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5 Unusual Ways to Eat Avocados

Are you craving some new avocado recipes? Maybe some exciting new ways to eat avocados? Good news is right around the corner.

Eat Avocados, Mexicali Fresh Mex Grill, MAThere are plenty of commonly known ways to eat avocados, and amazing avocado recipes are popping up everywhere these days. But besides the traditional ways to eat avocados – such as in guacamole, salsas, on sandwiches and in burritos – there are some unique recipes using avocados that you just have to know about.

This delicious article from CaliforniaAvocadosDirect.com shares five unusual ways to eat avocados. Read up, because it’s time to add some new avocado recipes to your book!

Five Unusual Ways to Eat Avocado

By Mimi Holtz

Almost everyone is familiar with avocado these days. I rarely encounter a person who says, “Now, tell me, what is an avocado?” Maybe it’s because I live in Southern California. However, even when I travel, when told that I married an avocado farmer, most people will have a response about loving avocados or a question about how to tell if an avocado is truly ripe. Guacamole recipes are requested too, but lately the requests have been for new recipes that “use” avocados.

“Use” avocados? Aren’t avocados just wonderful all by themselves? Aren’t avocado slices the most delicious of all? Nevertheless, in an effort to provide some creativity and extra-effort toward a healthy diet, here are some unusual ideas for eating avocados, including a couple of recipes for you to try.

1. Give Up Mayonaisse…Use Avocado Instead

An old high school friend recently mentioned that a book she was reading about losing belly fat suggested substituting avocado for mayonnaise in sandwiches. What a great idea! Better fat, more nutrition and perhaps fewer calories, depending on how much avocado you decide to use. It’s not out of the question to spread an entire avocado into a sandwich either.

2. Use Avocado for Baking Instead of Butter or Eggs

This will probably be the focus of a family experiment very soon. We love to bake in this house, and we love to eat those cookies, brownies, cakes, bars, etc. I have read that one cup of ripe avocado will substitute for one cup of butter in baked recipes. Avocado doesn’t melt like butter, so additional liquid may be needed. If you’re substituting for egg, use 2 tbsp. to ¼ cup mashed avocado for each egg. Cakes may rise higher in the center when you use avocado, and they may brown quicker, appearing done before the center is cooked. Reducing the oven temperature by about 25% and increasing the baking time should offset this. We’ll do some experiementing with this and get back to you.

3. Throw Some Avocados on the Barbie

Grilled avocados? Okay….slice the avocado in half, remove the pit. Brush with olive oil and lime juice. Place cut-side down on the grill for 5-7 minutes.

Remove from the grill and sprinkle with lime juice and salt. If you want to decorate, add salsa or sour cream to the center. Eat with a spoon or scoop with tortilla chips.

4. Avocado Pudding

We recently heard from Libby Shaw of Boston, who was an exchange student in Brazil years ago. She was eager to share her favorite dessert recipe.

Avocado Pudding

For each person:

  • flesh from 1 RIPE (just-soft) avocado
  • juice from 1 juicy lime
  • sugar to taste (I use ~1/4c for 2 people)

Puree all together until very smooth. Put in serving dish(es).

Cover with plastic wrap and chill, or consume immediately.

5. Avocado Crème Brulee

There are several recipes online for this. One blog, www.foodsamba.com has

clever photos of the crème brulee served in the avocado skin, with carmelized sugar on top…masquerading as the pit!

The easiest recipe I’ve seen comes from The Brazilian Kitchen by Leticia Moreinos Schwartz (Kyle Books).

Avocado Creme Brulee

  • 1 cup sweetened condensed milk
  • 2 medium firm-ripe Hass avocados, peeled, pitted and cut into chunks
  • 2 to 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
  • 1/2 cup raw (Turbinado) sugar, for topping

Place the condensed milk and avocados into a food processor and process until the mixture is velvety smooth, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the lemon juice 1 tablespoon at a time, and pulse for a few more seconds after each addition.

Using a rubber spatula, scrape the mixture into four ramekins, making sure it is nice and flat inside the cup. Chill for 4 hours in the refrigerator.

Right before serving, spread a thin layer of sugar evenly over the top of each custard. Ignite the torch to medium. Melt the sugar by moving the flame back and forth across the custard while maintaining a distance of 2 inches between the flame and surface. The sugar will melt, bubble and then turn into a golden caramel. In less than a minute, it will harden to a delicious crust. Allow to cool for 3 to 5 minutes before serving. Do not brulee the dessert more than 20 minutes in advance of serving.

Makes 4 servings.

Have you ever tried fried avocado slices, using avocados in a drink or smoothie, or eating avocado in pie-form? If you do a little research, there is no doubt you will find even more unusual ways to eat avocados.

At Mexicali Fresh Mex Grill, you can enjoy all of these ways to eat avocados:

Take the family to our authentic Mexican restaurant in Spencer, MA, to experience some sensational ways to eat avocados. It’s fun to try something new!