Lucky (and Healthy!) Game Day Guacamole Recipe
Guacamole is a fantastic game day snack because it is full of all healthy ingredients–including good-for-you fats, protein, fiber, vitamins and minerals. Best of all, it’s delicious! What can off-set the health benefits of guacamole, however, is what you dip into it. Opt for fresh cut veggies–carrot and celery sticks, and sliced red, yellow, orange and green peppers–over chips of any type.
How do you pick a ripe avocado?
It should be soft and a brownish-green. If you are buying the avocados a few days before the big game, then it’s okay for them to be firmer (and more green if they are Hass avocados). Leave unripened avocados out of the refrigerator so they can continue to ripen. Alternatively, if the avocados are already ripe, but you won’t be using them for a day or two, then put them in the refrigerator to slow down the ripening process. I always buy a few extra avocados just in case the ones I’ve selected turn out to be over- or under-ripened by the time I need to make my recipe.
Easy way to cut up an avocado
A ripened avocado is a piece of cake to cut up. Just cut through the skin length-wise, all the way around the fruit. Break open the avocado, pop out the pit with your thumb and scoop out the meat with a spoon. If you’re having a hard time scooping out the meat, then the avocado isn’t fully ripened. Save the pit! If you have left over guacamole that you want to store for another day, put the pit in the mixture. It helps keep the avocado meat from turning brown. (Lemon and lime help to deter the browning process as well.)
It appears that this recipe does, in fact, bestow good fortune–although only upon the New England Patriots. Our testing indicates that it does NOT work if you are rooting for any other football team, but you will, at the very least, be healthier for eating it. 😉 May the best team win. Go Pats!
Ingredients:
3 ripe avocados (diced)
2 tomatoes, seeded and diced
approx. 1/4 of a bunch of cilantro
Juice from 1 lime
1/2 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced (optional; I leave it out to make it more kid-friendly)
salt (to taste; approx. 1 tsp)
Directions: Combine all ingredients in a box, mix around and enjoy! (There is no need to mash. Mixing it around tends to have that effect.)