Garden to Table: December 2015

WHEN LIFE GIVES YOU LEMONS... MAKE GUACAMOLE!

Nothing makes me happier than getting gifts like these delivered to my door step straight from our neighbor's lemon tree!

Most of you probably don't think of using lemon juice for guacamole, but a chef in New Orleans told me a while back that he used lemons instead of limes. Ever since then that's what I've used.

I've been tweaking this recipe for years, and I have to say

IT. IS. AMAZING.

Whenever I bring this to a party it's gone within minutes. No lie.

I love fresh cilantro in my guacamole. For whatever reason, it's always hit or miss as to whether or not I can find it fresh in the grocery store. After not being able to find it a few years ago, I drove straight from the grocery to Charvet's garden center and bought a cilantro plant for my garden. Problem solved.

Try growing it yourself.... I promise you won't regret it.

(I'm loving the fact that my rose vine in the background is slightly confused with the unusually warm winter weather. Kind of nice to have a splash of pink in the winter garden.)

I cut a few stems of the cilantro off for this recipe.

Here's what I used

Let's start with the avocadoes. I like my guacamole to have a little texture. Here's a little trick I learned along the way.

To remove the pit, stick a sharp knife in it...

Twist the knife like this and pull up...

Now to get a chunkier texture dice the avocado with a butter knife while it's still in the shell, and then scoop it out with a spoon...

In a bowl add the avocado, a handful of chopped fresh cilantro, half of a red onion (chopped), half of a jalapeno (diced), a few cloves of garlic (minced) or in my case I used already minced roasted garlic....

A pinch or two of salt and a squeeze from a half of a lemon. The acidity from citrus fruit keeps the avocado from turning brown.

Finally, I add a few tablespoons of my favorite salsa. (Good salsa is a must! I used to make fresh salsa until I discovered Mateo's medium salsa from Rouse's and Costco. It is seriously good!!)