A nom n a nosh

Guacamole.
It is by far the most delicious dish/dip/side item that anyone has conjured up... I'm sure I will completely undermine that statement later down the road.
But for now, I can only say that I love guacamole. It involves the simplest of ingredients, all raw, and everyone can enjoy it. Carnivores, vegetarians, vegans, maybe a small baby (but I'm not sure about that last one).
I grew up in Texas so I've had my fair share of the dish in a variety of ways. With black beans and corn, with a number of different kinds of chiles added, with olives, etc. But, the most basic version of guacamole is still, hands down, the best.
Guacamole is generally comprised of these main ingredients: avocado, lime, cilantro, garlic, onion, tomato, salt and pepper. Deviations can obviously be made but I believe these basic items are the "building block" to some darn good guac.

The most important ingredient is the avocado, without this you essentially have a simple salsa. Many people complain that the avocados that they purchase are too hard and tasteless. It's definitely a spur of the moment decision to make guacamole but if you know ahead of time, buy some unripe avocados at least 2 days in advance. Unripe avocados usually look very green and shiny but are hard as rocks and extremely bland and no amount of salt or flavoring can change that. They're pretty much useless until they've ripened. To speed up the process, put the unripe avocados in a brown paper bag for a couple days. (I have been scoffed at a few times at this method but it definitely works, and it works with other fruit as well.) When avocados are ripe, they will feel a little squishy, yielding easily to any pressure you put on them, and most of the time the skin will darken to an almost greenish-black color. Don't let them get too ripe though because then they tend to develop black spots in the fleshy inside which make for a kinda gross situation. Prices obviously vary, but you can generally find avocados year round at the store. In the summertime, they are prone to being already ripe or at least ripe enough to mash. In the fall and winter time, they're generally unripe and need to be bought a few days in advance of whatever you're going to use them for.

Cilantro... you either hate it or you love it. When it comes to making guacamole, I am a firm believer in it. From me to you, reader, DO NOT substitute or omit the cilantro. I have a friend who absolutely abhors the stuff. Even the smell of it annoys her. But, she loves guac. She knows the cilantro is in there but the power of the dish just overtakes her unbearable hatred for cilantro. It's amazing what even a small amount of cilantro can do to your guacamole. It adds a texture to it that makes it 10x better than just mashed avocados alone. When you're at the store, you can usually find cilantro next to the parsley and other herbs. It looks just like parsley, so make sure you have the correct herb. If you've used it before, you'll know the distinct smell that cilantro has, a slightly sharp tang (that's as lame as I can describe it). Try to find the smallest, greenest bunch. I generally use cilantro only for Tex-Mex so I never really use a lot, and then it goes bad and I've wasted some good herbs. Remember to wash your cilantro when you get home. There's usually grit and bits of soil still on the plant. I like to mince it very fine and use a lot of it.

Lime juice and salt are another piece of the guacamole dish that should not be taken lightly. They essentially keep the avocado from turning brown once it's exposed to the air. Once it turns brown, you can still eat it but not for long, and the dish loses it visual appeal very quickly. 1/2 a lime to 2 avocados usually does the trick. I've tried using a lemon when I didn't have a lime on hand, and I'm not going to lie, the taste was way off. The taste of the lime really adds to the depth of the guac. I mean you wouldn't use a lemon to make a mojito so why in guac? When adding salt to the guacamole, be very careful. I add a dash at a time and mix everything thoroughly before adding more. It's very easy to over-salt the dish. And when you use tortilla chips (which are already covered in salt), you end up with a lip curling experience.

Garlic, onions and tomatoes are pretty self-explanatory. If you need help figuring that out, I'm sorry.

Below is a simple guacamole recipe. (Go ahead and use that molcajete you have just lying around. If you don't have one, a mixing bowl works fine) You can obviously put a lot or a little of each ingredient, but don't skip the cilantro! You can also add whatever extras you like (black beans, chipotle, olives, corn, jalapenos), but remember, always in moderation because you want all the flavors to blend well together.

Serves about 2-4 people (with tortilla chips):
2 avocados - ripened
3-5 cloves of garlic (minced)
1/4 cup of onions - whatever kind you like best (minced)
3-4 Tablespoons of cilantro (minced)
1 medium tomato (minced)
Juice from 1/2 or 1 whole lime
Salt and pepper to taste

In a mixing bowl, combine all the minced vegetables and mix thoroughly.
Cut each avocado in half. Using a knife, pierce the pit of the avocado and gently wiggle it back and forth until it comes loose from the middle of the avocado. Discard the pit (or do one of those growing things that we used to do as kids with water and toothpicks). With a spoon, scoop out all of the avocado meat, making sure to cut out any black spots that you find in the meat. Discard the avocado skins. Using the knife and spoon, mix/slice up the avocado and vegetables (you can also use a potato masher). Depending on how soft the avocado is, you may end up with some nice chunky dip. Add the lime juice and mix again. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Guacamole keeps for a couple days if stored in an airtight container. The top layer may turn brown overnight but that's ok. Add a little more lime juice to it to perk it up.

I hope you enjoy your guacamole! I like mine just with the basic ingredients but what do you like to put in yours?