Creamy Guacamole with Heirloom Tomatoes

I’ll tell you a little secret… shhh! I don’t like football. Perhaps it’s because I never really understood it. Maybe it is really simple — my grandmother used to tell me that the goal of football (as she understood it from her Alabama heritage) was “to get from one end of the cow pasture to the other without dropping the ball or stepping on something.” As a farmer’s wife that sounds all too familiar — except with me it’s all about avoiding those big piles of donkey… ahem… fertilizer as I walk through our fields!

Guacamole, though, yes! I can can get in to that. When my extended family of siblings gathers we can demolish a mountain of guac in no time flat (at our recent Thanksgiving family gathering I multiplied this recipe times 6 for a total of 12 avocados!)

It’s hard to get the avocados just right — I usually buy them very firm 4-7 days advance and just hope that they ripen in enough time!

Here’s a tip: store your avocados at room temperature until they just slightly yield to pressure and then refrigerate until you are ready to use (this usually buys you a few days.)

Creamy Guacamole with Heirloom Tomatoes

Author: Bethany Thomson, RDN, LDN, CLT

Ingredients

• 2 each avocados just ripe
• 1 tbsp lemon juice organic
• 1/2 tbsp lime juice organic
• 1/4 cup onion small diced, or 1/4 tsp onion powder
• 1/2 clove garlic minced, optional
• 1/2 tsp sea salt or himalayan pink salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 4-5 each organic grape or cherry heirloom tomatoes small-diced (optional)

Instructions

• Cut the avocados in half and remove pits. Scoop the avocado flesh out of the shells using a spoon and add to a large glass bowl.
  
• Immediately sprinkle the lemon and lime juice over the avocado then add the add remaining ingredients except for the tomato. Toss well.
  
• Using a sharp knife, slice through the avocados in the bowl until they are finely diced. Gently fold in the tomatoes. Mix well and adjust salt and pepper to suit your taste.
  
• Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate for several hours prior to serving.

Kitchen notes:

• Can only have either lemon or lime? That’s fine just use all of one type of juice
• Can’t have onion? Substitute scallions (just the white part) instead
• Can’t have garlic? Just omit (that’s how I usually make mine anyway!)
• Black pepper causing you problems? Leave that out or substitute some other flavor such as cumin or a pinch of cayenne
• Sensitive to solanine (in nightshade vegetables) or to tomatoes? Leave out the tomatoes or substitute an unusual ingredient such as diced mango, peach, or plum

Serving suggestions:

• Spread on a LEAP friendly tortilla, wrap, or bread (try our pita bread from A Spoon Full of Yum) as a mayonnaise alternative
• Serve as a dip for raw carrots, bell peppers, cucumbers, or celery
• Scoop up with LEAP friendly tortilla chips

How about you? What is your favorite way to enjoy guacamole? Please leave a comment below and share this recipe with your family and friends! It’s sure to be a winner!

Here’s to Wholesome!

Bethany