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Friday, June 1, 2018

Benefits of Eating Avocados with Serving Ideas

Health Info, Guacamole Recipe, Serving Ideas



Don’t you just love the taste of avocados? This post provides a guacamole recipe, serving ideas, and tips to help you enjoy more avocados in your eating plan. 

This GREEN SUPER FRUIT is loaded with health benefits and taste appeal. Read on to learn more about this versatile green wonder food.

Updated 1/14/2024


Avocado Toast
Avocado toast sandwich with strawberries and sesame seeds

Avocados are sensually delicious, and are a powerful source of antioxidants and nutrients, including healthy unsaturated fat.  

Concerned about reducing inflammation? Avocados are an anti-inflammatory food that's healthy to eat every day. 

It's simple to incorporate avocados into various dishes like sandwiches, salads, or to top tacos, burritos, chili, and all the south of the border style food you enjoy. 


Benefits of Eating 

Avocados

A 3.5 oz. (100 gram) 

Serving 

Provides:


Vitamin K: 26% of the Daily Value (DV)

Folate: 20% of the DV

Vitamin C: 17% of the DV

Potassium: 14% of the DV (more than a banana)

Vitamin B5: 14% of the DV

Vitamin B6: 13% of the DV

Vitamin E: 10% of the DV

           Contains Magnesium, 
Manganese, Copper, Iron, Zinc, 
Phosphorous, Vitamin A, B1 
(Thiamine), B2 (Riboflavin) and 
B3 (Niacin), and many minerals 
and vitamins your body needs 
for good health.

Other Benefits 

Include:


Avocados can replace fat in recipes calling for butter or other oils.

Half an avocado is about one portion and is 160 calories.

This green fruit is low in fructose and rich in healthy monounsaturated fat and potassium.

Research suggests avocados benefit vascular function, heart health, and possibly prevent cancer, when combined with an active lifestyle and whole food plant based eating plan.

Avocados are a good source of lutein and zeaxanthin, antioxidants that protect vision. The most concentrated amounts are in the darker green flesh that's closest to the peel.

Avocados are versatile and in season in California and neighboring states during spring and summer, when we love to eat simple to prepare fun foods including salads.


Ripe avocados will yield to gentle pressure, and should be eaten within a day or two. Unripe fruit can be stored for four to five days to ripen at room temperature. 

To slow the ripening process and keep on hand longer, place a partly ripe avocado in the refrigerator. It will keep better this way.


Prep Tips: Make avocado prep simple. Sprinkle sliced avocado with a pinch of salt and pepper. Try out other seasonings like paprika, cayenne pepper, balsamic vinegar or lemon juice and notice which ones you prefer. 

Another quick way to prep and season an avocado is to cut it into chunks. Then, drizzle on a little bit of olive oil, balsamic vinegar, pepper and salt.


Now on to the Recipes:


Guacamole Recipe is Tasty and Easy to Prepare


Nancy Andres' Quick and Spicy Guacamole



Ingredients:

1 large or 2 medium size ripe tomatoes
Juice from 1 freshly squeezed lime or lemon
1 small yellow onion diced
2 medium size ripe avocados
1 small jalapeño pepper
Freshly ground black pepper and a pinch of salt
Optional Ingredients: cilantro, chili pepper flakes, and salsa

What to do:

1. Wash tomatoes and dice. Peel onion and dice as well. Place both in the serving bowl you intend to use.

2. Wear gloves to cut open a jalapeño pepper. Rinse the pepper, remove and discard seeds, then finely chop.

3. Add half a jalapeno to mixture and proceed to the other steps.

4. Cut avocados in half and remove pits. Score the inside of each avocado with a blunt knife and scoop out the flesh with a spoon. Put in a mixing bowl.

5. Use a fork to roughly mash the avocados. I like guac chunky, so I leave some larger pieces. Mash to the consistency you like best. 

6. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, lime or lemon juice, and add any or all of the optional ingredients you like. Cilantro is strong tasting and I prefer to use it only for the garnish. Many like it. Take what you like and leave the rest.

