Hello friends, and welcome to fall! Can you believe it’s September already?! Several vendors at the farmers market this week were selling pumpkins. Pumpkins! Sheesh. This coming week marks my 9-month anniversary of living in Boston as well as the beginning of my first New England fall season. Double sheesh. With promises of changing colored leaves, cool crisp nights, apple picking and baking sessions that follow, I am just so excited for this new season.

But, considering that it’s still hotter than Hades here and Indian Summer threatens, let’s not get ahead of ourselves quite yet. As excited as I am for cozy sweaters, tall leather boots, fresh apple desserts, and nights spent bundled on the couch watching You’ve Got Mail (my quintessential fall classic), I thought I’d dedicate this post to the last days of summer and all its glory.

Nothing says summer to me quite like fresh guacamole. When I was in California a few weeks ago it was impossible to resist the 2 for $1 enormous California-grown avocados. I mean, come on! 2 for $1! And they were all ripe! Only those of you who have lived outside of California will truly appreciate the obscene level of my avocado bliss in that moment. So what did I do? I bought a boatload of the suckers obviously! After all, we were headed to a big family BBQ and the party, combined with my utter love for you all, gave me the perfect excuse to whip up a batch of this heaven in a bowl. So let’s just get down to business, shall we?

Guacamole is seemingly simple, yet there are more ways to make it than Carter has pills. (That was for you, mom.) Since many people love guacamole yet have never actually made it, I thought I’d break down my process for you here in case you feel like tackling this culinary hurdle while the summer sun still burns hot. And as much as I love a good descriptive phrase, I felt that in this particular case it would be much more effective to show not tell. So think of this post as a photographic recipe (with the written recipe down below for you, of course). Remember, this is just my own personal version. I can certainly vouch for its deliciousness, but I also encourage you to check out other recipes and experiment to find what tastes juuuuuuust right to you. And then, dig in!

Guacamole with Lime, Garlic, and Cilantro

Serves 8-10 (or 4 if you’re serving my family)

Print Recipe: Guacamole

Ingredients

6 small-medium avocados

3 cloves of garlic, minced

1/2 sweet onion, finely chopped

1/4 cup fresh cilantro, roughly chopped

Juice of 1 lime

1 teaspoon garlic salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper

Directions

1. Cut the avocados in half lengthwise. Remove the pit by placing the knife flush with the flesh of the avocado, sharp side facing the pit, as shown above. Push the knife gently into the pit and use the pressure of the knife to pop the pit out of the avocado.

2. Slice the flesh of each avocado half in 1/4 inch slices lengthwise, then cut again in the other direction, as shown above.

3. Spoon the flesh of each avocado into a large bowl. Add the garlic, lime juice, salt, and pepper to the bowl. Use a potato masher (shown above) or fork to gently mash the avocado pieces, leaving some pieces in larger chunks unless you prefer your guacamole really smooth.

4. Add the onion and cilantro to the bowl and stir to combine. Taste and add salt, pepper, or more lime juice if necessary.

5. Bust open a bag of tortilla chips and taste again. And then again. And then tell people the guacamole is ready!