Guacamole

Avocados have been spotted in our supermarkets only of late , in the last couple of years or so. I was therefore surprised to learn that they grow rather prolifically in many farmlands and hill stations around Coimbatore. A lot of this fruit is actually sent away for sale and hardly any are considered for local consumption.

I think the emerging interest in global cuisine along with the growing passion to create new dishes in the home kitchen is what has led to the increase in demand for these fruits and vegetables which are not considered traditionally Indian. The Avocado is referred to as the butter fruit , owing to it’s smooth buttery texture. It’s no secret that sweet food appeals to most Indians and the butter fruit was eaten commonly by mashing it with a good helping of sugar ! Avocado ice cream I’m told was another way of using up these ripened fruit. It’s a very versatile ingredient but I would opt for it in savoury form more than the sweet, any day !

A lot of folk also had the wrong notion that the avocado is unhealthy , owing to the high fat content. It took awhile to figure out these fats are actually the healthy kind that are good for general well -being and not that are detrimental to health.

The first time I cooked with an avocado was to make a GuacaMOLE ! It’s a dish that is such a huge part of Mexican cuisine. It’s delicious in it’s simplicity . The burst of freshness and vibrancy that it imparts , leaves you salivating for more. And as you know , we in our family being huge lemon aficionados , the more lip puckering ,the better the taste. I’m a big fan of traditional flavours as far as this dish is considered…so no tomatoes or bell peppers to mar the taste of this zesty dip.  It wasn’t until a friend mentioned that the guacamole was a bit too sour ,did I realise that we tend to over do the lemon at home….thanks to her my recipe advises you to taste before adding the extra lemon.

So , when she sent me beautiful avocados from her farm, I was super thrilled. The colour of the flesh is more green than the buttery yellow of it’s Mexican counterpart. Look at the picture and you will know what i mean , it’s shot under natural light , no enhancing whatsoever…almost like I took a thread of neon green from my wardrobe and coloured it. The gorgeous wooden dishes and forks , gifted to me recently by a dear friend just added to the pleasure of making this dish !

I was happy because not only had I not made Guacamole in awhile but because my kids love it and I had just the chip to dip it in !!! I picked up this bag of purple / blue potato chips on a trip to foodhall in Bangalore and it was sitting there unopened , waiting for the right moment…. no righter a moment than guacamole, so out came the packet ,we feasted and how ! (Yes ! I did mangae to snag a few for myself !) Believe it or not I live with selfish little gluttons…. not my genes for sure ! Before any of you lovely souls go tattling to my husband , it’s not his genes either …more like some alien influence 😛 (or a new inborn characteristic ! ) Anyyy way ,the bottomless pits were actually unsure of eating a “potato chip” with the guacamole  and gave me a look  that said , ‘where are the corn chips ?!’ Now , I know these snack munchies who masquerade as gourmands, so i just said that Nigella served her guacamole with blue chips and since I love the contrast in colour , I’m doing the same !  One bite led to many more and now we are big fans of blue crisps with guacamole.

Leftovers are great for breakfast with just hard boiled eggs and toast !

I’m never telling them that Nigella’s chips were in fact , blue corn tortilla chips and not potato ! I know right … EVIL  😉  😀