Unless you didn't go on the internet at all yesterday, you heard about the kerfuffle caused by a
New York Times tweet that offered an unusual addition to a California staple. I'm talking about Guacamolegate, or more specifically, Peacamolegate. It's not nearly as offensive as Donald Trump's remarks about Mexicans, but coming from the same publication that endorses monocles and
electronic bidets, it's another in a long line of culturally tone-deaf face-slappers.
Melissa Clark, a New York Times food columnist, made the blasphemous statement that readers should really "give peas a chance" and add them to guacamole. According to Clark, peas help guacamole retain its' vibrant green color, while also adding a sweetness and chunky texture.
As a Latina, I don't even know how to wrap my head around this. Anyone who knows anything about avocados and guacamole know that the crunchy texture comes from the onions and hot peppers. Also, a squirt of lemon or lime adds flavor while also helping the avocados maintain their green color. Or, you can be real old-school and leave the pit inside the guacamole, which also keeps the fruit from turning brown.
The tweet in question featured a photo of freshly made guacamole topped with peas, sprouts and sunflower seeds. Since the tweet specifically talks about peas, we won't address the even bigger travesty of the sprouts and sunflower seeds, but rest assured readers didn't let those atrocities fly, either.
My classic guac never has any of those ingredients, and never will, an opinion shared with people around the Twitterverse. Many declared that could no longer trust in the NYT.
This was such a hot topic that even a presidential hopeful and the president himself weighed in. Jeb Bush
tweeted, "You don't put peas in guacamole," which surprisingly echoed President Obama's sentiment. Though they don't agree politically, these two concur that they won't be giving peas a chance.
And there you have it, folks. The president has spoken, letting the world know he thinks this was a ridiculous request. Nice try,
New York Times, but don't try and fix something that ain't broken.
