There are few things better than a bowl of great guacamole. It seems like an unwritten rule of life that almost everyone loves guacamole. We love it so much that we're willing to pay $2 to add a tiny dollop of it to a burrito bowl at Chipotle. I've also never seen anyone complain when someone orders it as an appetizer. Since it turns brown if not eaten, we justify eating ridiculous quantities because "it will go bad if it's not eaten now."  I personally judge Mexican restaurants based on two things: 1) margaritas 2) guacamole. If they pass with both of those, I really couldn't care less about the rest of the food. I'm a happy camper.

Guacamole is easy to make, but it's also easy to add too much of one ingredient and accidentally ruin the entire batch. It then becomes a desperate attempt to even out the flavors, and this almost always backfires because unless you have spare avocados you're probably out of luck (and the avocados from the store are never ripe right away). This is my go-to guacamole recipe. It's based on Alton Brown's guacamole, which has a five star rating and 634 reviews. Let's take a second to think about that. More than 630 people of all culinary backgrounds have made this guacamole and it still has a five star rating?! That's rare. It makes perfect sense when you try it, though, because it's amazing. It has the perfect amount of everything, and then a few random additions like cayenne pepper.

I always adapt his recipe slightly, omitting the cumin, using an entire jalapeno (be sure to completely seed it), and bumping the cilantro up to two tablespoons. If I have an extra lime or a lemon I also squeeze a bit more lemon or lime juice on top before serving. Alton Brown also recommends leaving it out for an hour before serving. While I'm sure this does help the flavor, if you're in a pinch for time I guarantee no one will complain about eating it before an hour has passed.

Enjoy!

Go-To Guacamole
Recipe based on Alton Brown's Guacamole

Ingredients

3 Ripe Haas avocados, halved, seeded and peeled

1 lime, juiced

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon cayenne

1/2 medium red onion, diced

1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced

2 Roma tomatoes, seeded and diced

2 tablespoons chopped cilantro

1 clove garlic, minced

Directions

In a large bowl place the scooped avocado pulp and almost all of the lime juice, leaving about one tablespoon for use later in the recipe. Mash together gently with a fork until lime juice is integrated into the avocados. Next, add the salt and cayenne pepper, mash together until mixed. Then, fold in the onions, jalapeno, tomatoes, cilantro, and garlic. Add the rest of the lime juice*. Let sit at room temperature for 1 hour and then serve. If you run out of time, go ahead and eat it before the hour. It'll still be delicious!

*A lot of people may know this, but a really great way to juice a lime if you don't have a citrus juicer is to use a fork. Simply press the fork inside the center of a lime half and squeeze while moving the fork from side to side. Easy peasy. 

 

I make cheesy bread fairly often. It's one of my many healthy habits. What to do with the pizza dough in the freezer and that bag of cheese you bought because it was on sale? Cheesy bread, obviously. It seems every pizza spot is now trying to outdo the others with their new and improved cheesy bread recipe these days. Truth is, you don't need much to make amazing cheesy bread. It's not rocket science. Extra cheese + extra garlic butter = better cheesy bread. However, I find the garlicy grease that covers your hands after eating said cheesy bread is enough to make you feel guilty for the next few days. I don't like feeling guilty after eating something I enjoy, so I make my own cheesy bread. Sure, I still load it up with cheese and butter, but at least I know how much I use.

I saw this method for making garlic butter on Sweet Anna's the other day, and I knew I needed to give it a try. I usually brush with melted butter and spread garlic over the top when I make cheesy bread. Garlic infused butter--yes please. I don't have a pizza stone (who knows why not considering how much pizza I make) and I wanted to use up some frozen dough, so I did this the easy way. You can change it up however you'd like with spices, different types of cheese, dipping sauces, etc. And if you prefer your cheesy bread thicker, just don't roll the dough out as much. This is a game-changer here, people. Enjoy!

Homemade Cheesy Bread

1 ball of pizza dough*

1 1/2 cups shredded cheese**

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon Italian seasoning

1/2 teaspoon Cayenne or crushed red pepper

2 cloves garlic, smashed

3-4 tablespoons butter

*You can make your own or buy the premade version from your local grocery store's bakery. White or wheat both work fine.

