Avocado | 20something cupcakes

dinner party menu: easy summer shrimp boil.

July 31, 2011 — Leave a comment

Here’s one thing I know: It’s almost August already, and I still have a lot of summer meals I want to make. I love summer because it’s a time where meals should be simple, fun, and easy. Nothing complicated or over-thought. And I always find summer comes and goes too soon. For instance, I’ve got a lot of other menus and recipes to post here. Full of tomatoes, and sangria, and pulled pork – things you need to see before summer is over.

Let’s start with putting this summer meal into a menu. I’m sure it wouldn’t have been hard for you to figure it out on your own, but I just love putting it together for you anyway.

Easy-Breezy Summer Shrimp Boil Menu

{to drink: mango margaritas with chili salt}

{to start: green salad with avocado-basil dressing}

{the main event: beer shrimp boil}

{on the side: lemony artichokes au gratin}

{finish it off: blackberry pie bars - or for something lighter, homemade strawberry sorbet made from pureéd frozen strawberries and a squeeze of lime}

In Complete Menus, Dinner Party Worthy artichokes, avocado, easy-breezy, margaritas, shrimp, summer recipes

avocado-basil dressing.

July 20, 2011 — 1 Comment

I bet you’re looking for something to serve with those mango margaritas.

How about a 5-ingredient beer shrimp boil, sinful lemony artichokes au gratin, and this green salad with a super-easy avocado-basil dressing?

{Recipes to come!}

I’m always looking for another use for that last lonely avocado, and that’s how this dressing came to be. I love the flavor of basil with avocado, and so the idea to put them together for this dressing was a no-brainer. It’s so summery and fresh-tasting, but it’s also rich and creamy from the avocado. I almost always serve a simple green salad to balance out a meal, so I’m constantly on the look-out for new dressing ideas.

Because sometimes, I just can’t bare the thought of yet-another vinaigrette.

Avocado-Basil Dressing

1 avocado
Handful fresh basil leaves
3/4 cup buttermilk
1 tablespoon minced fresh garlic
Squeeze of fresh lemon juice
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Olive oil

Combine all ingredients in a food processor. Add olive oil in a slow stream until you reach desired consistency. You can also thin the dressing with water, if you’re looking to cut calories.

Makes about 1 cup of dressing.

In Dinner Party Worthy, On the Side avocado, basil, dressings + vinaigrettes, side salads

avocado {BLT} pasta.

May 13, 2011 — 1 Comment

Here’s an odd idea I had the other day, that turned into one of my new favorite weeknight fixes.

Could you make a sauce with avocado, and then serve it with pasta? The answer, clearly, is yes – and it’s as simple as it is delicious.

I sometimes find myself with a single avocado that’s about to go bad. You can’t do much with it, except eat it alone, with a drizzle of olive oil and salt, which I often do. And now, as I’ve discovered, you can eat it with pasta. In fact, one avocado produces enough “sauce” for a dinner for two. Perfect.

Initially, I looked online to see if anyone else had this brilliant idea, and the answer was yes. Yes, purée with a bit of lemon and garlic and olive oil – and you have a creamy avocado sauce that works wonders on pasta. It’s really wonderful on its own like this, but because I can’t leave well enough alone, I roasted some cherry tomatoes in the oven and fried up some bacon for riff on a BLT pasta, of sorts.

Perfect for spring, even moreso in the summer when tomatoes are at their peak. And what isn’t better with bacon?

Bacon-Avocado Pasta + Roasted Cherry Tomatoes

Inspired by a Lonely Avocado

1/2 box pasta of your choice {I use Smart Taste}
1 avocado, pitted
Juice and zest from 1 lemon
4 – 5 cloves garlic {pare down if you’re not a garlic addict}
Olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
1/2 pint cherry tomatoes, roasted in oven in a bit of olive oil, salt, and pepper at 400 degrees for 10-12 minutes
4 slices bacon, chopped and sautéed until crisp

Cook pasta according to package directions. While pasta is cooking, make your sauce. Add avocado, lemon, and garlic to food processor. Pulse until combined. Now, add olive oil in a slow stream while processor is running. Start with a couple of tablespoons, and add a bit more if you’d like a looser sauce. You shouldn’t need too much, because the avocado makes it so creamy on its own. Season to taste.

