Guacamole!

After an eventful night of side effects of this delicious, yet dangerous gratin, I found myself in need of serious comfort food. I was first introduced to avocados in the late 70s when my mom used to throw fabulous dinner parties. Now, I think I've mentioned about my mom and cooking, how she really isn't very good at it. But, there is the great big exception of when she would throw dinner parties. She would carefully pay attention to how the recipe was written and serve her guests beautiful and lovely things. Deep fried sweet and sour pork. Chicken cordon bleu. Vanilla ice cream drizzled with creme de menthe. Dad would get out the ice crusher and mom would get out multiple card tables and put out the fine china and tablecloths. Mom would always put on some beautiful dress that was silky or halter topped in gold or vibrant purple or bright green. She was a very stylish lady.

At one of these dinner parties, Mom made guacamole. I might have been 7. maybe. And as I stood there peering at the counter and the fancy ingredients, Mom told me about how much she loved avocados. It seemed a little weird to me at the time as avocados are fairly slimy and bright green, but now every time I eat an avocado I think of my mom. And all the glamour and stylishness that original avocado captured for me.

The good news is that avocados are really good for you. They're full of those heart healthy fats. They also are full of Vitamins K and B6, iron, folate and fiber. And they are higher in potassium than a medium banana. Interestingly, if you have a latex allergy you may want to steer clear of avocados. It has something to do with the chemicals in avocados and the chemicals in latex.

Anyhow, it seems silly to take such a deliciously healthy food and mess it up with bad for you foods, so here's a simple and delicious guacamole recipe adapted from Vegetables Every Day by Jack Bishop.

Guacamole

adapted from Vegetables Every Day

1 Tbsp minced onion

1 small garlic clove, minced

1 small jalapeno chile, stemmed, seeded and minced

2 Tbsp minced fresh cilantro leaves

2 medium ripe Haas avocados

1 Tbsp lemon juice

Salt

Place the onion, garlic, chile, and cilantro in a medium bowl. Cut around the ends of the avocados and twist to separate the halves. Remove the pit and discard. Slide a rubber spatula between the skin and flesh to pop out the flesh. Add the flesh to the bowl with the seasonings.

Sprinkle the lemon juice over the avocado and seasonings. Mash with a large fork until the mixture forms a chunky puree. (Guacamole should not be smooth). Add salt to taste and serve immediately.

Ahh delicious!