Cheesy Guacamole

Kicking regular guacamole up a notch by adding in CHEESE!! Still only 119 calories per serving (5 SP), it’s a perfect snack for Cinco de Mayo!

   This recipe is a life changer! If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a million times. I can’t like avocados. I try sooo hard to like them, but I can’t. I would love to love avocados, I would love to love guacamole, yet no matter how much I try, no dice.

So when looking through Chrissy Teigen’s Cravings Cookbook, I saw her recipe for Cheesy Guacamole. CHEESY!!! GUACAMOLE!! I figured if I ever had a chance of liking guacamole, it was by adding cheese to it. How did I never think of this genius concoction?!

And guess what? I loved it! I actually really enjoyed this guacamole recipe, and I’m glad I’m one step closer to closing the mutually disappointing gap between me and avocados. (Because naturally, I assume avocados want me to love them, too.)

Disclaimer: This post contains Amazon affiliate links, meaning I will get a small portion of any sales that result from readers clicking my links. This is of no cost to you but is greatly appreciated by me! Thank you! And thank you for trying these products that I love! 

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CHEESY GUACAMOLE

119 calories per serving

5 SP per serving

Before we start our fiesta, let’s take a moment to learn about choosing and storing avocados!

WHAT AM I LOOKING FOR WHEN I select an avocado?

• Choosing an avocado depends on when you want to use the avocado. Ripe avocados will be dark, almost black in color. Choose these if you want to use them right away. If you’re going to use them in a few days, then choose ones that are more green in color.
• In addition to color, you’ll want to press on the avocado to test its ripeness. Ripe avocados should give a little when pressed but shouldn’t be soft or mushy (this would be a sign that it is overripe, so you should avoid these ones!) If it is firm and doesn’t give at all, then it will need a few days to ripen before use.
• Check the skin to make sure it has no large indents, which would be a sign of bruising.
• Remove the stem of the avocado. Green=good to go. Brown=overripe so don’t buy it. If it is black or dark brown then the avocado is likely moldy so don’t buy that one either!

HOW DO I STORE THEM UNTIL I’M READY TO COOK WITH THEM?

• Store any unripened avocados on your countertop for 4-5 days to ripen. You can also store unripened avocados in a paper bag (out of direct sunlight). You can store them with an apple or a banana for 2-3 days to speed up the ripening process, if necessary. (These fruits release ethylene gas which will speed up the process).
• Store ripened avocadoes whole in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. The cold will help slow down the ripening process. (Although we all know avocados have about 2 second window where they are perfect!)
• If you need to store half of a cut avocado, leave the pit in, squeeze fresh lemon or lime juice over top, then wrap with plastic wrap or place into a sealed container. You can store an avocado in the fridge this way for about 24 hours.

Tip: You can find more tips on seasonal produce selection and storage, plus tons of recipes from fellow food bloggers in my Monthly Seasonal Produce Guides! 

OKAY, NOW HOW DO I MAKE THe guac?

As with all recipes, I like to prep the chopped ingredients first. Start by roughly chopping 1/2 of a medium red onion. Finely mince 1/2 of a jalapeño, seeds and ribs removed, and 2 cloves of garlic. Remove seeds and dice 2 roma (plum) tomatoes. Chop 1/4 C fresh cilantro leaves. Add them all to a large bowl and mix in 1 C sharp cheddar cheese, and 1 1/2 T of lime juice.

In a separate bowl, halve the avocados, remove pits, and scoop out insides. (Hold on to the pits for later). Add in remaining 1 1/2 Tbsp of the lime juice, 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper, 1/2 tsp ground cumin, and 1/2 tsp kosher salt and mix with a potato masher until desired consistency.

Mix both bowls of ingredients together. Push the pits down into the mix and top with plastic wrap, pressed onto the surface of the dip. I am told both of these techniques help prevent browning of the guacamole. I don’t know if either of these are true, but it can’t hurt, right? If you have any other guacamole preserving tips, please let me know!

Allow to set up in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour before serving. As with the restaurant style salsa, I recommend serving this with Xochitl chips, as they’re the most similar to Mexican restaurant style chips I have found! However, if you leave the guac really chunky, you may want a sturdier chip! 🙂

Whip this up with some restaurant style salsa and you’re well on your way to transforming your kitchen into a Mexican fiesta! I also used some of this gorgeous guac on my vegetarian 7-layer tostadas, which are coming later this week now posted! 🙂

If you liked this dish from Chrissy’s cookbook, you should check out some of her other recipes:

Dump and Done Ramen Salad

Zucchini Lasagna Bolognese

Brussels Sprouts with Bacon and Blue Cheese

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**Recipe from Chrissy Teigen’s Cravings Cookbook

What do you think? Did this recipe make the cut for you or did it crumble? What would you do differently? I look forward to reading your opinions! 🙂

 

PS: Since I want my blog to be about learning and improving, I wanted to include one of my original images, next to an updated image. Thank you to the Pinch of Yum Food Photography Ebook for these lessons!

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