In a large skillet, brown the ground beef. Add in the celery, onion, bell pepper, and spices. Cook until the veggies are soft. Remove from heat and keep warm while making the rest of the dish.
Prepare the Guacamole:
Make the guacamole by combining all the ingredients, except the tomato, in a bowl with a fork. Do not over mix.
The guacamole should be chunky. Fold in the diced tomato. Set aside.
Prepare the Queso:
In a small saucepan, bring 1 cup of water to a boil.
Add in the diced celery, bell pepper, onion, tomato, and poblano pepper. Boil for 1-2 minutes until the vegetables are soft.
Turn the heat to low and whisk in the cubed cheese. Continue whisking until the cheese is smooth.
Assemble the Dip:
Remove from the heat and pour into a serving dish.
Add a scoop of the meat mixture and a scoop of the guacamole to the top.
Do not mix it up as guests should be grabbing a bit of each when they dip the chips in.
Notes
Make the queso right before serving. The cheese dip will either separate as it cools or develop a skin on top of it.
Skip the individual spices and use a homemade taco seasoning. The chili powder adds more flavor.
For a healthier version, substitute the pound ground beef to ground turkey.
To get in some extra veggies, serve with pico de gallo alongside your guac and taco meat.
Big spice fan? Try topping your guac with some freshly chopped jalapenos for an extra kick!
When serving, make sure not to mix the guac and meat into the queso - this was one of the most important parts of the original recipe that was created at El Rancho restaurant!
Choose a shallow serving bowl, so that it’s easy to scoop out after grabbing all your toppings on your chip.