A couple of weeks ago I wrote about a rice tasting event I attended at George Brown College here in Toronto. The next day I received a lovely email from Andrea of Faye Clark Communications who represent not only the USA Rice Federation but also Avocados from Mexico. She loved my post and wondered whether I would like to receive some Avocados from Mexico promotional products. Since avocados are one of my most favourite fruit, I of course said yes immediately and last Wednesday Neil’s office received a “guac pac”(guacamole all ready to mix and eat) and these:
Ummm…. YES PLEASE!
Since we are well into the silly season and treats seem to be abounding at home with a party every 2 seconds (slight exaggeration but you know what I mean), I thought I would bring this into school for my colleagues who, like all teachers, are beginning to feel a little “done” at this point in the longest term of the year.
I asked them to give me their honest opinion. Everyone loved them. Some comments:
“Moist”
“Delicious”
“Not too sweet – love them”
“Scrumptious”
We all loved the fact that the avocado (a healthy fat) replaced the oil that is usually used in cupcakes or muffins and that these were not overly sweet. You absolutely could not taste the avocado at all. The resounding comment was that they were a great snack for lunchboxes (kids’ and adults’) or, really anytime!!! If you are interested in making them, you can find the recipe here. I will definitely be trying these in the New Year.
Next up, the “guac pac”. I LOVED that they sent everything pre-chopped except the avocado and lime:
I set to work last night as Neil and his “wine friends” had a “study session” for their blind tasting exam on Sunday. Looks like they were drinking wine to me. Perhaps I should have joined in… Anyway, I digress. Normally my guac involves tomatoes and hot sauce but Avocados from Mexico’s version (you can see the entire recipe here) is simply avocados, lime juice, cilantro, jalapeno peppers, red onion and garlic. Here we go:
A squeeze of lime…
And it’s ready to go:
Not to forget these, of course (also provided in the “guac pac”):
Verdict? This was a lovely classic guac though the general consensus was that it needed some tomato and a little more spice. The bowl was pretty clean though so I don’t think the lack of these two ingredients was a huge problem for my tasters!
Thanks so much Andrea and Avocados from Mexico for allowing me to test these out! I think the best part (now the eating is over!) is the fact that I also received a whole host of avocado recipes that I am dying to try out once we return from France in January. I will definitely post the results of my further experiments with avocados. In the meantime, check out the excellent Miss Ava Cado’s website, especially Avocados 101 where it helps you figure out how to purchase avocados, know when they are ripe and open them. There is also a very cute “telenovela” recounting the life of Ava 🙂
what a great promo pack! i love all kinds of guacamole, but steve and i both have a soft spot for the kind we often had in antigua – the woman who cooked for us made it with oregano instead of cilantro. it was a little odd at first taste, but it grew on us, and we quickly came to love it. she'd make a huge batch of it when she knew steve was coming back to visit.
This all looks wonderful! I didn't know that you can substitute oil and butter in baking with avocados. Great idea!
Oh darn, you've made me hungry again. I'm craving guacamole, chips and a beer.Except all I have are stale chips and shriveled up apple. Off to the store!
Wowee… you're getting asked if "you would possibly like" free stuff containing chocolate, now. Very much the big-time, in my estimation. The cupcakes sound yummy, and I will try them out. (You were a huge hit around here with the pomegranate pork, so I'm sure I'll have eager tasters.) And I did tell you I bought Tim-Tams locally. Made the mistake of keeping them in the car, so I could eat with my ever-present coffee. Gone FAST, they were.
…so will you be bringing some guac to Paris? Hmmmmm?
yum – love avocados – and guac is my go-to item I make for parties. If you ever use those cake mixes in a pinch, you can also substitute pumpkin puree instead of the oil and eggs to make the cake! It keeps the taste, but reduces the calories from about 1000 to approx 250. Friends have also used applesauce.
I've read about using avocado with chocolate, like in pudding. What a great substitute.
Best Family – ooooh, oregano – that's different – must try that.FLB – neither did I but it makes sense!Amanda – mmmmm guac, chips and a beer!Kablooey – I can't IMAGINE how you didn't eat the whole pack of Tim Tams in one go! And I would love to know if Mooch will eat these cupcakes…Kate – it's all gone!high low – yes, I knew about using pumpkin and apple sauce but had never heard of this…Unplanned – I am glad I found out about this use for avocados…
Kate, I am sure we can have some aperos at our flat, and make the guac then.I just found out we're having some sort of food blogger's convention in Paris next week, with 23 or so of Mardi's new online friends.That's more friends than I have in the real world – so I'm impressed.Hopefully I won't be relegated to role of wine steward. 😉
Neil – it's three bloggers, not 23 😉 We're meeting at Angelina's for some of their hot chocolate…
Great idea for Mimi and I during the holidays!
Yvonne – Cleo Mimi LOVES avocados!