Cuisine Culture
www.geocities.com/tangweihua_un June, 2009
Welcome back colleagues and friends. Cuisine & Culture is happy to be back with you again for a special issue on avocado prompted by the daily sight of the above-pictured huge avocado tree right in front of the terrace of the editor’s Gigiri residence opposite the UN compound. With its mission to help us eat well and eat healthy, Cuisine & Culture regrets having not recommended to you sooner to be avocado friendly and give it due respect it well deserves.
Avocado is colloquially known as the Alligator Pear, reflecting its shape and the leather-like appearance of its skin. Avocado is derived from the Aztec word "ahuacatl". Beneath its somewhat homely appearance, though, avocado is full of treasure thanks to oleic acid, a monounsaturated fat it contains that helps to lower cholesterol and contribute to optimal health with remarkable results as is proven by studies.
In one study of people with moderately high cholesterol levels, individuals who, at recommendation of health specialists, followed a diet high in avocado showed clear health improvements. After seven days on the diet that included avocado, they had significant decreases in total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol, along with an 11% increase in health promoting HDL cholesterol.
Avocado is also a good source of potassium, a mineral that helps regulate blood pressure. Adequate intake of potassium can help to guard against circulatory diseases like high blood pressure, heart disease or stroke. The U.S. Food and Drug Association has authorized a health claim that states: "Diets containing foods that are good sources of potassium and low in sodium may reduce the risk of high blood pressure and stroke."
Not only is avocado a rich source of monounsaturated fatty acids including oleic acid, which has recently been shown to offer significant protection against breast cancer, but it is also a very concentrated dietary source of the carotenoid lutein; it further contains measurable amounts of related carotenoids (zeaxanthin, alpha-carotene and beta-carotene) plus significant quantities of tocopherols (vitamin E). Don’t be intimidated by these long and unfamiliar terms which all mean good stuff, though.
A laboratory study shows an extract of avocado containing carotenoids and tocopherols inhibited the growth of both androgen-dependent and androgen-independent prostate cancer cells. Not only was the whole matrix of carotenoids and tocopherols in avocado necessary for its ability to kill prostate cancer cells, but the researchers also noted that the significant amount of monounsaturated fat in avocado plays an important role too.
Avocado further contains phytonutrients, good fighters against oral cancer which is more likely to result in death than breast, skin, or cervical cancer, due to late detection. Armed with phytonutrients avocado may offer a delicious dietary strategy for the prevention of oral cancer in targeting multiple signaling pathways, increasing the amount of free radicals (reactive oxygen species) within pre-cancerous and cancerous human oral cell lines, that leads to their death, but causes no harm to normal cells.
So, delicious dietary strategy with avocado is what Cuisine & Culture aims at in this special issue. Enjoying a few slices of avocado in our tossed salad, or mixing some chopped avocados into our favorite salsa will not only add a rich, creamy flavor, but will greatly increase our body's ability to absorb the health-promoting carotenoids that vegetables provide, even when a very small amount-as little as 2 ounces-of avocado was added.
Here comes a word of caution, though, before we move on to delicious and nutritious avocado recipes that’ll follow below. Like bananas and chestnuts, avocado contains substances called chitinases that are associated with the latex-fruit allergy syndrome. There is strong evidence of the cross-reaction between latex and these foods. If you have a latex allergy, you may very likely be allergic to these foods as well. Your discretion is kindly advised.
And colleagues and friends, here we go with a couple of choice recipes of avocado which Cuisine & Culture recommends for your weekend leisure dining or party entertaining. Enjoy!
Avocado Papaya Salad
Ingredients:
2 large avocados.
1 small papaya fruit.
1 ruby red grapefruit.
1 small head of lettuce.
2 tablespoons of olive oil.
1 tablespoon of lemon juice.
Salt and black pepper, to taste.
Preparation Instructions:
Peel the avocados and the papaya and remove the pits and seeds.
Cut the fruit into one inch pieces and mix them together in a suitably sized bowl.
Using a sharp knife, peel the grapefruit, then segment it, removing the thin membrane from each of the segments.
Cut the segments in half then add to the fruit mixture.
Wash the lettuce and break into leaves.
Place the leaves on a platter and put the fruit mixture on top of them.
Whisk the olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper together in a suitably sized bowl to produce the dressing.
Drizzle the dressing over the salad and serve.
Salad
Ingredients:
2 lb of asparagus.
2 medium avocados.
Juice and zest of 1 lemon.