**I usually use some sort of Italian blend 

Preheat oven to 500 degrees and remove the pizza dough from fridge ~30 minutes before you start. Combine smashed garlic cloves and butter in a microwave safe bowl and microwave for 30 seconds, or until melted. Leave garlic in butter for 20-30 minutes. Mix spices together in small bowl.

When ready, roll pizza dough out to your desired thickness. If you have a pizza stone, by all means use it, otherwise place rolled out dough onto pizza pan or other sheet pan that has been lightly brushed with olive oil. 

Remove garlic from butter, and brush butter over entire surface of dough. Make sure to cover the crust portion as well. Spread cheese across dough (again, don't leave the edges out!), and sprinkle spices over cheese.

Place in preheated oven for 8-10 minutes, or until cheese has slightly bubbled and some spots have browned, and dough has turned golden. Remove and slice however you'd like! I prefer cheese sticks because they're great for dipping. Serve immediately with marinara sauce or ranch...or both.

As if I didn't already spend too much time looking at pictures of food, Pinterest came along and took things to a new level. This gem of a recipe is straight off of Pinterest, and oh my is it good. I think it probably is one of the more time consuming artichoke dips because of roasting the garlic and the "homemade" flatbread pieces, but it's worth it. I also didn't particularly like the brand of flatbread I bought, so I know for a fact regular chips are great with this as well. Note: there is no spinach in this artichoke dip.

I've made this dip twice already to rave reviews. It's super cheesy (in a good way), and the panko on top brings an extra little crunch. Within 5 minutes of serving it people had quickly eaten off all of the panko, and were asking for more of "that crispy stuff on top." I don't quite know how you'd go about adding more panko unless you managed to pry this dip out of everyone's hands to pop it back in the oven, but make sure you don't skimp on it.

If you're like me, you like quick dips that can be made with < 5 ingredients in under 30 minutes. This dip is not one of those. However, it's very simple and people will be begging for the recipe. It's a tradeoff. Enjoy!

Artichoke and Roasted Garlic Dip with Baked Flatbread Sticks

Recipe from Spoon Fork Bacon

Serves 5 to 7

Ingredients:
flatbread sticks:
3 sheets whole wheat flatbread, cut into 1”x4” sticks
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon smoked paprika
artichoke dip:
1 head garlic, top sliced off
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
14 oz can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
2 green onions, thinly sliced
8 ounces marscarpone, softened
1/3 c light mayonnaise
½ cup part-skim mozzarella, shredded
¼ cup parmesan, grated
2 tablespoons hot sauce
2 teaspoon dry mustard
salt and pepper to taste

topping:
1/3 cup panko breadcrumbs
1 tablespoon parmesan, grated
1 ½ tablespoons butter, melted

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Brush the strips of flatbread with the oil and sprinkle with the smoked paprika.
3. Line the strips onto two baking sheets (sprayed with nonstick cooking spray) and bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until crisp and golden brown around the edges.
4. Set aside and allow to cool.
5. While the flatbread cools bring the temperature of the oven up to 375°F.
6. Place the head of garlic onto a small piece of aluminum foil, drizzle with olive and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
7. Loosely wrap the foil around the garlic and roast in the oven for about 45 minutes or until the garlic cloves have softened completely and slightly browned.
8. Carefully squeeze the clove into a bowl and discard the peel.
9. Mash the cloves into a paste and stir in the remaining dip ingredients. Season with salt and pepper.
10. Stir the mixture until fully incorporated.
11. Scoop the dip into a 3 cup baking dish of your choice and set aside.
12. In a small bowl toss together the topping ingredients and sprinkle over the dip filled ramekin.
13. Bake in the oven for 20 to 25 minutes or until the top is golden brown.
14. Allow to cool for a few minutes before serving with whole wheat flatbread crisps.

This is from when I made it the first time at night. I liked how the flatbread sticks looked more than I liked the points.