Lunch on July 6 - Back to school

I can not tell you how excited I was to pack today's lunch.  It has been a very very very very very long summer break for us between preschool and camp and I think Juju and I are both very happy to have some time apart today.

Today's lunch is leftovers (again).  I do have some great ideas for fresh lunches; I just haven't had much time to execute them.  Lunch is watermelon and strawberries, wild rice with broccoli and filet mignon (I know it looks like the meat is raw in this photo but I assure it has been cooked), and a California peach.

I haven't put it in her lunch yet but one of Juju's favorite snacks is fresh guacamole and chips.  It is the cutest thing to hear her say the word "guacamole" and she once called it "guacaroni" which gave me the idea to try some sort of avocado sauce or dip over pasta.  If I ever make that dish I will write about it here.

We went to the Hollywood Bowl on July 4th with my parents and ate dinner in our box before the show.  I thought it would be a good idea to make guacamole and found these cute "red, white and blue" corn chips from Trader Joe's to go with it.  My Dad asked me where I got the recipe for the guac and I was surprised by the question.  Is there actually a recipe for making guacamole?  I thought it was just mashed up avocado with a handful of other ingredients thrown in.  But, in the interest of formalizing one of our favorite snacks in case I ever forget it, my "recipe" is below.

Guacamole

4 avocados removed from skin

1 minced clove of garlic (optional)

1/4 of an onion minced (you can also substitute a shallot or omit entirely if you prefer)

the juice of one lime (or lemon if you don't have lime)

about 8 grape tomatoes cut in quarters (optional)

salt

pepper

Place all ingredients in a bowl and mash.  My favorite tool to mash guacamole (or egg salad) is the "toothed" Kwik-Kut my friend Emily C. gave me when I got married.  They are hard to find in person but I am told Sur La Table carries them.

Also one tip I learned from my friend Betsy at a picnic in Central Park more than ten years ago - if you are not serving your guac right away, place one of the pits right on top of the dip and then cover it all with an airtight lid.  Apparently the guac won't turn brown as quickly if it's close to the pit.  It sounds a little hokey to me but it works!  When I make a large batch of guac I place several pits on top and remove them right before serving.