Guacamole

While my heartburn (thanks, Dad!) has kept me from crazy spicy foods, I do enjoy some good Mexican food. In particular, I love guacamole. Seriously, love it! My only problem with restaurants is that most use cilantro, which I cannot stand. (Sidenote: per a Wall Street Journal article and relating study, cilantro has the highest number of people with serious aversions to it of any herb. I knew I wasn't alone!) I know Costco has some very yummy pre-made guacamole (thanks, Dad and Peggy!), but I decided I wanted to learn to make my own, and not just because we don't have a membership yet.
I've been experimenting for months, and, thanks to my wonderful hubby (aka taste-tester), I think I've stumbled upon a great recipe. It's fresh, and I think it has nice heat, while not being too much. I even tested it on my PreK team teacher Terri (love her!), and she thought it was great too. Hopefully you'll enjoy it as well, and will find it perfect for dips, sandwiches, tacos and the like!

Ingredients:
*3 avocados
*4 cloves garlic, minced
*1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons lime juice (I think fresh would be best, though I always use the lime juice in the plastic lime bottle!)
*1 teaspoon salt
*1/2 teaspoon pepper
*3/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
*4-6 grape tomatoes, sliced (regular tomatoes would be fine, but these are so much easier to slice and have less juice and seeds, which I find convenient)

Preparation:
*Remove the skin and pits from the avocados. Use a knife or fork to mash the avocados (a food processor can give you extra smooth guacamole, while the fork leaves you a little chunkier).

*Add the garlic, lime juice, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes and mix well. Taste to decide if you'd like more of one of the above ingredients (or any ingredients of your choice! I like to taste with chips).

*When you've decided you have the right amount of the above ingredients, mix in the tomatoes. (I like adding the tomatoes last, though you can add them at any time. In my opinion, the tomatoes stay best when they are mixed around as little as possible. They stay firmer and...fresher? Just my opinion!)

Another angle and close up of the guacamole.

This shot gives you a better picture of the whole dip, which, in my opinion, is full of color and texture.