Avocado and Yogurt Dip with Jalapeño and Cilantro

This dip recipe is a good substitute for creamy cheese sauces often served with tostada chips (the chips you find in nachos buried under all the meat and cheese)

Regular tomato salsa is also low-cal, but this dip offers a bit of extra zing for those who like guacamole. It uses non-fat yogurt just to keep down the calorie count.

• 1 16-ounce container plain nonfat yogurt
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 large avocado, peeled, halved, pitted, coarsely chopped
• 4 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
• 2 teaspoons minced jalapeño
• 1 small garlic clove, minced

Set a strainer over a medium bowl and line with double layer of cheesecloth. Place the yogurt in the cloth-lined strainer. Cover it with plastic wrap and chill overnight (that means put it in the fridge overnight – you’re welcome to chill on your couch as long as you want).

The next day, drain off the liquid that drained from the yogurt into the bowl. Dump the yogurt into a food processor.

Stir the cumin in a small dry skillet over medium-low heat until fragrant (this’ll take about 1 minute). Add cumin to the processor, then the avocado, 3 tablespoons cilantro, minced jalapeño, and garlic. Season it with salt and pepper to taste

Turn on the processor and whip/blend the mixture until it’s smooth.

Transfer the smoothed dip to small bowl. Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon cilantro.I like to add a dash of lemon juice as well, but that’s entirely up to you.

Now you can either chill it for another few hours, or grab a few baked tostadas and dig in!