Recently, Kase, a Relayer and former UVA football star, informed the office that avocado sales double in the week preceding Super Bowl Sunday. Whether or not that’s urban legend, guacamole makes a great Game Day snack. Avocados contain healthy, satiating fats and other beneficial nutrients — definitely a respite on a night when we’re encouraged to chow down on wings and guzzle beers!
In anticipation of next Sunday’s Game Day, Relay’s offering buy-one-get-one on avocados. Below, we’ve also rounded up some of our team’s favorite secret-recipe guac and salsa recipes. Look out for some extra-special recipes in this week’s Sunday e-mail.
Lindsey’s Secret Purist Guac:
…My mom has a secret guacamole recipe that she passed down to me, which is basically your classic guac with a dash of soy sauce. If you’ve tried it, it’s very simple but makes for some awesome guac, where you really taste the avocado rather than all of the crazy jazz one might add to other recipes. Dip some seasoned baked pita chips from the Mediterranean Bakery in that and you will be in heaven.
- 4 avocados
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- a pinch of sea salt and black pepper to taste
- 2 teaspoons soy sauce
- 1 bag of seasoned baked pita chips from the Mediterranean Bakery
Chris’s Spicy Black Bean Guac:
- 2 ripe avocados
- 1 can 365 spicy black beans
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 tbsp. olive oil
- 1 tbsp. tahini
- Crushed red pepper to taste
Blend in food processor until well-mashed.
Graham’s Go-To Guacamole:
- 3 avocados, mashed
- 1 medium tomato
- 1/2 medium red onion
- 2-3 cloves garlic
- juice of 1 lime
- 1 TB chopped cilantro
- 1 jalapeno, finely chopped and sauteed in 1 tsp olive oil
- salt and pepper to taste
- optional: 1-2 pinches cumin for added flavor
Start by chopping your jalapeno and onion. Add the oil to a small pan and saute the pepper and 1/3 of your chopped onion. Allow for both to just barely begin to blacken before removing from the pan and setting aside.
Mash the avocados in a large bowl. Add the lime juice to avoid early oxidation. Dice the tomato, then add that and the remainder of your onion to the avocado paste. Mince the garlic and cilantro and mix those in, along with your now cooled jalapeno and smoked onion. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add cumin if you like it. Serve!
Sarah’s So-Cal Pal’s Top-Secret Guac:
Back in my pre-Relay days, a pal of mine and I had our own healthy food blog. My blogging partner, originally from Southern California, shared her secret-recipe guacamole (pictured above).
- 1/2 onion, chopped
- cilantro, chopped
- jalepeno pepper, chopped (you can use cayenne pepper and chili powder if you can’t get a jalepeno)
- 2-3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tomato, coarsely chopped (tomatoes on the vine are the best!)
- juice from 1-2 limes
- sea salt
- cumin (optional)
- 2-3 avocados
Making guacamole, like any cooking process, is not a precise thing. Go with what you like, if you don’t like onions, don’t put them in. If you like things more spicy, add another pepper, if you can’t handle heat, don’t put any jalapeño in. If you can’t get a fresh tomato, don’t sweat it. You will still enjoy this concoction if things are not just the way I (or any other self-designated Mexican food expert) have written.
Chop the stems off of the jalapeño, de-seed it and chop it fine. Remove stems (as much as is reasonable) from cilantro and chop that fine as well. Often I will use my little food processor to simplify the process of chopping cilantro and jalapeños and garlic into little bitty pieces, and sometimes onions, too. But if you are like Sarah, you will go to town on that chopping block and do just fine.
Mix everything together, add cut up avocados last to keep it chunky.
Brandon’s Delicious Salsa:
1 medium avocado, diced
3/4 cup corn
1/2 cup quartered grape tomatoes
1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro
2 teaspoons lime juice
1/4 teaspoon salt
Toss everything together. Have it with blue tortilla chips or over chicken tacos!
