Avocado Temptation

When it’s summer and the avocados are ripe and you are greatly tempted to make an avocado salsa, be good to yourself and cut some of the fat by substituting no-fat cucumbers for half the amount of avocado you’d usually use.

For this salsa, choose a small, very ripe avocado. Serve the salsa with baked tortilla chips, fresh vegetable sticks or grilled fish or chicken.

CUCUMBER SALSA

1 cucumber, peeled and chopped

1 small avocado, halved, peeled and chopped

1/4 cup minced red onion

2 tablespoons chopped cilantro

1 serrano chile, halved, seeded and minced

1 clove garlic, minced

2 tablespoons lime juice

1 tablespoon water

Salt

Combine cucumber, avocado, onion, cilantro, chile, garlic, lime juice and water. Stir in salt to taste.

2 cups. Each 1-tablespoon serving:

12 calories; 10 mg sodium; 0 cholesterol; 1 gram fat; 1 gram carbohydrates; 0 protein; 0.19 gram fiber.

BAKED TORTILLA CHIPS

4 corn tortillas

Nonstick cooking spray

Crushed oregano

Coarse salt

Cut each tortilla into 8 wedges. Arrange in single layer on baking sheets. Lightly spray with nonstick cooking spray.

Sprinkle oregano and salt over tortilla wedges. Bake at 400 degrees until chips are brown and crisp, 8 to 10 minutes.

32 chips. Each chip:

8 calories; 80 mg sodium; 0 cholesterol; 0 fat; 2 grams carbohydrates; 0 protein; 0.12 gram fiber.