Avocado Day

Do you love avocados as much as I do? 
If not, why??? Okay, okay. You don't have to tell me. Don't be so sensitive.
Years ago, I only ever ate them as guacamole in Mexican restaurants. Today, I eat them almost every day. I make smoothies with them, I eat them on toast, I put them in my salads and oh, yeah. I now make my own guacamole. I don't eat them just because they're healthy (although, it helps!). I like the way they taste and love the way they taste different depending on how you use them in cooking.

This is my guacamole.
I used two avocado, 1 small chopped tomato, 1 clove minced garlic, 2 TBSP minced red onion, 1/2 tsp crushed coriander seeds, lime juice from half of a hand-squeezed lime and a pinch of salt.



I found this idea on  www.mamiverse.com.
I just loved the idea of a fried egg in an avocado. Yum!

How about these avocado stuffed meatballs? 
I make meatballs all the time and would have never considered combing my two favourites (meatballs and avocados, in case you weren't paying attention). 

These are someone else's meatballs. Find the recipe on www.healthyfoodie.com



Then there are also avocado deviled eggs. Who knew??? Did you? Why didn't you share it with me?!!!

This recipe is from: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/236809/avocado-deviled-eggs/


I substitute mayo with Greek yogurt. 




Love love love...avocado crab cakes...from www.sheknows.com



And then there's this simple toast recipe from www.thekitchn.com
When I make mine, I just puree the avocado, add a bit of olive oil and sea salt and spread it on thick crusty bread.



And this is my homemade Cobb salad. 
Unfortunately, the avocado was buried beneath the bacon (which I longer eat).
I used chopped romaine lettuce, cucumbers. cherry tomatoes, hard-boiled eggs, crumbled blue cheese, crumbled bacon, cheese, turkey and avocados. I drizzled it with ranch dressing.



By now, you're probably getting the gist...as well as a hankering. 
If you've never cooked with them before, don't let them scare you. Give them a try.
They also make great facial creams. 

If you want to keep an avocado from turning brown: (photo credit to:www.food52.com)

1) The Onion Method
Roughly chop a quarter of a red onion into large chunks. Line the bottom of a sealable container with the onion pieces, then place the avocado half cut side-up on top. Seal the container and keep in the fridge. According to The Kitchn, this is likely due to the vapors that onions emit. Luckily, because the skin is the only part of the avocado in contact with the onion, the flesh won't take on any flavor. And you can save the onions for later use!



2) The Olive Oil MethodBrush the avocado half with olive oil (pick one without a strong flavor). The oil will keep the flesh from coming in direct contact with the air, preventing oxidization. After brushing with the oil, store the avocado in an airtight container in the fridge. 



You can also grow your own avocado tree, but mine has never turned out, for reasons unclear to me.




Anyway...If you're feeling ambitious and want to grow your own tree, go to: www,secretyuniverse.wonderhowto.com