Food of the Week: Creamy, Green Chocolate

Anyhow, let’s get on with our yummy food of the week. What creamy, green delight will I be talking about this week? The Avocado of course!!! I must admit; now that I have been on an Avocado kick for the last several weeks, I can definitely see why it’s often referred to as the “chocolate” of fruits.

Since swimsuit season is fast approaching I did find myself asking, “how can eating fat, not make me fat?” The answer: When it’s a healthy fat! Contrary to popular assumptions, the avocado can actually be a helpful part of a successful weight-management program. For instance, the avocados monounsaturated fat content is great for speeding up your metabolism as well as giving you that full feeling to prevent you from over eating.

Some More Fun Facts:

• Avocados are a fruit, not a vegetable, belonging to the genus Persea in the Lauraceae family.
• Avocados are sodium- and cholesterol-free and have only five grams of fat per serving, most of it the monounsaturated kind.
• Avocados were once a luxury food reserved for the tables of royalty, but now California avocados are enjoyed around the world by people from all walks of life.
• Brazilians add avocados to ice cream
• Filipinos puree avocados with sugar and milk for a dessert drink.
• The avocado is also called an Alligator Pear because of its pear-like shape and green skin.
• Avocado is a corruption of the Spanish word aguacate, which is in turn a corruption of the Aztec word ahuacatl.
• California produces about 90% of the nation’s avocado crop.
• San Diego County is the Avocado Capital of the U.S., producing 60% of all the avocados grown in California.
• There are about 7,000 avocado groves in California; the average size is around 10 acres.
• A single California avocado tree can produce about 500 avocados (or 200 pounds of fruit) a year although usually average about 60 pounds from 150 fruit.
• There are seven varieties of avocados grown commercially in California, but the Hass is the most popular, accounting for approximately 95% of the total crop volume.
• California avocados grow year-round.

Protein, vitamins A and E, potassium and fiber are just a few of the avocados 20 beneficial nutrients! Replace the fatty, processed crap with one of these gems and you too can achieve True Optimal Health! It make me salivate just thinking about this yummy “Green Chocolate”. Can’t wait to give you the Avocado and Tomato Salad Recipe I’ve been filling up on everyday!

Stay Tuned,

Brandi

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