Cookbook:Field of Dreams Guacamole

| Appetizers

This guacamole is decorated to look like a ballpark, topped with a cream cheese baseball.

Ingredients

 * 4 ounces cream cheese, softened
 * 1 teaspoon packaged dry buttermilk salad dressing and seasoning mix
 * 3 large fresh ripe avocados, halved, pitted, and peeled
 * 3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
 * 2 teaspoons coarsely-ground garlic powder
 * 1 teaspoon salt
 * 1 teaspoon red pepper sauce
 * ½ cup finely-chopped red onion
 * ½ cup chopped, prepared roasted red bell pepper
 * 1 red bell pepper
 * ½ cup low-fat sour cream
 * Thin wheat crackers
 * For dipping: bell pepper strips cut ½ inch wide, tortilla chips and/or crackers

Procedure

 * 1) In bowl, blend cream cheese and buttermilk seasoning. Place in plastic wrap, roll into a ball, and chill in freezer for 1 hour or refrigerate overnight.
 * 2) In bowl, coarsely mash avocado with lime juice, garlic, salt and red pepper sauce.
 * 3) Stir in red onion and roasted bell pepper.
 * 4) Using rubber spatula, scoop guacamole onto square plate. Spread out evenly, making a slight mound in center to create a 'pitchers mound'.
 * 5) Spoon sour cream into pastry bag with fine tip or plastic bag with ⅛-inch corner cut out. Pipe thin 'base lines' onto guacamole 'field'.
 * 6) To create the red 'stitching' for the baseball, cut the red bell pepper into 1 inch strips. Using a sharp knife, carefully remove fleshy inside of the pepper, reserving the red shiny skin. Slice the skin into very thin strips to create stitch lines for baseball.
 * 7) To make baseball: Remove cream cheese from freezer or refrigerator. Roll to make a round baseball shape. Remove plastic wrap. Using a wooden pick, form the stitch lines on the ball. Use the very thin pieces of red bell pepper skin to lay over stitch lines. Place 'baseball' on the 'mound' in the center of the guacamole 'field'.
 * 8) Use thin wheat crackers for 'bases'.
 * 9) Serve crackers, tortilla chips and/or bell pepper strips as dippers.