Taylor Tries to Cook: Guacamole

This week as been kind of a hiccup in the realm of Taylor Tries to Cook. I did my best to be a good little blogger/columnist/whatever I am and get an early start this week instead of waiting until the last minute as usual, but it was just not meant to be.

A few days ago I attempted black bean burgers, which the Pioneer Woman from the Food Network assured me were simple and easy. I was skeptical but really wanted to try it, as I thought it would be nice to make a big batch and freeze them for a quick dinner through the week. I ended up buying incorrectly seasoned breadcrumbs, so the whole batch tasted super strange and not like anything you would want a burger to taste like. Also, just a pro tip, never actually attempt to grate an onion if something calls for “grated onion.” Find yourself a food processor and save yourself the trouble and tears.

With this unfortunate failure (and a wasted two hours of my Wednesday night), I was left with a tough decision to make. Retry the burgers this week, or tackle something so easy that even I could not screw it up. Because I am weak and quite busy this week, I chose the second option, but I will definitely be attempting black bean burgers again eventually. They can’t win forever. I won’t let them.

The easy recipe I chose was guacamole, Chipotle’s specifically. I have remained loyal to a fault to the burrito chain through their recent struggles with foodborne illness, and have never had a bad experience there. Living up here in middle-of-nowhere Western Maryland, I generally have to wait until I go home to my parents’ house in Hagerstown to experience my beloved Chipotle. I was thrilled to find out that instead of keeping it a secret, Chipotle has their guac recipe available on their website.

This was definitely the approachable, easy recipe I was looking for. All you have to do is half some avocados and scoop out their flesh, and coat them in some lime juice. Add some salt and mash it all together with a fork until it is smooth. Finely chop some red onion, cilantro, and half a jalapeno, and fold them into the mixture. Suddenly, I had a bowl of delicious guacamole in front of me, and felt better about my failure earlier in the week, and about having to wait until spring break to be able to eat at Chipotle.

Here’s the full recipe, straight from Chipotle’s website:

THIS IS ALL YOU’LL NEED:

2 ripe Hass avocados (In the restaurant, we use 48 per batch, multiple times per day)

2 tsp lime juice

2 tbsp cilantro (chopped)

1/4 cup red onion (finely chopped)

1/2 jalapeño, including seeds (finely chopped)

1/4 tsp kosher salt

HOW TO DO IT:

1. Choose the right avocado. It should feel squishy yet firm (like the palm of your hand), and be a nice dark green color on the outside.
2. Cut the avocado in half and then remove the pit (carefully!)
3. Scoop the avocados and place in a medium bowl.
4. Toss and coat with lime juice.
5. Add the salt and using a fork or potato masher, mash until a smooth consistency is achieved.
6. Fold in the remaining ingredients and mix well.
7. Taste the guacamole (over and over) and adjust seasoning if necessary.