Avocados are one of the the most abundant veggies here in Southern California, in fact, we grow 90% of the crops in the U.S & 40% of that is right here in San Diego County! So, we wanted to give you a few fun facts that you may not know about the avocado.
- You may have heard of avocados described as a superfood. But why? Well, in addition to having more potassium than a banana, they also have 9 grams of fiber in just one avocado, which is more than any other fruit (they’re actually classified as a berry because the seed is on the inside). The fat that makes up avocados is a healthy fat because it decreases cardiovascular inflammation and lowers cholesterol. Plus, this type of fat makes you full. And there’s tons of vitamins in an avocado, too, like B vitamins, Vitamins C, E & K, beta carotene, lutein, and omega 3s. Sounds pretty power packed, doesn’t it?! A super food indeed.
- The easiest way to remove the seed is to cut the avocado in quarters. Cut it in half, lengthwise first, then cut horizontally and Viola! the seed will come out seamlessly with your fingertips.
- They haven’t always been called avocados. The Nahuatl (any ancient people of Mexico & Central America) word for the fruit/berry is ahuacatl, a word being not so easy to pronounce which led the Spanish to call them aguacate, which by loose pronunciation in English, turned into avocado. It’s also been called an alligator pear, and we can see why just by it’s skin. In fact Jamaican’s still call the avocado, alligator pear.
- You know how a freshly picked avocado isn’t ripe yet? Well this is the case with all avocados. They can stay on the tree for as long as 18 months and will not ripen until after they are picked. Speed up the ripening process by putting them in a paper bag and they’ll be ready in a couple of days.
- You can replace butter with avocado in just about any dessert recipe. Use a 1:1 ratio of butter to pureed avocado. The mild flavor goes unnoticeable, and it’s a great way to make sweets more on the healthy side.
