I met Lee in Austin when he was in town for SXSW a few years back. We were friends of friends, and thus Twitter friends, when I lived in Brooklyn, but failed to meet IRL there. At the interactive conference, I shared with him my agent, whom I adore, and a few months down the line learned of a pending book deal. And now that book is sitting on my dining room table!

Beyond being friends with Lee, it’s a no-brainer that I’m going to spread the good word about my favorite food ever, nachos and nacho-affiliated things such as chips and salsa and margaritas and guacamole. Even though my new relationship with a dairy-free lifestyle precludes me from nacho cheesey hootenany, I’m here to represent from my 31 years loving them fiercely.

I love the dedication of an entire book on all things nacho (a possible NPR show guys, no?) and the diversity of recipes from food columnists, chefs, actual Mexicans (who offer their twist on this non-traditional dish). This book reaffirms my belief that just about any food can be placed atop a tortilla chip and called a meal. You’ll find many a great idea tucked into this book, like the one below from Melissa Clark at the NYT.

Perhaps the most fun section is the dessert nachos section, which I will let you explore on your own. I’m totally going to mess with this avocado ice cream recipe (which is mostly dairy free) to make it the rest of the way dairy free.

Please leave a comment on this post by [the giveaway is now closed, thank you for entering] telling us about a recent or memorable experience with something that melts, be it cheese on nachos, your heart at the sight of something sweet or the popsicle you ate outside last week. Winner will be selected at random on Friday June 28. US entrants only please, per the publisher’s request. Don’t forget to include your email address in the little box that asks for it on the comment form so I can contact you to let you know you won.

Disclosures: St. Martin’s Press provided me with a complimentary copy of this book and will be mailing the winner’s copy directly. If you buy the book from Amazon using the link above I may earn a small commission.