Avocado Party!

I have previously established that I think that avocados are quite possibly the world’s most perfect food. Compact, nutrient packed, avocados are a portable nutrient powerhouse and I love them. So it should come as no surprise that I decided to host an avocado party.

I decided to go with an Avocado Luncheon where each course included avocados. I had nine guests and it was a lot of fun!

First up was (of course) guacamole. Served with multigrain corn chips, my guacamole is laced with diced tomatoes, jalapeno and cilantro. Instead of the typical garlic-which I often find harsh-mine includes finely minced shallot. For an impressive presentation I highly recommend purchasing a molcajete (mohl-ka-hey-te) which is basically a giant mortar and pestle. Ingredients are combined and served right in the molcajete…it looks so rustic.
Quick Guacamole

2 ripe avocados, peeled, seeds removed, diced
1/4 cup finely diced grape or plum tomatoes
2 tablespoons finely chopped shallot
1 teaspoon finely chopped jalapeno pepper, seeds removed
2 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro
Juice of 1 lime
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Combine all ingredients in molcajete or medium sized bowl; mash to combine.

Lunch was an avocado and citrus salad with a jalapeno vinaigrette. On the side were Avocado, Bacon and Sprout Sandwiches with Lemon-Pepper Crème Fraiche. Sandwiches were served on small Ciabatta rolls.

Avocado Citrus Salads with Jalapeno Avocado Oil Vinaigrette

8 cups mixed greens
2 seedless oranges, peeled and coarsely chopped
1 large red grapefruit, peeled and coarsely chopped
2 ripe avocados, peeled, seed and coarsely chopped
Jalapeno Vinaigrette:
1/4 cup Avocado oil
2 tablespoons champagne vinegar
2 tablespoon lime juice
1 tablespoon finely chopped shallot
1 teaspoon finely chopped jalapeno
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Arrange greens on a large serving platter. Scatter the oranges, grapefruit and avocado over the greens.

In a small food processor combine the avocado oil, vinegar, lime juice, shallot, jalapeno, salt and pepper; process until smooth.

Drizzle vinaigrette over the salad.

Avocado, Bacon and Sprout Ciabatta Sandwiches with Lemon Pepper Crème Fraiche

Lemon Pepper Crème Fraiche:
1 cup crème fraiche
1 tablespoon finely chopped lemon zest (about 2 lemons)
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
Sandwiches:
1 lb. thick sliced maple flavored bacon
2 cups sprouts, rinsed and patted dry
3-4 avocados, peeled, seeds removed, mashed
10 Ciabatta rolls, split

In a small bowl stir together the crème fraiche, lemon zest, lemon juice, pepper and salt; set aside.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Arrange the bacon in a single layer on the baking sheet and bake until crisp, about 10 minutes. Drain bacon on paper towels.

Spread the crème fraiche on the bottom half of each roll, top with the sprouts, followed by the bacon. Spread the mashed avocado on the top half of each roll and arrange on top of sandwiches.

Makes 10 sandwiches

Dessert was my favorite part of the party! I debated on how to serve the avocado for dessert-I had read online that in some countries avocados are mashed and sprinkled with sugar to be eaten as dessert. That was not particularly appealing to me. I love the combination of avocado and mango so I decided to go with those flavors in a sundae. Edy’s (Dreyers in some parts of the country) makes a Tart Mango Frozen Yogurt that is absolutely amazing!

Tart Mango Frozen Yogurt with Avocado-Coconut Sauce and Toasted Coconut

1/2 avocado
1/4 cup Crème de Coconut (such as Coco Lopez)
1/2 cup heavy cream
5 cups Edy’s Tart Mango Frozen Yogurt
1 cup flaked coconut, lightly toasted

In a blender (Magic Bullet works great here) combine the avocado, Crème de Coconut and heavy cream and blend until smooth.

Place 1/2 cup of frozen yogurt into each 10 serving bowls. Drizzle the Avocado-Coconut cream over frozen yogurt and sprinkle with the toasted coconut.

Makes 10 servings

Yogurt for Dessert

Yogurt is a food I had to teach myself to enjoy.

When I was pregnant and nursing my children, like any responsible mother-to-be, I wanted to make sure I was getting enough calcium so I decided to add yogurt to my diet. The initiation was a gradual one. I began with the whipped variety of yogurt-its light and fluffy texture made it seem more like flavored whipped cream than yogurt and certainly seemed more palatable to me. I cut the yogurt with fat free Cool Whip to lessen what I perceived as a sour "yogurty" taste and to make it more like a mousse. The amount of Cool Whip was then gradually reduced to none and after a time I was able to enjoy regular yogurt. Fast forward a few years and now I think yogurt is so tasty, I serve it for dessert.

While I now enjoy many varieties of yogurt, at the moment I am a big fan of Yoplait's Yo Plus Digestive Health yogurt. I like that it has some fiber in it as I am making a conscious effort to add more fiber to my diet.Yo Plus is a new yogurt in supermarkets that, according to Yoplait's web site, combines:

probiotics-active cultures to regulate the balance of
microorganisms in your digestive system and prebiotic cultures for a
healthy digestive system.
prebiotics- natural dietary fibers.

It does contain added sugar, but I am using it for dessert. Perhaps the 3 grams of fiber can make up for the added sugar-that's what I'll tell myself anyway.

Cherry season is in full swing, so I whipped up some Cherry-Almond Yogurt Parfaits. If the fat and calories from the whipped cream scare you, feel free to substitute some fat free Cool Whip, or if you would like to make the parfait for breakfast, just skip the cream completely.

Just a few cherry pitting pointers:

• You can use one of those cherry pitters that are out there but quite honestly they are a lot of work and don't seem to work all that well.
• I just quarter the cherry with the pit in and then pull apart and discard the pit.
• Or if you are really lazy (and sometimes I am) just halve the cherry, pull apart, eat the part with the pit in it (spitting out pit) and just halve the remaining half for your recipe...it will take you twice as long, but mmmm-mmm.

Cherry-Almond Yogurt Parfaits

1 cup chilled heavy cream

1/4 cup sugar

1 teaspoon almond extract

1/2 pound fresh cherries, quartered, pits removed (your choice of method)

4 (4 ounce) containers cherry flavored yogurt (I used the Yoplait Yo Plus)

1/2 cup slice almonds

Beat the heavy cream and sugar using an electric mixer on high speed until stiff peaks form; fold in the almond extract.

Divide 1/3 of the whipped cream between 4 parfait glasses. Add a layer of cherries followed by a layer of the yogurt, using half. Scatter a layer of sliced almonds. Repeat with a layer of whipped cream, cherries, yogurt and almonds. End with whipped cream followed by the remaining cherries. Serve immediately or chill until ready to serve.