A cool, creamy avocado update

Minty dip with a gin and tonic chills a hot day

What could be better than a gin and tonic on a deck on a hot, Canadian summer day?

Well, a GT and this cool, creamy dip, judging by the voracious and enthusiastic response of my book club at a recent cottage getaway. When 10 out of 10 women ask the cook for the recipe, you know it’s a winner.

My friend Marie made it all by hand, chopping avocados into little pieces and mincing garlic and mint.

It was perfect, but I doubt I’d have the patience to do the same, especially if it kept me inside on a sunny summer day. I’d try dropping the garlic cloves into a food processor, pulsing the mint leaves with salt and pepper, then processing the avocado with the remaining ingredients, using on-off pulses, just until it’s creamy but still chunky.

Serve with salty tortilla chips (you could even warm them in the oven for a few minutes) and gin and tonics topped with a squeeze of lime.

It’s a recipe for a perfect late-afternoon summer day.