Today, we’re excited to celebrate the release of our new picture book biography, Nacho’s Nachos: The Story Behind the World’s Favorite Snack, written by Sandra Nickel and illustrated by Oliver Dominguez.

This delicious picture book biography sheds light on Ignacio Anaya, who is credited with inventing nachos! Ignacio, nicknamed Nacho, was born in Mexico in 1895, and became head waiter at the Victory Club in Piedras Negras, right across the Rio Grande river from Eagle Pass, Texas.

One afternoon in 1940, during the Victory Club’s quiet hours between lunch and dinner, a regular customer walked in with three friends. They wanted a snack–something new, something different. Nacho rushed to the kitchen and improvised with what was on hand: corn tortillas, cheddar cheese, and jalapeño peppers. In that moment, Nacho’s Special, the dish that later became known simply as “nachos,” was born!

Check out the Nacho’s Nachos Story Time Activity Kit and find activities to do with kids like:

• Draw your dream nachos. What ingredients would you include
• Create a banner declaring your love of nachos.
• Follow Nacho Anaya’s original nachos recipe to get a taste of “Nacho’s Special”

Celebrate with us by eating nachos this week on Instagram. Post a photo of your nachos with the hashtag #nachosnachos and tag @leeandlow to be entered to win a copy of the book!

Listen to debut author Sandra Nickel talk about creating Nacho’s Nachos, and explore additional activities to go with the book at TeachingBook.net.