2 tablespoons of olive oil.
2 tablespoons of fresh parsley.
1 tablespoon of fresh coriander.
1 tablespoon of white wine vinegar.
½ tablespoon of balsamic vinegar.
1 teaspoon of castor sugar.
1 teaspoon of fresh mint.
Salt and pepper, to taste.
Preparation Instructions:
Trim off the tough ends of the asparagus, then steam until just tender and bright green.
Plunge the asparagus into cold water to halt the cooking time and drain well. Set aside.
Peel the avocados then dice the flesh. Toss with the lemon juice and lemon zest and add to the asparagus.
For the dressing, whisk the white wine vinegar, balsamic vinegar, olive oil, castor sugar, mint and parsley.
Add salt and pepper to taste and then pour over the asparagus.
Toss lightly, then spoon into a suitably sized bowl.
Refrigerate and serve.
Avocado Salsa
Ingredients:
· 1 (16 ounce) package frozen corn kernels, thawed
· 2 (2.25 ounce) cans sliced ripe olives, drained
· 1 red bell pepper, chopped
· 1 small onion, chopped
· 5 cloves garlic, minced
· 1/3 cup olive oil
· 1/4 cup lemon juice
· 3 tablespoons cider vinegar
· 1 teaspoon dried oregano
· 1/2 teaspoon salt
· 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
· 4 avocados - peeled, pitted and diced
DIRECTIONS
1. In a large bowl, mix corn, olives, red bell pepper and onion.
2. In a small bowl, mix garlic, olive oil, lemon juice, cider vinegar, oregano, salt and pepper. Pour into the corn mixture and toss to coat. Cover and chill in the refrigerator 8 hours, or overnight.
3. Stir avocados into the mixture before serving.
People cannot get enough of this appetizer! Takes some time putting together but it's worth the work!! Serve with tortilla chips.
Avocado dip
Ingredients:
1 large ripe avocado.1 clove of garlic, peeled and chopped.1 green chili, chopped.2 ½ oz of unflavored fresh cheese.3 tablespoons of fresh coriander leaves.1 tablespoon of lemon juice.½ teaspoon of salt.¼ teaspoon of ground cumin.
Preparation Instructions:
Slice the avocado into two length way and remove the stone.
Scoop out the flesh and put into a food processor with all other ingredients except the cumin. Blend well.
Move the dip into its serving dish and sprinkle the cumin over top.
And here are some tips for preparing avocados:
Use a stainless steel knife to cut the avocado in half lengthwise. Gently twist the two halves in opposite direction if you find the flesh clinging to the pit. Remove the pit, either with a spoon or by spearing with the tip of a knife. Place the halves face down, then peel and slice. If the flesh is too soft to be sliced, just slide a spoon along the inside of the skin and scoop it out. You can prevent the natural darkening of the avocado flesh that occurs with exposure to air by sprinkling with a little lemon juice or vinegar.
And here come a few quick serving ideas with
Use chopped avocados as a garnish for black bean soup.
Add avocado to your favorite creamy tofu-based dressing recipe to give it an extra richness and beautiful green color.
Mix chopped avocados, onions, tomatoes, cilantro, lime juice and seasonings for a rich-tasting twist on traditional guacamole.
Spread ripe avocados on bread as a healthy replacement for mayonnaise when making a sandwich.
For an exceptional salad, combine sliced avocado with fennel, oranges and fresh mint.
For a beautiful accompaniment to your favorite Mexican dish, top quartered avocado slices with corn relish and serve with a wedge of lime.
Cooking healthy, eating healthy, feeling great!
From the Editor: Cuisine & Culture obtains its materials both online and off line with sources omitted for reason of simplicity but can be provided upon request. Certain materials come in languages other than English which Cuisine & Culture renders into English to the best of its ability. Cuisine & Culture is not in a position to verify the veracity of the materials provided herein. Reader’s discretion is kindly advised.
A Special Acknowledgement of Thanks from Cuisine & Culture
Cuisine & Culture wishes to express its heartfelt thanks to Kevin Wambura of the ITS team here at UNON in Nairobi and Yawtsong Lee, a veteran interpreter at UN headquarters, now retired, for their technical advice and assistance and is hereby extremely pleased to retain them as Technical Advisors to Cuisine & Culture.
Cuisine Culture
Weihua Tang/Editor
United Nations Office at Nairobi
Division of Conference Services
Interpretation Section
Ext.1024/Rm.CW-205