One of my favorite foods to whip together is guacamole!  It adds amazing flavor to foods and is the best fresh!  So how do you make it from scratch?  Lets take a look!

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 avocados
• 1/2 cup cilantro, chopped ( I like a little more!)
• 1/2 lime
• 1/2 jalapeno (unless you like some kick, then use a whole jalapeno, seeded)
• 1 clove garlic, chopped

DIRECTIONS:

Slice avocados in half and remove the seed.  Scrape out all of the avocados into your bowl.  Then squeeze your lime until there is no juice left!  After mashing your avocados in your lime juice, you’ll want to add your chopped ingredients next.  Once your chopped garlic, jalapeno and cilantro are added to your bowl, mix very well.  And voila!  You have a delicious, fresh, preservative free guacamole!

With the acidic lime juice in the recipe, you could refrigerate this guacamole for about 1-2 days without the avocados turning brown.

So what are the health benefits of these foods??

Lets start with avocados…

AVOCADO:  Avocados are a good source of dietary fiber, potassium, magnesium, vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin E, vitamin K₁, folate, niacin, pantothenic acid, choline, lutein/zeaxanthin, phytosterols.  They are high-monounsaturated fatty acids, which is the heart healthy fat. The avocado oil consists of 71% monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA), 13% polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), and 16% saturated fatty acids (SFA), which helps to promote healthy blood lipid profiles and enhance the bioavailability of fat soluble vitamins and phytochemicals.  Avocados are very well known to be beneficial to heart health (in moderation).  You do have to remember, because it is a great heart healthy fat source, it will still be high calorie.  A serving of an avocado is around 1/5 of the fruit.  But the average amount of consumption is around 1/2 of the fruit, which is the serving size that was used to gather the above data.

CILANTRO:  Cilantro is loaded in antioxidants, vitamins and minerals.  It contains no cholesterol (since it does not have a liver) and may help lower LDL cholesterol due to its fiber content.  The oil from the leaves help slow the oxidation process of foods.  So it helps it stay edible longer!  Cilantro (also called corianderum sativum or Chinese parsley) was shown to possibly reduce heavy metal toxicity.  Particularly detoxification of lead in this particular study.  What a win for cilantro!

LIME:  Limes are an excellent source of vitamin C.  We use vitamin C for immune health, tissue repair and to produce collagen.  Collagen is kind of like the glue that holds your body together.

JALAPENO:  Jalapenos contain an ingredient called capsaicin that is usually found in a lot of hot peppers.  Capsaicin is actually known to assist in fat oxidation (or fat burning)!  It can also act as an anti-inflammatory.  If you’re an avid pepper eater, you probably already know capsaicin can assist in clearing up those sinuses and nasal passages.  They also contain lots of vitamins and minerals which are great for immune health and fighting against other diseases.

GARLIC:  Oh the benefits of garlic!  I have actually done a whole blog itself on garlic so I will link that HERE.

There is nothing better for us than eating good, clean, natural food.  I’m hoping that these blog posts are getting the message across that processed foods prevent you from getting all the benefits listed above.

I hope this post was educational!  Please leave any questions in the comments below!  And if you know of anyone that would enjoy this recipe, please share by using the social media icons below!