Note: Taste the guacamole. If you like more heat, add the other half of the jalapeño pepper and combine. Better to go slowly with this as once it’s too spicy it’s hard to eat.

7. Place all ingredients into the serving bowl and mix well. Serve immediately along with corn chips as a snack or with your favorite south of the border main course food.

If you're making it early, refrigerate until serving time. Best way to store is to cover it tightly (air tight container) and not to keep it for more than a day or two before serving.

Note: Guacamole that’s exposed to the air and not eaten right away, will turn gray-brown from oxidation. To reduce this effect, sprinkle the top with a teaspoon of lemon or lime juice. Cover guacamole tightly before refrigerating.
Note: Chilling tomatoes hurts their flavor. I recommend you chop and add tomato for the guacamole right before serving.





Here's a colorful, taste tempting recipe from Gluten Free A-Z Blog.


 Avocado Basil Gazpacho

 Picture and Recipe Source: J Algazi


creamed avocado gazpacho with chopped vegetables
Smooth, creamy, and crunchy describes this delightfully healthy gazpacho.

Did you learn something new about avocados from my post? 

Do you eat avocados often or not so much? Is that going to change?

Please take a moment to comment. I read and appreciate every one!

Share the love and spread the word about this delicious GREEN wonder food. When you do, provide a link back to this post.  


Be well. Live well. Lead a Colorful Life

See more about GREEN. Read ideas to help you use green to enhance your lifestyle.





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24 comments:

  1. Thanks so much for linking up your post at the #WednesdayAIMLinkParty 43.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. My pleasure Dee. Love the #WednesdayAIMLinkParty and thanks for hosting.

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  2. I love avocados! Thanks for linking up at the #WednesdayAIMLinkParty 43

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Nice to learn we both love avocados. Thanks for hosting Sylvia. The #WednesdayAIMLinkParty is such fun.

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  3. Replies
    1. Must admit, they are my fav too! Happy Sunday and stay safe and well.

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  4. I love avocado! It's a perfect pairing in an arugula salad. Thanks for sharing this post at the What's for Dinner party. Have a fabulous weekened.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Helen for the visit, comment, hosting the What's For Dinner Blog Party, and have a fabulous weekend too.

      Delete
  5. I love avocados! Thanks for sharing at the What's for Dinner party. Have a great week.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Nancy, I love avocados so it's wonderful to see just how good they are for me too! That gazpacho sounds like something I need to try real soon.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Please let me know when you try it. Can't wait till it gets a little warmer here to make it again and again. Thanks for the visit and enjoy today!

      Delete
  7. I love smashing up avocados and eating them with chips. Or putting it on my tacos/burritos.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I love eating them those ways too. Have a beautiful weekend and please visit Colors 4 Health again.

      Delete
  8. I love avocados and eat a small one every day at breakfast. The recipes sound yummy!

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    Replies
    1. Thanks Pam for the visit and comment. I LOVE avocados too. I usually eat half at lunch and another half at dinner. Wishing you a beautiful day.

      Delete
  9. While every nutritionist promotes Avocados as full of healthy fats, fibre, cholesterol, you name it...Dr D'Adamo's research shows that if one is a Blood type B< avocado might actually cause that person inflammation. Which gets worse with menopause. I haven't found contradictory research so I now miss my favorite fruit! I truly love/d avocado, ate it daily literally.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Must check that info out. Thanks for the visit and comment. Wishing you a beautiful day.

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  10. I love avocados. And I agree you can never go wrong with guacamole. But I like eating them right in the shell with some Tajin seasoning sprinkled on them.

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    Replies
    1. Hear you Donna about eating avocados right in the shell. Half an avocado in the shell is a great snack to tide me over till dinner. Wishing you a beautiful day.

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  11. Great info, most only think of avocados for guacamole. We enjoy them often at our house, and while I would never turn down guacamole, my favorite way is with a bit of salt as a starter to my meal. Thanks for sharing with SSPS, and I hope you can come back to share again next Monday!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yum. Wishing you a lovely day and see you at the SSPS blog party next week,

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  12. Thank you from your SSPS Team for sharing your links with us at #269 SSPS Linky.

    ReplyDelete