Today, Melissa´s class had a unit about Mexico. Pierre taught the class how to make Guacamole, one of mexico traditional recipe. Along with the dip, the students fried home made corn tortilla and turned them into chips. Everyone seemed to enjoy the treat.
Recipe:
Ingredients: 1 small avocado (abacate), 1 mid size tomato thinly chopped, 1 onion chopped in small bits, 2 pieces of ground garlic, 2 teaspoons of salt, 1 chili pepper thinly chopped, 2 sprigs of coriander also called cilentro (cuentro) cut into small pieces and the juice of one medium lime.
Mash the avocado well (puree), add the lime juice and stir the chopped tomato in, add the salt, onion, garlic and cilentro mixing the ingredients well.
Leave the dip in the refrigerator and enjoy with chips (dorito type).
Guacamole
Is a sauce made primarily of avocado with various additions depending on the region of Mexico where the guacamole is made. According to Diana Kennedy the best avocado is Hass and the correct ingredients include white onion, serrano chiles, tomatoes, sea salt and cilantro. Further, although adding a bit of lime juice helps preserve the color of the avocado for a short period of time Ms. Kennedy states it "spoils the balance of the flavors".
Guacamole History
Guacamole dates back to the Aztecs - The Aztecs referred to guacamole as ahuaca-mulli which translates roughly to avocado sauce or avocado mixture. This concoction was very similar to what you might fix now in your own kitchens today. Avocados, the main ingredient in guacamole are a New World food that became quite popular with the Spaniards. It is said the Spaniards liked their avocados three ways, with salt, with sugar or both. Although actual guacamole recipes were not well preserved the Spaniards documented their likes for the avocado fruit. The Aztecs believed the avocado to be an aphrodisiac. Clearly this had something to do with the popularity of the food with the Spaniards. Another reason for the popularity of the fruit was the fact that the avocado has the highest fat content of any fruit. The Aztecs had a very low fat diet compared with today's standards. You can understand how a fruit that contained life sustaining fats and protein could become so highly regarded.
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