When the pasta is finished, drain and add avocado sauce, cherry tomatoes, and bacon. Serve immediately.

Serves 2.

In Fabulously Simple, Main Dishes avocado, bacon, pasta, roasted cherry tomatoes, summer recipes, weeknight fix

I love these breakfast burritos because they’re served in individual foil pockets. It makes them feel authentic, like what you might find at a Mexican market or bodega.

Not only does that make them more fun to eat, it also makes for easy clean-up. Double win.

For me, there’s nothing better than a good, hearty breakfast burrito filled with eggs, chorizo, and potatoes – and that’s just what we’ve got here. Storebought salsa makes these incredibly simple, and I love the addition of the fresh, sliced avocado.

{A bloody mary is clearly in order}

Breakfast Burritos

1 large boiling potato (8 ounces), peeled and cut into 1/3-inch dice
4 (9-to 11-inch) flour tortillas
7 to 8 ounces Mexican chorizo (see cooks’ note, below), casings removed
4 large eggs
1 teaspoon water
1 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup coarsely grated Monterey Jack (about 4 ounces)
1 avocado, sliced
1/4 cup fresh or bottled salsa

Preheat oven to 350°F with rack in middle. Cut 4 (12-by 8-inch) sheets of foil. Cook potato in a small pot of salted boiling water until just tender, about 5 minutes. Drain. Wrap tortillas tightly in a large sheet of foil and warm in oven until heated through, 10 to 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook chorizo in an 8-inch heavy skillet over medium heat, stirring and breaking it up, until just cooked through, 3 to 5 minutes. Add potato and cook over medium-low heat, stirring, until tender and lightly browned, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat and cover to keep warm.

Whisk together eggs, water, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper in a medium bowl. Heat oil in a small nonstick skillet over medium heat until hot. Add egg mixture and cook, stirring to scramble, until just cooked through. Remove from heat.

Put a tortilla on 1 sheet of foil. Spoon one fourth of chorizo mixture, one fourth of eggs, one fourth of cheese, one fourth of avocado, and then salsa to taste in vertical rows across center, leaving room to fold over bottom and sides. Fold bottom of tortilla over most of filling, then fold over sides, overlapping them. If desired, fold top down (otherwise, filling can be left exposed). Wrap foil around burrito, leaving top exposed. Make 3 more burritos in same manner and serve hot.

Cooks’ Note: If you can’t find Mexican chorizo, you can use Spanish chorizo. Peel off casings and finely chop chorizo. Cook in small skillet over medium heat until warmed through and some of fat is rendered, about 2 minutes. Add potato and proceed with recipe.

the salad bar: the ultimate summer salad.

July 26, 2010 — 4 Comments

A salad is always a good way to start the week, especially after weekends of food + drink debauchery.

Especially when said salad has bacon. And pan-fried fresh corn.

Um, yeah. I went there.

There’s also grape tomatoes, avocado, and grilled chicken. Probably some red onion. And did I mention there was bacon? And we can’t forget about the dressing. Or maybe we can – because I just did. I can’t remember what’s in the dressing. It’s definitely an herb vinaigrette. I’m thinking basil.

What do you think? Let’s go with basil. Chop some up, and add a good squeeze of lemon. Salt and pepper, and slowly whisk in your olive oil. That’s it. Fresh basil-lemon vinaigrette.

Let’s get back to this pan-fried corn. Eating it alone is heaven, and adding it to a salad is just outrageous. Fresh corn right off the cob, a little butter, and some salt + pepper = a party in your frying pan. I used to eat this stuff all the time growing up, and let me just tell you – it’s addicting. The fresh corn just sings here, but in a crunch frozen or even (gasp!) canned would do. But it would have to be a very big crunch.

Go. Make it. Now.