Easy Homemade Guacamole

I've never understood people who don't like avocados.  Who could resist such cool creamy deliciousness?  And of course, you can't talk about avocados without mentioning guacamole.  Yum.  I have to admit, it's my favorite part of eating Mexican food.  Before I got into cooking from scratch, I always made guacamole with the packet of seasoning you get in the produce section right next to the avocados.  That was homemade, right?  I never even knew there was any other option.  But real homemade guacamole is so easy and SO much tastier.  Once you learn how to make it, you will never touch those packets again!

Guacamole

What You Need:

2 medium ripe avocados

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

1/2 tsp. onion powder

1/4 tsp. pepper

1/4 tsp. chili powder

1 tsp. lime or lemon juice

What You Do:

Put all ingredients in a bowl.

Mash them up thoroughly with a fork.

Cover and chill for 30 min.

Enjoy with homemade tortilla chips!

It's really that simple. And so delicious!  The recipe can easily be doubled for more people. If you prefer a smoother texture, a stick blender works very well.  Most of the time I'm too lazy to pull it out, so I just use a fork.  Besides, the little chunks of avocado make it more rustic :)

This recipe freezes well, so when all those really ripe avocados go on sale, you can whip up a giant batch and freeze it in individual portions.  I use the 8 oz. wide mouth mason jars.  Just defrost in the fridge the day before you need it.

Friday Night Cookies

I just made these tonight and they are so good I had to share!

Apricot Spice Cookies

Ingredients:

1 1/2 c. unbleached white flour

1 c. whole wheat flour

1 c. rolled oats

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp. ground allspice

1/4 tsp. ground cloves

1/2 t. salt

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. baking powder

1 c. butter

1/2 c. organic cane sugar

1/2 c. brown sugar

1/2 c. honey

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 c. finely chopped dried apricots

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• In a medium mixing bowl, combine flours, oats, spices, salt, baking soda and powder. Set aside.
• In a large mixing bowl, beat butter, sugar, brown sugar, and honey until light and fluffy.
• Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each.
• Beat in vanilla.
• Add flour mixture and beat until well combined.
• Stir in apricots.
• Scoop spoonfuls of dough onto a parchment paper lined baking sheet.
• Bake at 375 degrees for 10 minutes.
• Let set on baking sheet for a couple minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack 

 

Makes about 4 dozen cookies, depending on how much dough you eat ;)