Now that the calendar agrees with the temperatures outside that it really is summer, I know you will spend more time outside, enjoying drinks with umbrellas in them watching the condensation drip off glasses. If you decide to try some food favorites at home, I can help.

Over the weekend, we made these shrimp tacos for Father’s Day dinner and wanted to make guacamole from scratch. While we were on a roll of not taking shortcuts, we decided to make lemonade from scratch too. More on that tomorrow.

When we are looking for a simple recipe that we know we can count on, we go to Ina Garten. Especially living in Texas, we know guacamole. We’ve tried them all, with all kinds of add-ins, but a basic, classic guacamole can’t be beat. And making it from scratch is all the better. It just takes one bowl! Not even a food processor to dirty.

Homemade Guacamole

(from Ina Garten)

Ingredients

• 4 ripe avocados
• 3 T fresh lemon juice (one lemon)
• 8 dashes Tabasco sauce
• 1/2 C small red onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pepper
• 1 medium tomato, seeded and diced
• 1/2 jalapeno, seeded and diced

Instructions

• Cut avocados in half and remove pits, scoop out flesh in a mixing bowl.
• Add lemon juice immediately. Then Tabasco, onion, garlic, salt and pepper.
• Toss well with hands.
• Using a sharp knife, slice through the avocados until they are diced.
• Add tomato and mix well.

It is really interesting that Ina uses a knife to mash the avocados and not the back of a knife. It keeps it extra chunky. We love the texture of the onion and tomato, and there is a nice kick from the Tabasco and jalapeno.

This recipe is a keeper. I can see us making this anytime we are entertaining from now on.

P.S. Jeffrey was making fun of how I take photos, why I take so many, how he thinks I’ve done enough. (isn’t he kind?)  I offered him the camera. This is the picture he took. Now maybe he understands how you have to get close and try different angles and settings. And now you’ve seen one of my set-ups!