Cinco de Mayo has become one of the most commercialized American holidays to date; and I am ok with that. If you want to know the true history behind Cinco de Mayo (and I think everyone should) before you gear up to celebrate this year, you can 
find everything you want here.
Now that we have children our Cinco de Mayo celebration is a little different; we are not drinking ALL THE MARGARITAS at a restaurant. But we are drinking ALL THE MARGARITAS at home once the kids go to sleep. So in case you are like us and love any reason to celebrate, I am including my recipe for homemade salsa, guacamole, and margaritas so you can party like you are 21 again with zero responsibilities.
Let’s start with the salsa and guacamole so you will have a happy tummy while you make your margaritas.
Salsa
- 1 large can (28 oz) whole peeled tomatoes
- 1 large onion
- 2 jalapeños (leave seeds and membrane in one pepper if you want it a little spicier)
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 cup of cilantro
- Juice of one lime
Rough chop all of the fresh vegetables and put in a food processor. Add salt, pepper, garlic powder, and juice of the lime. Blend until everything is finely chopped (my preference) and serve with your favorite tortilla chips. This recipe makes about 1.5 quarts of salsa and will surely please a crowd, but I have also jarred this to enjoy at a later date.
Guacamole
- 6-8 large Haas avocados
- 2 tablespoons of sour cream
- 1 cup chopped tomatoes
- 1 jalapeno pepper finely chopped (I leave the seeds and membrane in)
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- Juice of 1 lime
Roughly mash the avocados with a potato masher or a fork. Stir the other ingredients in with the avocados. Serve garnished with a light dusting of cayenne pepper and devour with your favorite tortillas chips.
Margaritas
- 2 ounces of tequila
- 1/4 ounce of orange liqueur
- 1 ounce fresh lemon lime juice (6 ounces fresh lemon juice and 6 ounces of fresh lime juice)
- 1 ounce simple syrup (dissolve 1 cup sugar in 1 cup of boiling water and let cool) I use a 1/2 cup of sugar to cut back on the amount of sugar in the recipe and find it to be plenty sweet.
This recipe makes one drink, but we all know that is never enough! If I am making this for a party I multiply the recipe by twelve and it makes enough for a pitcher of margaritas. Serve on the rocks, with or without a rim of salt on your glass.
I hope you have a great Cinco de Mayo at home with your family. You may never want to celebrate another way.
