Avocados are one of my favorite foods to have as a snack. Many afternoons, I come home and make a bowl of guacamole.  My love for avocado started as a child. My father would cut them into cubes and put them in a salad, or we would have them in a bowl with lemon juice, salt and pepper.   I will never forget the time when my brother was visiting his friend in Florida.  Jimmy came home with a sports bag filled with avocados right off of the tree.  Once his friend knew our dad liked avocados, there was no turning back.  I remember our mouths watering just at the site of all the avocados.  We ate them for days, never tiring of their delicious texture and taste.

I know many people that don't eat them because they have a lot of fat.  Well, that may be true, but everything else good about them compensates for the fat in my opinion.  Avocados contain lutein, which may be proven to protect the eyes.  Plus, they contain about 20 vitamins and minerals!  

How do I eat avocado?  I've tried many things.  I will never forget the time my former husband and I had guest for dinner.  What to cook?  I wanted appetizer, soup, salad, main entree and dessert.  Being that it is so hot in Georgia during the summer, I decided to make avocado soup!  It sounded cool and refreshing.  My ex husband and I ate pretty much everything, so he never knew what to expect from my culinary quests for something different.  Proudly, I serve my avocado soup. Our friend had never had the soup before, but had no problem teasing me a little about it.  This was back in the 80's when cold soups were served at places, but their popularity had not reached the scale of today. Anyway, after the jokes about the soup looking like "foamy shaving cream", we enjoyed the soup.    

If I am making a Greek Salad, I always toss in an avocado.  Avocado slices on any sub sandwich are delicious.  I also like avocado and cucumber sandwiches with Greek Tzatziki sauce on crusty French bread.  Since I make guacamole several times a week, here is a simple recipe.

Guacamole

2 Avocados: either California or Florida (I like them both)

1 garlic clove minced

1 teaspoon of cumin

1 teaspoon sea salt

1 roma tomato, diced

1 green onion

1 Tablespoon black olives

2 Tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped

juice of one lemon

1 teaspoon pepper

optional ingredient: 1 tablespoon sour cream

Dice avocado and sprinkle with the lemon juice. Mash with fork until relatively smooth  (You can leave it in dice if desired). Gently mix in other ingredients.