Mona’s Family Favorites: Not all party finger foods have to be heavy, greasy “calorie bombs.” These little “cherry bombs” are a simple and satisfying alternative for your guests. With only 25 calories in each filled tomato, you can go back for a second, or third, or fourth without any guilt!
Guacamole-Stuffed Cherry Tomatoes
Prep time
Total time
Author: The Perfect Portion
Recipe type: Entertaining
Makes: 24 Tomatoes or 6 Appetizer portions
Ingredients
- 24 large cherry tomatoes (about 2 pints)
- 1 lime, halved
- Salt
- 1 cup Fresh Guacamole (see recipe below)
- 6 corn tortilla chips, crushed
- Chili powder
- Fresh cilantro
Directions
- Slice the tops and bottoms off each cherry tomato, cutting just a thin sliver from the bottoms for the tomatoes to stand upright.
- Use a melon baller or grapefruit spoon to remove and discard the pulp and seeds from each tomato, placing them on a serving dish as you finish.
- Squeeze the lime over all the tomatoes on the serving dish, and then lightly sprinkle with salt.
- Fill each tomato with 2 teaspoons of the Fresh Guacamole, letting it pile up and out of the tomato.
- Top the filled tomatoes with crushed tortilla chips, and then sprinkle lightly with chili powder. Garnish each with a leaf of fresh cilantro and serve.
HELPFUL TIP: Stores are often overstocked with (oval) grape tomatoes and have very few (round) cherry tomatoes. If you are having trouble finding them, don’t forget to check the organic produce section. They may even have both yellow and red cherry tomatoes to make a multicolored platter!
Serving size: 4 tomatoes Calories: 100
Avocados are known to be an expensive, temperamental fruit, so it’s no wonder that store-bought guacamole is often loaded with fillers and preservatives to bulk it up and prolong the shelf life. Yet the one thing they don’t seem to bulk up guacamole products with is flavor! We vastly prefer homemade! The best time to make guacamole is when avocados go on sale, as they’re not only less expensive, but they’re typically at their peak as well.
Fresh Guacamole
Prep time
Total time
Author: The Perfect Portion
Recipe type: Entertaining
Makes: 3 Dip or 6 Topping portions
Ingredients
- 2 medium Haas avocados, halved and pitted
- Juice of ½ lime
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
- 2 tablespoons minced red onion
- 1 tablespoon seeded and minced jalapeño
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Directions
- Use a large spoon to scoop the avocado out of the peel, then roughly chop.
- Place the chopped avocado in a medium-size mixing bowl, and toss with lime juice.
- Use a heavy fork or potato masher to mash the avocado until creamy and mostly smooth.
- Stir in the remaining ingredients. Serve immediately, or cover tightly and refrigerate for 1 hour to let the flavors combine.
HELPFUL TIP: A ripe Haas avocado has brown skin, is slightly soft to the touch, and reveals green when the short stem on the top is pulled out. Hard avocados should be ripened at room temperature. Ripe avocados can be kept in the fridge for 2–3 days before using.
Serving size: ¼ cup Calories: 100
