LIST: The Magic 5

I promised that I'd share a recipe soon and I just spent a good chunk of time searching the recipes that I keep on my computer.  However, I couldn't find one that I wanted to share without a picture and others were recipes that are near and dear to the people that shared them with me and therefore, I don't dare share them.  I guess I could ask permission but that involves picking up the phone and with my low blood sugar right now, I just don't dare waste the energy.  I need it to type.  My last lame excuse is: I'm really hungry right now (tends to happen when I don't eat lunch...hence the low blood sugar) and I'm afraid that if I were to type up a recipe right now, I'd be likely to head upstairs once I was done, make said recipe, and then proceed to eat the entire thing in one sitting.

That being said, I'm going to provide you with a very short list of 5 most marvelous foods.  Five foods that make the world a better place and have the power of making other foods jealous and better than they are on their own...

The Magic 5

• Avocado:  Being a California girl, liking avocado more or less runs in my blood.  Make that LOVING avocado.  Because I do.  And that scary processed stuff at the market that they call guacamole doesn't count as avocado because it's not.  It's scary processed stuff.
• Ranch Dressing:  Ranch dressing is a staple in our fridge.  And I'm not referring to the bottled stuff...yuck.  We're talking about the dressing that is made using a Hidden Valley Ranch packet, mayonnaise, and either milk or buttermilk (depending on the packet being used - we prefer the latter).  I've recently had a couple of people tell me that my ranch is the best.  Well, it's not my ranch, people.  It's Hidden Valley's.  And you're right - it really is the best.  The only thing is I make it with a bit of extra mayonnaise and a bit less milk/buttermilk than it calls for so that it's thicker.  That's all.
• Chocolate: No explanation or description needed here.
• Bacon:  I'm not normally a huge bacon fan.  No, really!  It's way too salty and I've never been a huge salt lover.  However, a while back we discovered Kirkland's low sodium bacon.  Mmmmmm.  Even my salt loving hubby prefers it.  And I don't need to drink a gallon of water after each slice.
• Cheese:  Yes, I mean cheese in general.  Parmesan.  Cheddar.  Monterey Jack.  And so forth and so on.  Like chocolate, cheese falls into the category or not needing much of an explanation.  It's beautiful and that's that.

Now that you have the list of the 5 magic ingredients, this is what you do.  Name a food.  Any food.  Then look over the list and you're pretty much sure to find that at least one of the magic 5 will make that food even better.  Let's have a few examples, shall we?...

Apples.  I love apples, especially nice, cold crisp ones.  But even better than a plain old apple slice?  An apple slice with sharp cheddar cheese on top.  Mmmmmm!  More a fan of the sweet classic of caramel apples?  Fine...add chocolate.  Double mmmmmm!

Hamburgers.  I have a very deep and meaningful love for home grilled hamburgers.  But I have a hard time eating one without some nice fresh slices of avocado on top and a slice or two of cheddar.  Tasty, tasty, tasty.  Bacon and ranch wouldn't hurt either.

Strawberries.  Yummy...one of my favorite fruits.  Made even more delicious by my dear friend chocolate (any kind will do).

Finally, turkey.  It's super great all by itself.  But what if you eat it dipped in ranch?  Better.  In a salad with avocado and cheese?  Better still.  On a sandwich with bacon, cheese, and avocado, dipped in ranch?  Best of all!

Now, I have to share one last thing.  In the middle of doing this post, my lack of energy got to be a little too much and I ran upstairs to have a "snack".  I started with a healthy serving of chocolate chips and then moved onto carrots (with ranch!).  Then cheddar cheese.  With ranch.  I polished it off with sourdough toast with butter and honey and then a few more chocolate chips.  I feel much better now.  And did you notice how skillfully I worked 3 of the Magic 5 into my late lunch/snack?  Brilliant.  But that's beside the point...

Have you ever had good cheddar cheese (i.e. Tillamook sharp or cheddar) dipped in homemade Hidden Valley Ranch?  One word: GLORIOUS.  If you haven't tried it, give it a go.  You and your thighs can thank me later.

P.S.  Will be making homemade Macaroni & Cheese in the next couple of days.  After the weight-increasing taste test, I'll post the recipe (with pictures) if it's a winner.  Which I'm sure it will be...it's from Tillamook.