America’s appetite for avocados just keeps growing.
This year, we’ll eat more than 2.5 billion pounds of the creamy fruit (yes, it’s a fruit) on toast, sandwiches, salads and chips. That’s 5.5 billion avocados, which is twice as many as we ate a decade ago and five times what we ate two decades ago. Keeping us supplied is the Irvine Ranch, a Top 5 producer in the U.S. that’s been growing Hass avocados here since the 1970s.
It’s no wonder that avocado is a popular ingredient with Irvine Chefs. Here are a few recipes featured at local restaurants that you can prepare in your own kitchen.
Avocado Toast
EATS Kitchen and Bar, Hotel Irvine
4 slices thick rustic sourdough
2 avocados, mashed
1 cup roasted corn
1 each pasilla/poblano pepper, roasted,
peeled, seeded and sliced
2 cups grape tomatoes, sliced in half
1⁄4 cup grated cotija cheese
1 cup creme fraiche
daikon sprouts as needed
Maldon salt, as needed
Method:
Roast, peel, de-seed, and julienne pasilla (poblano) pepper. Toast bread and spread with avocado. Top with peppers, corn, tomatoes, cotija cheese and creme fraiche. Season with Maldon salt, garnish with daikon sprouts.
EATS Kitchen and Bar strives to show local love. Whenever possible, the culinary team supports the community by using produce grown here at home. Executive Chef Michael Beck, originally from Austria, calls his food New American and takes pride in knowing the history of each ingredient. By working closely with local farmers, he and his staff create menus that are casual, comforting and fun. Avocado Toast has become a breakfast staple at EATS Kitchen and Bar. “It’s a dish that lends itself perfectly to our health conscious clientele,” said Chef Beck. “Of course, it’s also delicious at brunch paired with a refreshing Mimosa.”
www.eatskitchen.com
949-225-6780
Flourless Chocolate Cake with Avocado
Tender Greens, Irvine Spectrum
Flourless Chocolate Cake
4 oz. dark chocolate
4 oz. ripe mashed avocado
5 1⁄2 oz. sugar
3 eggs
1⁄2 cup cocoa powder
Chocolate Ganache
4 oz. dark chocolate
1⁄2 cup puréed avocado
1 tablespoon agave
For Chocolate Cake
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9-inch cake pan and line with
parchment paper. Chop chocolate into small pieces. Melt the chocolate, then add mashed avocado and mix until smooth. Add sugar, then add eggs and whisk well.
Sift cocoa powder into mixture. Whisk just until combined. Bake until top has formed a thin crust.
For Ganache
Melt the chocolate and the agave together and combine with avocado purée. Spread
over cooled cake. Top cake with whatever fruit you like and dust with powdered sugar.
At Tender Greens, fresh ingredients are the star of the show. Each day the menu is based on seasonal products grown locally. “The quality of the food and sustainability is so important,” said Executive Chef Amanda Bradford. “I’m passionate about sourcing locally-grown products in my store. It’s a driving force of Tender Greens as a company.” Bradford has been working in restaurants for over eleven years and, when she came to Tender Greens, she brought her experience as a pastry chef with her. Avocado for dessert? “I took an old cake recipe and modified it a little to make it healthier,” Bradford said. “Avocado works perfectly!”
www.tendergreens.com/locations/irvine-spectrum
949-679-9135
Classic Guacamole
Javier’s Cantina, Irvine Spectrum
Makes 4 Servings
2 avocados
1⁄2 white onion (finely chopped)
2 tablespoons cilantro (chopped)
1 teaspoon of serrano chile seeded
and chopped
2 teaspoons salt
Mash, mix and enjoy!
No collection of Irvine avocado recipes would be complete without Guacamole, fresh from the kitchen at Javier’s Cantina. An Orange County favorite since 1995, Javier Sosa, Sr. and his family offer award-winning, elevated Mexican cuisine made from the finest and the freshest local ingredients. Even though this Guacamole recipe tastes best on Javier’s al fresco patio along with a hand-shaken, jalapeno margarita, you can prepare and enjoy this classic anytime and enjoy it at home.
www.javiers-cantina.com
949-872-2101
