Few twentieth -century appetizers caught fire like this one, versions of which began appearing in cookbooks in the 1970s. The original, it's said, comes from the Anchor Bar in Buffalo, New York, and was first served in 1964. Yet Janice Okun, food editor of the Buffalo News, attributes Buffalo Chicken Wings to no one in particular in Food Editors' Hometown Favorites Cookbook (1984): "They are served in all bars and corner taverns, as well as in 'fancy' restaurants and pizza joints. Naturally, no restaurateur is about to divulge his recipe, so we set out to make our own spying and tasting like mad. After many, many tries, we came up with a recipe with fourteen different ingredients...we printed it and the recipe was a fair success." Okun then goes on to say that two years later, a reader submitted this recipe. "What do you know? An exact duplicate of restaurant chicken wings. Simplicity and perfection combined." In closing, Okun writes that in Buffalo, "chicken wings are always served with celery sticks and Blue Cheese Dressing. No one knows why, but it is part of the ritual. Use the dressing recipe given, or a commercial blue cheese dressing." Here, then, is an adaptation of the Buffalo News recipe, which was reprinted in Food Editors'
Hometown Favorites Cookbook.

Makes: 4 to 6 Servings

• Blue Cheese Dressing
• 2 tablespoons minced yellow onion
• 1 clove garlic, peeled and minced
• 1/4 cup minced parsley
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon white vinegar
• 1/4 to 1/3 cup crumbled blue cheese
• Salt to taste
• Black pepper to taste
• Ground hot red pepper (cayenne) to taste
• Chicken Wings
• 20 to 25 chicken wings
• Vegetable oil for deep frying
• 1/4 CUP (1/2 stick) butter or margarine
• 1/2 to 1 (2-ounce) bottle Louisiana hot sauce
• 12 to 18 celery sticks

1. DRESSING: Mix all ingredients in medium bowl, cover, and chill 1 hour or longer.
2. CHICKEN WINGS: Halve wings at "elbow" and discard tips. Do not dredge, crumb, or batter wings. Deep-fry in 2 1/2 to 3 inches 375 degrees F. vegetable oil in a saute pan or deep fat fryer until crisp and golden brown on all sides-8 to 10 minutes. Drain well on paper towels.
3. Melt butter in small saucepan and blend in 1/2 to 1 bottle hot sauce, depending on how "hot" you like things.
4. Place chicken wings in large bowl; pour hot butter sauce over wings and mix well.
5. Arrange wings on deep platter and serve warm with celery sticks and Blue Cheese Dressing for dipping. Don't forget to put out plenty of napkins-Buffalo Chicken Wings are deliciously messy!