Pickings from My Plants

I took a quick peek at my plants outside and saw some tomatoes had ripened and a new crop of jalapeno peppers were in bloom. I also have a lime tree, with yellow limes (odd), and a basil and cilantro plant. I had some ripe Haas avocados in the fridge, so I decided to make some guacamole this morning.

Sorry, forgot to take pictures of the tomato and basil leaves. Too bad I don't have avocados and onions in my garden, otherwise I can say all the ingredients are completely home grown. =)

I like my guacamole chunky and with tomatoes, but feel free to adjust accordingly.

Ingredients:

1 tomato, seeded and diced

juice from 1/2 lime

3/4 tsp of kosher salt

1 small jalapeno, minced (take out seeds if you're worried about the heat)

1 1/2 tablespoons of minced onion

1/2 tsp of minced garlic

12 medium sized leaves of basil (optional) and a bunch of cilantro leaves chopped

Halve the avocados and remove the pits. I like to make cross hatches to the fruit and then scoop out the flesh into a medium bowl, which basically cuts the avocado into chunks. Cut the tomato in half diagonally and dig your fingers into the membrane and take out any seeds. Then dice the tomatoes into chunks and add to the bowl.

Sprinkle lime juice over the avocado and tomatoes and add the onions, garlic and jalapenos.

I used about 3/4 teaspoon of kosher salt. FYI - if you're using table salt, you won't need nearly that much, so be careful otherwise it'll be too salty. I happen to have some basil at home and I love tomatoes and basil together, so I added it to my guac. Chop up the basil and cilantro leaves and add to the mixture. Mix together with a spoon or fork. Don't worry about it being too chunky, because once you let it sit, the avocados, especially if they are ripe, will break down. Go easy on the mixing because we're not aiming for guacamole soup here.

I know you're tempted to dig right it, but it really does taste better once the flavors have melded together, so cover the guac with plastic wrap, pressed directly onto the surface, or put it in an air tight container and put it in the fridge for a few hours. It's been a few hours now and I'm eating mine with some baked blue corn tortilla chips from TJ's. Happy Labor Day weekend!