Guac it Out

Hi there! Did everyone enjoy the long weekend? I sure did. Plenty of sleeping in, my first concert at Ravinia (Guster was great!), and time spent on fun projects. Plus, I finally ran on the trail by our house wearing a new pair of running shoes. Oh, and I decided to join Twitter. You can find me @FiscallyChic.

So back to Ravinia. It's a great outdoor concert venue. There are lawn seats and pavilion seats. I went with John's sisters and their friends and we sat on the lawn and enjoyed a picnic dinner while listening to the music.

John's family makes guacamole for almost every get together. There's Christmas guac, Easter guac, Thanksgiving guac, etc. One year, they even had a "Guac Off." I was in charge of bringing the guac this time, so I guess you could say it was Labor Day guac.

The key to great guacamole is having the perfect avocados. The skin of ripe ones can be almost purple-y brown. If you squeeze one gently, there will be a little bit of give, but it won't be overly mushy.

As for the ingredients, the only requirements (in my book) are avocados, cilantro, lime juice, jalapeno pepper, and salt. Tomato, onion, and garlic are also fair game. You can also get a little crazy and add tequila, corn, or black beans. Or you can make a very basic version with only avocado, lime juice, garlic, and salt. The bite of raw garlic mimics the heat of the jalapeno pepper.

To mash the avocados, I use our trusty potato masher. That thing gets way more mileage with avocados than with potatoes.

I'm really excited to share this recipe because I've been dying to share this food/fashion pairing. The combination has been dancing in my head, waiting for some guac. The green and white fabric of my EmersonMade clutch* matches perfectly with the guacamole and white serving bowl. And the blue flower and blue corn tortilla chips make wonderful accents :)

By the way, I can't wait to share tomorrow's amazeballs post! Don't miss it!

Guacamole

Note: Guac is all about personal preference. I like mine with lots of lime juice and a bit of a kick. And there's no set ratio for the ingredients. If you're unsure, start with only a little bit of one ingredient and add more to taste.

Also, jalapenos get most of their heat from their seeds. More seeds = more heat. If you want a mild guac, leave out the seeds. Be sure to wash your hand thoroughly after chopping the jalapeno and don't touch your eyes for several hours

Ingredients

8 avocados

1/4 cup lime juice

1 small bunch of cilantro, finely chopped (this was a small package from Trader Joe's)

1 jalapeno pepper, minced

1 small tomato, diced

salt, to taste

Directions

Slice the avocados in half and remove the pits. (Here's a video on removing the pits) Scoop the avocado pulp into your bowl.

At this point, I like to pour a some of the lime juice over the avocado pulp and mash the two together. The acid in the lime juice will help prevent the guac from turning brown.

Mix in the chopped cilantro, minced jalapeno pepper, and tomato. Add more lime juice, as you see fit.

Add salt to taste, mixing everything one last time.  I like my guac chunky, so I try not to overmix things.

Enjoy!

*Currently, EmersonMade doesn't have clutches on their site. You can purchase other styles of their clutch from One Sydney Road.

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