Not Only Berries..
Irene Wong
Yes, it is every where, abundance of sweet colorful berries are easily available in the summer. They are not only great eaten alone but also delicious in crumble, tart, yogurt and smoothies. This time of the year, avocado is also my favorite! It is light, flavorful and delicious, it's a quick pick me up on a hot summer afternoon as energy booster. Not only I have use them in guacamole, but also creating ice cream and smoothies this time of the year.
In preparation for avocado smoothie
Recently, I spent a weekend in my friend Ruth Barash's beach house. After return from a swim, Ruth smashed the two ripened avocados to a nice creamy texture with a squeeze of lime juice, salt and served with various chips along with her concoction of vodka before dinner.
During the time that I have spent in Vietnam, this is one of favorite snack. It is nutritious and rich supplement, especially after getting off from taking a two hour Vietnamese lessons in a non air condition room. My cyclo driver will take me by a street near the market in down town Saigon with vendors specialized in selling mixed fruit drinks. I will go to my usual vendor, a family owned a shake shack, his cart is beautifully displayed and it is decorated with fresh fruits from durians to vine ripened mangoes for shakes and three large ice crushers.
My all time favorite that I would order is sinh to bo, an avocado shake with condense milk. It is delicious, thirst quenching and a large gulp of this cold rich shake with a straw sends and numb my brain. From what I remembered living in Vietnam during my four years there, there are always avocados all year round. The French had introduced avocados in the 40's and it is grown in the high land area as well as in Mekong delta. It is rich in oil and low in sugar and good source of vitamin C.
Out of the blender, creamy delicious avocado smoothie
Here is the recipe from my great friend Andrea Nguyen, of avocado smoothie. It is so delicious that I make in large batches when I have guests over. I added some brown sugar since I was low with the condense milk
Makes about 2 1/4 cups, enough to serve 2 or 3
1 ripe medium avocado (6-8 ounces)
1 cup ice (8 ice cubes)
1/3 cup sweetened condensed milk
1/4 to 1/2 cup milk
Scoop the avocado flesh into a blender. Add the remaining ingredients, starting out with the least amount of milk and puree until completely smooth. Taste and add additional milk, depending on the avocado type and if thinner consistency is desired.
Click here to see another avocado recipe I have contributed for Cooking Channel.
Avocado Smoothie (VEGAN OPTION)
1/4 cup of coconut milk
1/8 cup of sugar
1 avocado, hess variety
4 cups of ice