Guacamole & Pico de Gallo

One of our favorite things to do is invite people over on a Sunday afternoon to play board games. It's a lovely time, we play some music, try new games and have something to munch on. When my teenage daughter invited her friends, we all let down our guard and got to know each other. Having different people in the same activity fosters conversation and compromises, so we end up alternating between AC/DC and Shakira songs. 

Since somebody will always be down on the score, it's a good idea to have yummy food to lift the spirits.  These two dips are easy to make and bring out for the group, along with chips or crackers. They're also great for tweaking and experimenting, since you will make small batches that are only good for an afternoon. This recipe does not have anything spicy, but if that's what you like, add a jalapeno pepper to the mix.

For this post I made these cutting manually, but if you have an electric chopper or food processor I strongly recommend that you use it. Just keep in mind:

• If you use a knife, take your time. The dips will be more enjoyable if the ingredients are cut small. Don't be shy to re-cut your ingredients over the cutting board as many times as necessary.

• If you use an electric chopper, add the ingredients in the order of the recipe, pulsing each time until the ingredients are just right. You don't want the dips to become a soup.

Ingredients

• One bunch of cilantro

• 2 small to medium onions

• 3 tomatoes (I'm using tomatoes on the vine, but any kind works)

• 3 Haas avocados

• The juice of 2-3 lemons

• Salt

Preparation

To be more efficient, we will process each ingredient and separate them in two bowls, one for the pico de gallo and one for the guacamole.

Cut the cilantro leaves into small pieces, put one half in each bowl.

Peel the onions and cut them in small cubes. The equivalent of one quarter of an onion goes in the guacamole bowl, while the rest goes in the pico de gallo bowl.

Remove the end of the tomatoes and cut them in small cubes. They all go in the pico de gallo.

Cut in half and remove the pit of the avocados. Peel them and smash them with a fork (if they are not ripe enough, no worries, cut them in small cubes, like you did with the tomatoes). Pour the mashed avocados in the guacamole bowl.

Now the most important part! Add half the lemon juice in each bowl, salt them and mix them. Taste them and adjust. Place in the refrigerator for a couple of hours, to allow the flavors to mix. Serve cold with crackers or chips.

So, what games do your family and friends play at home? How do you cope with a losing streak?