Avocados - delicate, soft and creamy, a delicious fruit!

The Hass avocado is the darling of the bunch and the preferred product for making guacamole. Depending on where you are in the U.S. you may need to substitute another variety. Here is a list of the most commonly grown and distributed varieties.

Hass avocado - The best avocado for making guacamole. It is available all year round. The skin turns from green to purplish-black when it becomes ripe. 80% of all avocados grown in California are Hass.




Gwen avocado - Is similar in appearance, texture and flavor to the Hass. Gwen tends to be a larger fruit and the skin stays green when ripe. A fine substitute for your guacamole recipe if Hass is not available.




Pinkerton avocado - These large avocados tend to lack flavor. They are a winter variety with a small seed a lot of flesh. You see this variety grown in Florida as well as California. This would be our last choice for use in guacamole.




Bacon avocado - Available from fall to spring, Bacon has medium sized fruit and green skin. Although not as flavorful as the Hass it is 'adequate' for guacamole but not preferred.





Fuerte avocado - is harvested starting in the fall through spring. The Fuerte has smooth green skin and is quite tasty and a good guacamole choice or good for eating in any recipe that uses avocado.




Zutano avocado - can be recognized by its shiny yellow-green skin. The Zutano is one of the earliest varieties to be harvested in avocado season which begins each September.

Place a couple in a brown paper bag and store them at room temperature until you are ready to use, usually two to five days.

To speed up this process, put an apple, banana or tomato in the bag (these fruits give off ethylene gas, which is a ripening reagent).

When ripe (soft to the touch) you can put them in the refrigerator until needed, but not for more than a couple of days.

1. Cut lengthwise around the entire avocado and twist the two halves to separate.


2. Remove the seed by sliding the tip of a spoon underneath and lifting it out or by striking the seed with a knife and twisting to remove. Please use extreme caution if using the knife method.


3. Peel the avocado by placing the cut side down on a board and remove the skin with a knife or your fingers or just scoop out the avocado meat with a spoon. Be sure to sprinkle all cut surfaces with lemon/lime juice or white vinegar to prevent discoloration.

Ripe fruit can be stored in the refrigerator uncut for two to three days. To store cut fruit, sprinkle it with lemon or lime juice or white vinegar and place in an air-tight container in your refrigerator. If refrigerated guacamole turns brown during storage, discard the top layer.

When you have an abundance of fresh avocados, consider freezing them. Pureed avocados freeze very well and can be used in salads, sandwiches and dips.

• Wash, seed and peel the fruit as described above.
• Puree the flesh, adding one tablespoon of lemon juice for each two pureed avocados. Pack the puree into an air-tight container, leaving 1 inch of headspace.
• Seal and label the containers.
• Freeze and use within four to five months.

Source: California Avocado Commission

To prevent the fruit's flesh from turning brown, sprinkle it with lemon or lime juice. If you're too late, just scrape off the discolored parts and eat the rest.

To prevent guacamole from turning brown, leave the avocado pit in the bowl with the guacamole! See in video above.

Avocados have a decadent, creamy texture that adds a delicate flavor to many foods. This delicious fruit also packs a nutrient punch, by contributing nearly 20 vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients to one's diet.

Because of their density, avocados, like bananas, are filling. But they are also a perfectly digestible slow-burning fuel, making them ideal for replenishing nutrients for athletes.

They're a great source of fruit oil and digestible fats, and they make excellent and healthy dips for raw vegetables. When blended with fruit, they make particularly nutritious baby food.

Pizza

- Fresh sliced avocado on a freshly baked pizza
(preferably a quality New York style cheese pizza) is delicious and easy.

Salads

- Fresh avocado cut into cubes is great in most (if not all) salads.

Soup
- Avocado is perfect when added to hot served soup as a moderately heavy garnish, as one might do with freshly baked croutons or graded cheese.

Pasta

- add fresh avocado cubes on a freshly served pasta primavera,
just after the freshly graded parmesan has melted a bit.

Ala carte

- prepare avocado slices drenched in lime juice and garlic salt as an appetizer or light snack.

In any event, you should be able to use avocado on just about any standard recipe to taste. Good eating!

Kathy's Cheese Wraps

1. Spread cream cheese or goat cheese on wrap
2. Add avocado (drizzled with lemon)
3. Add chopped heritage or strawberry tomato
4. Add thinly sliced english cucumber

Kathy's Quick Ceasar Wrap

1. Spread Kraft Creamy Ceasar Dressing on wrap
2. Add avocado (drizzled with lemon)
3. Add sliced grilled chicken
4. Add crispy bacon slice, crumbled
5. Add sliced romaine hearts lettuce

I always use the white flour tortillas and usually nuke them to make them warm and soft. Huh?

How does one nuke their tortilla? Just throw 'em in the microwave, about 5 or 10 seconds on each side.

Sometimes I slice the avocado, and sometimes I just rough chop it.

You will notice I do not have any quantities listed. Why? The amount of ingredients used should be individual and are always to taste. So add proportions of each ingredient to what you like!

When I was younger, I often tried to grow my own avocado tree, and never had much success. I don't think I expected to produce any fruit, I just wanted to see if I could grow one. It would go well until the plant would get some foliage and then it would die. My dreaded brown thumb started early I guess.

Now that I'm all growed up LOL, I might try again and will post my results here. Stay tuned!

1. Wash the seed. Using three toothpick, suspend it broad end down over a water-filled glass to cover about an inch of the seed.


2. Put it in a warm place out of direct sunlight and replenish water as needed. You should see roots and stem sprout in about two to six weeks.


3. When the stem is six to seven inches long, cut it back to about three inches.


4. When the roots are thick and the stem has leafed out again, plant it in a rich humus soil in a 10-1/2" diameter pot, leaving the seed half exposed.


5. Give it frequent, light waterings with an occasional deep soak. Generally, the soil should be moist but not saturated. Yellowing leaves are a sign of over-watering; let the plant dry out for a few days.


6. The more sunlight, the better.


7. If leaves turn brown and fry at the tips, too much salt has accumulated in the soil. Let water run freely into the pot and drain for several minutes.


8. When the stem is 12 inches high, cut it back to 6 inches to encourage the growth of new shoots.


9. While it is true that you can grow a tree from an avocado seed, keep in mind that a tree grown from seed will be very different from its parent variety and may take 7-15 years to begin producing fruit. Fruit from a tree grown from seed tends to have different flavor characteristics than their parent variety. Known varieties such as Hass avocados are grafted to preserve their varietal characteristics rather than grown from a seed.

Information provided with thanks from California Avocado Commission

This lens was nominated in the 2008 Giant Squid Awards, Best Cooking Lens category.

Please be sure to check all these fantastic lenses by very talented Giant Squid lensmasters.

I was honored to be included with such fabulous lensmasters!

And I can't forget to thank Bonnie, Patti & Robin, our very hard working Giant Squid Organizers for the nomination.