Today is National Chocolate Chip Day, another bizarre and gimmicky “holiday” to “celebrate.” Despite its cheesiness and my supposed hostility toward days like this, I am appreciative that it gives me something to write about.

In tonight’s blog post I present to you five items I enjoy chocolate chips on the most.

Chocolate Chip Cookies – Big surprise, right? Although white chocolate macadamia cookies are my favorite, chocolate chip cookies are a close runner up. We all know the satisfying feeling of biting into a fresh cookie with the chocolate chips half melted. But chocolate chips in cookies are more versatile than just in liquid form. Chocolate freezes very well and I always liked eating the frozen chocolate chips in my mom’s famous ice cream cookie sandwiches.

Chocolate Chip Pancakes – Nothing is better than going to a hole in the wall diner and ordering a stack of chocolate chip pancakes. Topped with butter and whipped cream, you can’t have a more heavenly breakfast. The flavor of the gooey chocolate chips is always evident, even with maple syrup and buttermilk competing for an impression on your taste buds. You know you were served a good stack if after you finish your pancakes there is noticeable chocolate residue on your fork (at which point you lick it off).

These are some chocolate chip pancakes I had at Plantation Pancake House in Myrtle Beach.

Ants on a Log – Oh please, you put raisins on top of your celery as a kid? In our household, we didn’t adhere to the healthy recipe of ants on a log. After slathering peanut butter on the celery sticks, we topped it with chocolate chips. Whatever it took to get us to eat our veggies, right?

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream – On the third anniversary of our revolutionary experiment, don’t think I forgot to add chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream to this list. Although I think chocolate chips alone in ice cream is a mistake, I support gobs of cookie dough packed with chocolate chips in my frozen desserts. On this date three years ago, I had Sidney blindly test five different brands of chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream––everything from generic store brand to premium industry leader. When the test was completed, it wasn’t Ben & Jerry’s that won. Rather, it was a complete shocker.

Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Sandwiches – For this last spot, I could have went with chocolate chip rice krispie treats or chocolate chip covered donuts. Instead, I wanted to go with something more unique that joined ants on a log as another childhood favorite. As a little boy during the summer, my mom actually granted me permission to plant chocolate chips on the inside of my peanut butter sandwich. We would then put it in the microwave for 20 seconds or so. Call it the start of my chocolate/peanut butter addiction, but it was something I did a lot back in the day. Although I haven’t had a chocolate chip peanut butter sandwich in decades, I remember them fondly.

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The irony of the chocolate chip is that it is good––just as long as you don’t eat it by itself. Chocolate chips compliment sweet foods (or healthy foods for that matter) but they taste rather bitter when consumed alone. Happy National Chocolate Chip Day (can’t believe I am saying that), I hope you celebrate responsibly. Don’t Blink.