Pickles!

Pickles, beautiful pickles. I love them all.

As a matter of fact, I've never met a pickle I did not love. Garlic pickles, dill spears, whole dills, sandwich stackers, bread and butter chips. Sweet pickles, hamburger dill pickle chips, kosher pickles. It doesn't stop there.

There's a QUEEN of all pickles, a 'Wickedly Delicious' pickle. That pickle is a WICKLE! http://www.wickles.com/

Wickles are irresistibly delicious, fabulously flavored delights. They are jam packed with flavor, a little heat and a little sweet.

My best friend and I have discovered the very best way to enjoy a jar of wickles.

Step #1... go to our favorite club for a few cocktails.

Step #2... run to the grocery store, purchase a jar of Wickles and one pound of baby swiss cheese, thinly sliced, please.

Step #3... Run to the car, open that jar of Wickles, open the bag of cheese, and commence to digging in.

Our secret is to wrap 2 or 3 wickles, burrito style, inside a slice of cheese. The only proper way to enjoy this snack is to pop the whole mess in your mouth. There is no delicate way to enjoy this delectable delight.

Here's the thing about my pickle 'problem'... *I* don't see a single thing wrong with loving pickles. I don't see anything wrong with being protective of my pickles. Some people love chocolate, others love wine. *I* love pickles.

Big whoopdie-doo. So what if I have gigantic gallon jars full of pickles? My husband does not understand why I must have pickles packed in the pantry. He does not understand why I am a pickle protector. There's a rule in this house, a rule I am not willing to amend. The official rule is do not phuk with my pickles. This does not mean I won't share my pickles! If someone in the house would like a pickle or two, please, by all means, have at it. I'm a giver like that.

Problem is, pickles aren't, like, THE most healthy food in the world, but I can't resist the crunch, the tangy flavor, that vinegary/dill taste. Yes, pickles are loaded with sodium. I rationalize this by reminding myself that pickles are MUCH better for me than, say, a plate of nachos.

4 whole pickles = 12 calories. SMALL plate of nachos = 446 calories. Total sodium content for pickles = 833mg. Total sodium for nachos = 816mg.

AH-HA! What could possibly be wrong with exchanging 17 miniscule milligrams of sodium for a whopping 434 CALORIES.

There was a time when I was a Snickers Bar-aholic. Chocolate was my friend. It was not unusual to find a case of Snickers stashed in the closet. That chocolatly goodness, the ooey-gooey layer of caramel, the peanuts and chewy nooget filling. Heaven in a wrapper. According to the wrapper nutrition information:

Serving Size - 1 bar
Calories per serving - 266
Calories from FAT - 98
Cholesterol - 8mg
Total Carbs - 37g
Sodium - 137mg

And I was a 2 per day minimum Snickers girl. Dude, that is an unhealthy snack.

I don't plan to give up my pickle passion any time soon. Not now, not ever. To my perturbed husband I say, Pffffttt.

AND... I am NOT alone! I've just found this site:

http://www.ilovepickles.org/

LOL... they even feature Perfect Packages of Pickle Paraphernalia!

http://www.ilovepickles.org/shop/index.html