I’m a big avocado fan. One of my favorite ways to eat avocados is to cut a slice and sprinkle it with a bit of salt. For a more fulfilling snack, spread it on a piece of bread. As a side dish, mix them with tomatoes, onions, oil and vinegar and you got the perfect summer salad. Eat it alone or on a bed of lettuce. Growing up, my grandpa would add codfish to the avocado/tomato mixture to make it the main course.
“Florida Avocadoes” are close relatives to edible cinnamon, camphor, sassafras and bay leaf herb. They are native to Mexico, Central America and parts of South America. Did you know there are over 50 different varieties of Florida Avocados? All thanks to Henry Perrine who first introduced them to Florida in 1833 making Florida the first state to cultivate avocados. Avocados are grown on the southeast and southwest coast of Florida. You can find them fresh between June and March.
Florida Avocado vs. Hass
Did you know they have 60% more potassium than bananas per serving? They are also high in protein, fiber, folate, Vitamin E. Florida avocadoes have 3-15%oil, which means they have less total fat than California avocado varieties.
They are also larger in size than Hass and their skin doesn’t turn color when ripe. You’ll know your avocado is ready to eat when it yields to gentle pressure. If you need to ripen an avocado, you can speed up the process by placing it in a paper bag at room temperature. My grandpa would just put it inside the oven for a day or two.
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