A few years later I moved to Texas
and had my first guacamole. A new friend, Diana,
invited me to her house. I watched as she made a big bowl of that tangy spicy
dip. She squeezed the avocado and her thumb made a slight indentation. She
explained that it was just ripe enough. She cut the avocados open, removed the
seeds with a twist of the knife and scraped the soft insides out with a spoon.
Then she squeezed the fresh tart lime over the soft concoction, sprinkled it
with salt and used a fork to mash it—not too much. Next she chopped the sweet East
Texas onion, ripe tomato, and diced the jalapeno and garlic. At
last she sprinkled in some seasoning. When she was all finished she dropped one
of the avocado seeds into the dip and covered it—a little secret that keeps the
dip from turning brown. Since then every time I go to a Mexican restaurant or
serve Mexican food at home, guacamole is on the menu, and I never forget the seed.
Follow this advice and you are guaranteed great guacamole from a true Texan.
Thanks Diana!
Diana’s Guacamole
Ingredients:
4 avocados (ripe)
Juice from 1 lime
½ diced sweet onion
1diced medium ripe tomato
½ seeded, diced Jalapeno (or small can of green chilies if
you can’t take the heat)
2 cloves minced garlic
¼ cup fresh chopped cilantro
½ teaspoon ground cumin
Salt and pepper to taste
Serve with your favorite fresh tortilla chips. Don’t forget
your seed and it will keep your dip fresh and green until you’ve devoured the
last bite.
If you wash and plant the seed you can have your own avocado
tree. I’m not kidding. We planted two seeds in February and now one of the
trees comes almost to my neck!