  I'm not going to lie to you - my heart hurt a little.  I'd never considered the nutritional value - it's FRITO PIE!! It's yummy. I've eaten it all my life. "Yeah, I guess," I muster up. "Well, I'm going to make it sometime." 

So, today was the day. It's cool and cloudy. A day for hanging out at the house and watching football.  It was a good day for Frito Pie. I made my chili about 12:30 with hamburger and beans (not a true Texas chili) and let it simmer until about 4:30. Then I went down and layered two bowls: Fritos, chili, cheese, garnish with a few extra Frito's. Needless to say, David's bowl was empty in a matter of minutes. Okay, so you can't have that meal everyday, but all things in moderation, right?  "I think we'll have this again," he said as he scraped the bottom of the bowl. You married a Texan, I thought to myself. Along with the black-eye peas & cornbread and queso cheese dip, I have introduced my Jersey Boy to another Southern tradition: Football and Frito pie!

Homesick Texan Recipe Here