Easy Guacamole

The old vegan party dip debate is… hummus vs. guacamole. Which one do you bring? Because, honestly, you are bringing this snack to guarantee that you’ll have something to eat! Alas, party days may be few due to the pandemic, but at my house, at least, guacamole is also an essential addition to our Mexican nights.

Now, I’m a convenience cook, so if there is any way to make something more quickly, I use the tricks! I use lots of canned and frozen items in soups. And for guacamole, I figured I would try using Pico de Gallo. After all, it has everything you need, already chopped. Note this differs from salsa! Pico simply looks like chopped veggies, not red and saucy. Several grocery stores in the Richmond market carry this in their produce section, made in house. My favorite is from Walmart, followed by Kroger, and I can occasionally find this at Aldi as well. It’s my favorite shortcut!

This is one of the first recipes I taught to my younger daughter, who frequently takes the role of sous chef in our kitchen! She’s gotten so good at making this, I usually delegate this task to her. In developing this coveted life skill, I feel certain that I have assured her immense popularity in her college years…

So without further ado, here is my recipe for easy guacamole:

Ingredients:

• 3-4 ripe avocados (skin should be uniformly dark, and the fruit should give a bit when squeezed; if you remove the nub at the top of the avocado, it should look green underneath.)
• ¼ to ½ cup prepared Pico de Gallo
• 1-2 fresh limes
• One chopped jalapeño, if desired
• Salt to taste

Directions:

• Prepare the avocados by cutting in half, then removing the pits. (Gently, but decisively, slap the knife into the center of the pit. You should embed the knife enough that you can twist and remove the pit.) Use a spoon to scoop out the flesh into a medium size mixing bowl.
• Chop the jalapeño, if using, and add to the mix. (I’ve found that using a plunger style chopper works really well to finely chop the pepper without killing my hands or dealing with gloves!)
• Add desired amount of Pico de Gallo.
• Squeeze the juice of 1-2 limes over the mixture. Amount depends on how much you like lime! (We like our guac limey. A handheld citrus juicer is a great investment and makes this task easier!)
• Taking your spoon and knife, start cutting the mixture, pulling from opposite sides and turning the bowl frequently, until mixture is desired consistency. Alternatively, you can use a pastry blender to cut the avocado and blend.
• Salt to taste.
• Serve with your favorite Mexican food or with tortilla chips as a dip!

Let me know what you think if you try this recipe! As always, I hope you all are safe and healthy.