Avocados – the new FRUIT on the block

Okay, technically avocados are a fruit but most people treat them more like a veggie which is unfair considering how versatile they are.

I just ate avocados from Mexico for breakfast, lunch and dinner!  Granted as much as I love avocados, that doesn’t usually happen.  It’s just that on Sunday I spend part of the afternoon at the Northwest Culinary Academy of Vancouver for the second Avo Showdown Event with chefs who prepared amazingly creative dishes using avocados from Mexico.  It inspired me to incorporate avocados into more dishes.  You should have seen what these chefs came up with and how delicious everything tasted with 10 savoury concoctions and 7 desserts.  Avocado toast is so 2015!

It was difficult for the judges to decide on a first place winner (the winning prize was a trip for two to Club Med Cancun) but the Cannoli where the pastry chef substituted avocado in place of ricotta cheese was the outstanding #1 winner.    

Justin Darnes from Drinks Undressed demonstrated a unique cocktail using smoked avocado and banana infused Cachaca (sugarcane liquour) and passion fruit.  He garnished it with cinnamon dusted banana & avocado coins. Divine! Chef Jonathan Kinney from the academy demonstrated an elegant layered parfait with granola, yogurt and fresh fruit in a wineglass (or sundae dish) topped with sliced avocado and toasted coconut.  Simple but amazing.  And that’s the thing – it is so simple!

Since I am not in favour of wasting food I try to combine leftovers in my fridge into some kind of edible substance, and I like being creative so…..

Breakfast:

I make my own homemade granola so using what was in my fridge I just layered it into a margarita glass with yogurt, sliced mango, blackberries and sliced (a little riper than I like) Mexican avocados.  It worked together extremely well and tasted great.

Lunch:

Tuna Avocado Salad on Hearts of RomaineFor the dressing I mixed a small amount of mayo and ripe avocados – creamy and perfect! A healthy alternative to mayonnaise. Chopped cucumber, green onion, cilantro & red pepper were mixed in the bowl along with the albacore tuna and avocado chunks.  Hearts of Romaine are a healthy alternative to bread.

Dinner:

MexiGreek Salad for starters – a chopped salad of not overly-ripe Mexican avocados, sweet onion, grape tomatoes, cilantro, cucumber and feta cheese (black olives; optional).  Dressing: lemon olive oil, S+P.

My skin is already looking so much better.  Now I’m not sure if it’s on account of the La Mer Concentrate I’ve been using combined with my own skincare, or the avocados. or all of the above.

Do you have an original simple recipe using Mexican avocados that you’d like to share?

Photos: d. king