Juliet famously pined, “What’s in a name? that which we call a rose. By any other name would smell as sweet.” Of course she was considering handsome young Romeo whose family name represented an ancient feud and was, one might say, the Hatfield to her McCoy. But names matter, at least in some matters they do, and sometimes for odd reasons.
Consider the Avocado. Its real, rather, its original name, ahuacate, is an Aztec word for a certain part of the male reproductive equipment that resembles the, ahem, sack-like shape of the avocado. Get the picture?
The folks who wanted to market the oily fruit to Americans certainly got a picture – one can only imagine their faces when someone explained the name. I suspect they had nightmares of rival campaigns trying to denigrate and rebrand their product as Aztec testicles. Fortunately for the avocado farmers, the renaming worked; and that’s also fortunate for us – just imagine a world without avocado.
Guacamole, like popcorn, chocolate, and chewing gum, dates back to the Aztec Empire, too. In fact, the basic recipe hasn’t changed very much: avocado, tomato, onion, some hot pepper and cilantro. And many folks will argue that the basic recipe is all you need. But we know that history and available ingredients change recipes all the time – not to mention the human drive to mix things up.
And this is exactly what Mahasti’s recipe does. While it stays true to the basics, the addition of both mango and blueberry give the dip a surprising depth of flavor and pops of delicate sweetness. Mango’s texture is a perfect substitute for tomatoes in this variation while the blueberries add an additional kind of fun bite to the eating of it.
The fruit has a tasty interaction with the jalapeno, too – the heat of the pepper actually accentuates the sweetness of the fruit while the blueberries in particular act as an internal balm to the jalapeno’s warmth. There’s gotta be some food science to explain it, all, but, all I know is that this mix is uniquely delicious.
This recipe also has the distinction of being the winning Guacamole in the soon to be legendary contest: Guac Rumble 2017 between Mahasti and WBIR’s Daniel Sechtin. Certainly Daniel’s traditional version was delicious – especially with his deft use of serrano peppers and garlic; but Mahasti’s version swayed the judges by sheer force of flavor, and, of course, because it’s awfully attractive, too.
Tomato Head’s “Better than Daniel’s” Guacamole
½ Mango
2 TBL Jalapeno, chopped
3 TBL Cilantro, chopped
3 TBL Red Onion, chopped
3 Ripe Avocado
½ cup Fresh Blooberries
1 TBL Lime Juice
½ tsp Salt
Cut ½ mango off, remove the flesh with a spoon and chop into small pieces and place in a medium bowl.
Chop Jalapeno, cilantro and red onions, and add them to the bowl. Cut avocado in half and remove pits. Score the avocados into sections, and scoop out into the bowl. Add blueberries, lime juice and salt. Mix well smashing the avocados with the side of the spoon a little if too chunky.
Serve Guacamole with chips as an appetizer, or alongside tacos, or enchiladas.