An Easy Guacamole Hack That Will Save You 100 Calories

I accept that I will always lose any battle against guacamole. What starts out as a reasonable portion seems to always end with me scraping the bottom of the bowl to get any last trace of the dip. It's a problem shared by many, and the justification is pretty universal — "But it's healthy; it's made with avocados!" Full of fiber and good-for-you fats, avocados seem like a gift of decadence masquerading in a healthy shell. But don't let them fool you, avocados are also calorie dense, and a couple trips to the guacamole bowl quickly add up.

Source: Rancho La Puerta Not too long ago, I was invited to spend some time at Rancho La Puerta, an award-winning wellness retreat known to point people towards a healthier way of life. After days filled with workouts, vegetarian meals, and an absence of alcohol, I heard rumblings of Rancho La Puerta's sangria happy hour, which included mounds of its famous guacamole. It took one taste to know that the recipe typified everything I love about guacamole — it's creamy, spicy, and has a bright acidity from the citrus. I ate mounds of the stuff. Given how healthy I was being, calories really didn't matter to me in that moment. It was only later that I found out it was full of peas. Sticking to its mission of health, Rancho La Puerta's recipe replaces one cup of avocado with an equal serving of frozen peas. And while it loses a significant amount of calories (130) and fat (21 grams) in the process, the recipe does not sacrifice in taste; the perfect dish to fool your veggie-averted friends. From here on out, I am sticking to this unique play on the traditional dip and will be more than OK when it comes time to scrape the bottom of the bowl.