Corner Gas was one of my favourite shows when it was on. Brent would walk into the Ruby and ask for a chilli cheese dog, and the producers did a great job of making it look good. I know some of you will feel nauseated at the thought of a chilli cheese dog, but, personally, I love a good one every once in a while. But I’ve discovered there is a place that doesn’t call it a chilli cheese dog.
While my family and I were travelling to Windsor, we stopped at two restaurants to try a Coney Island Dog. In downtown Detroit, two restaurants are considered staples in the business. American Coney Island and Lafayette Coney Island have both been in business since 1917, making them over 100 years old. I had a chance to speak with the owner of American Coney while we stopped in on this past trip. She is the granddaughter of the man who started their business. A hard-working proprietor, she was also friendly and knowledgeable about her company and its product. It is refreshing to see a restaurant that knows its identity and doesn’t stray from it. A Detroit Coney Island dog is a chilli dog, but it does not contain beans. It’s a little more like a savoury meat sauce than a chilli, but I still considered it a style of chilli. If you ever get to Detroit and you want to try a new experience, either of these restaurants is a great start.
Now, to have a chilli cheese dog, one requires chilli. Luckily, my chilli recipe is
available in a previous edition of the Voice. And this recipe isn’t rocket science, so I’ll spare the long, drawn-out explanation. Grab some leftover chilli, warm it up, and add it to your hot dog, top it with cheese and enjoy!
Chilli Cheese Dog
Ingredients:
2-3 hotdogs
2-3 hotdog buns
1/4-1/2 cup chilli
1/4 cup marble shredded cheese
Directions:
- Heat the hot dogs your preferred way, and I like boiled.
- Place your hot dogs in the buns.
- Heat the chilli, and spoon it over your dogs.
- Add the cheese, and if you like, give it a toast in the oven or microwave it to melt the cheese.
