guacamole


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Yes, You Can Have Soup for Summer: Chilled Tomato Soup with Guacamole

Chilled Tomato Soup with Guacamole 3 copy

Tomato soup has got to be the only food that is equally as warming in winter as it is refreshing in summer…when served as a cold gazpacho, of course. If you’re ready to kick your summer soup up a notch, why not top it with guacamole? (I mean, why not top everything with guacamole, really)…but in this case, it takes soup up a serious level. Enjoy Francois Payard‘s chilled tomato soup with guacamole recipe.

Chilled Tomato Soup with Guacamole

Makes Enough for 20 Small Glasses

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Bringing The Heat

Grilled_Guac

We’re always looking for new ways to play with our avocado, and here’s a take  that we haven’t seen yet, even in our extensive ES guac-a-wanderings.

At New York’s excellent Mexicue, they make a guacamole with grilled serrano peppers, bringing a slow, deep heat that plays perfectly off of a fresh avo. Here’s the not-at-all-complicated recipe.

Grilled Serrano Guacamole 

1 Serrano pepper, halved and seeded (use 2 for heavier heat)
4 ripe avocados, peeled and seeded
1 teaspoon fresh lime juice (plus more to taste)
1 teaspoon kosher salt (plus more to taste)
½ teaspoon chipotle powder
¼ teaspoon paprika
¼ teaspoon cumin
½ cup finely chopped red onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon finely chopped cilantro

1.     Place Serrano pepper over high heat either on a grill or gas stovetop. Flip with tongs until both sides are slightly charred and it is soft. Cool and roughly chop.

2.     In a large bowl add the pepper and remaining ingredients and use a potato masher to mash all ingredients together.

3.     Taste for additional salt and lime juice.

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Guacamole That Beats the Heat

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I am not a sucker for gimmicks.  Some years ago, I paid big bucks to go to a certain very fancy restaurant, wherein I was served a dish that was “a play on chicken Parmesan.”  It consisted of a one-inch piece of pressed chicken, some Parmesan noodles, and a handful of little frozen tomato sauce balls, a la Dippin” Dots.  And after consuming the one bite that was this dish, I remember thinking, “I wish I had a plate of chicken Parmesan.”  Because I am hungry, and five Dippin” dots do not a meal make.

So, when I was invited to for a preview of their summer ice cream festival, where one of the featured items was a tableside preparation of “guacamole ice cream.” I was skeptical.  Not one to resist the charms of frozen desserts, though, I tried to go in with an open mind.

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For this particular concoction, avocado ice cream was hand-blended with raspberries, mint, white chocolate and something crunchy.  It was done in a frozen stone bowl (think upscale Coldstone).  The result looked like guacamole and tasted, well, delicioso.  Cinnamon-coated fried tortillas were the perfect thing for dipping into the “guacamole.”  The presentation was cool (heh) but it was the end result that really delivered.  It was enough to at least partially obliterate my memories of those tiny frozen tomato balls.

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The Secret to Awesome Cheater Guacamole

It’s time… I’m about to divulge one of my dirtiest little secrets. It’s lazy, it’s cheap, it’s way too easy, and it’s definitely not authentic.

But it tastes weirdly awesome and only uses two ingredients and zero chopping versus a million ingredients and lots of chopping, so know what, I ain’t too proud. This cheater guac is amazing and I don’t care who knows it.

Chili Garlic Guac

(Yes, that photo is lazy and quick, just like this “recipe” …. I’m being authentic here!)

My friend Joe introduced this shortcut to me when we were camping a few years ago. Just because you’re roughing it, that doesn’t mean you don’t deserve the luxurious, velvety touch of fresh avocado on your tongue whenever you crave it. Who wants to bring a ton of vegetables, a chopping board, and knife to a campsite, though? Not me!

Enter the unexpected savior of this guacamole dilemma: Huy Fong Garlic Chili Sauce.What?! That’s Asian! And isn’t guacamole… Mexican?! What’s going on here?! How can this BE?

Stop asking questions. Just relax and enjoy the revelation.

Take one large, ripe avocado, cut it open and scoop out the insides into a bowl. Now take your Garlic Chili Sauce and scoop out a generous spoonful. Mash and mix the two together. If you like guac spicy and garlicky, obviously use more… if you just want a subtle kick, use a small amount. This is basically the opposite of rocket science.

Garlic Chili Guac 2

If you want to get extremely fancy and you have a lime sitting around, feel free to squeeze some fresh lime juice in there. If you have a pinch of salt, that’ll make things extra delicious. Promise me you’ll try this next time you’re trying to make some fresh guac on the cheap/quick. So, so, so much better than lugging a plastic tub of store-bought guac to your next camping trip or picnic.

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The Stolen Guac

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Listen up. This is the only time I will EVER PROMOTE CHEATING.

And I’ve been having a hard time doing so. I’ve literally been trying to write this post for awhile. By awhile I mean….a year or so.

However, there is a certain guilt associated with putting a recipe on the internet when it is supposedly a secret. One of my best friends stole this recipe from her roommate a few years ago. I say she stole it because said roommate refused to give it up, so my intelligent friend closely watched her make it. And took notes.

This is probably the best guacamole I’ve ever had, and the secret lies in the little yellow seasoning packets. If you’re against sodium or MSG, etc, etc…you should probably just stop reading here.

Everyone I know raves about it, and this guac is the only thing my friend is allowed to bring to parties. If she brings something else….well, she wouldn’t do that. She knows how much we like it.

The Best Ever Guacamole Maybe Because It’s Stolen but I Don’t Care or Because It’s Cheating but Again, I Don’t Care


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When Guacamole is the Most Ambitious Menu Item

Guacamole for a party makes an easy dish – a few ripe avocados, some chopped onion, tomato, chilies and seasoning. Serve the guacamole soon after mixing and it will be the party’s star.

But what happens when you have to feed 30,000 people — breakfast, lunch and dinner — in more than 30 corporate tents at this past weekend’s U.S. Open? Well, you have to make a lot of guacamole.

Bennett and I checked out the third round of this (what people tell me) very important golf tournament, located just outside of D.C. this year at Congressional Country Club. We were able to check out the caterer’s own corporate tent and get a behind-the-scenes look at what it takes to pull off the edible win.

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Super Bowl Grub: Top 10 Dips

Bravo to the NFL marketers! The Super Bowl has turned into something that is as much about food, commercials and friends as it is about football. Standard at almost every Super Bowl party is a dip of some kind. Here at ES we have covered dips, been covered in dips and we even have a theory as to why dips are so universal. Today we’ll just stick to sharing our Top 10 dips as you prep for the thundering herds.

10. Poblano and Garlic Scape Dip
Highlight: Roasted poblano lends a heat gentle enough for all crowds.

9. Tequila Mango Salsa
Highlight: One tequila, two tequila, three tequila, floor.

8. Texas Caviar
Highlight: Creamy mustard meets sweet-tart apple cider vinegar, which encircles black eyed peas and fresh corn.

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