Entertaining on a Budget: Snack Food for Gamers

Every Thursday (and sometimes Mondays and Wednesdays as well!) the local gamer's group makes its way to my kitchen table to sit for hours and chat and play various Role-Playing, card, and board games.
While during the summer time my schedule is a bit too hectic to join in most of the play, as the hostess of the games, I find myself stretched to provide some basic snacks for a crowd that ranges in size from 7 players to 20 players depending on the week.

Early on, I came up with what the perfect solution: I set up a Make-Your-Own-Nacho Bar.
And the basis for my nacho bar- the one item that everyone has deemed a "MUST" is home-made tortilla chips. (It's also the one item everyone has tried to recreate on the rare occasions that someone else has hosted.) In fact, it's become a bit of a joke that one player actually keeps trying to buy different pre-packaged chips just to figure out which ones I'm using--- even though he's stood behind me and watched me make them!

Fresh Tortilla Chips
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1 package corn tortillas
Sharp knife
Heavy Pan
Corn, Vegetable, or Canola Oil
Fine Sea Salt

1) Place stack of corn tortillas on cutting board and slice into sixths. (You could fry them whole, in quarters, or in eighths as well. My group just seems to prefer the size of sixths.)


2) Place two inches of oil in a heavy bottomed pan. Bring up heat until oil temperature is approximately 375 degrees F. (If you use a deep fryer, you can just use the "French Fry" setting.) Place "chips" into hot oil and fry until they begin to float. Flip and continue frying on the other side until lightly golden colored. (Note: If you are using fresh oil, the chips will burn before they turn golden. So, test a few chips to know what color you are looking for.)

3) Remove chips from oil and drain. (My draining method is the paper towel lining of a deep bowl.) While still warm sprinkle with salt. Serve with your favorite toppings, dips, or spreads and enjoy!

These chips are wonderful and NOTHING like the store-bought ones. Not only can they hold up to the most liquid of salsas, they can handle chunky guacamole and bean dips too! As a plus, they are cost effective; for the $1.50 it cost to buy the tortillas, I made the equivalent of FIVE bags of tortilla chips. Pre-made tortilla chips run $2 bag for the generic store brand here. I saved myself $8.50 by making my own chips!

Now I'm off to save myself some more money by playing with my new washer and dryer. (A post on those later, I promise!)

With Love,
Meg