I was born and brought up in a small beautiful hill station called Coorg which is situated in southern India. I was fortunate enough to grow up among some wonderful people and enjoy a splendid variety of food. One of my most favorite fruits as a kid (it still is) was Butter-fruit/Avocado.  This commercial fruit is grown in Coorg in July through August/September and is a familiar sight at the table during this period. I remember those days when I used to come back home from school and just dive into a big fat bowl of whipped Butter-fruit. It was surreal! 🙂

As a kid, I only ever ate Avocado one way (the best way) – mixing the fruit pulp with sugar and a tablespoon of milk – and it might sound simple, but it’s absolutely over-the-top! Ofcourse, there are Avocado egg rolls , salted and peppered Avocado, fried Avocados, Avocado omelets and so many more Avocado dishes available today. And believe me when I say this, this fruit can easily become anybody’s favorite. 😀

Lately, I’ve started enjoying Avocados in smoothies. I’ve discovered that Avocado-based smoothies are easy to make, very tasty and they fill you up for hours. They are quite healthy too. What more do you need?

Avocado-Dryfruit Smoothie

Ingredients

Avocados – 2

Apple – 1

Banana – 1

Almond milk – 2 cups (Whole milk or low-fat milk can be used as well)

Plain/ Vanilla Yogurt – 1/2 cup (optional)

Honey – 2 tbsp

Turmeric powder – 1/4 tsp

Topping:

Dry fruits – Raisins, Almonds, Cashewnuts, Apricots, Walnuts (Go nuts!) 😀

Directions:

• Combine all ingredients in a blender and puree at high until a smooth texture is achieved.
• Top the smoothie with dry fruits and enjoy!

Variation: You can also add a cup of cooked oats while blending to make it a meal. 🙂

Avocados consist of healthy fats and since they have a neutral taste, they can be combined with any non-citric fruit to produce a thick, creamy texture in smoothies. Here’s a picture of a glass of Avocado-Blueberry Smoothie that I concocted a few weeks ago. It was just as tasty!

Another  fun way to incorporate Avocados in your diet is to simply whisk one and to use it as a spread.

Avocado Bread Spread

Ingredients:

Avocado – 1

Sugar or honey – 2 tbsp

Milk – 2 tbsp

Directions:

• Whisk all ingredients together and you’re done!
• This can be used as a healthy substitute for cheese on bread.

So you see, Avocados are wonderful. Try out more Avocado combinations in smoothies and you’ll soon start loving this fruit as much as I do. See you soon! 🙂