European sailors en route to the New World used avocados in place of butter. I’m guessing those seamen were all about flavor and consistency. They knew they were ingesting a true super food, newfangled ideas about cholesterol and heart health be damned. There is nothing quite like scooping out a bite of creamy green heaven. From Medical News Today:

“Apart from being an excellent source of fiber and vitamins, research suggests that there may be a number of other benefits associated with the fruit, including: lowering cholesterol levels, reducing the risk of diabetes, promoting lower body weight, and preventing cancer.”

From personal experience, creamy foods with high fat content like avocados completely wipe out sugar cravings. Say it with me: “fat doesn’t make you fat, sugar makes you fat.” I recommend a glass of water and an avocado to curb even the most decayed and powerful sweet tooth. This explains why it’s such a popular choice for those with nutrition goals (I despise the word diet). From the same study:

Avocado consumption is associated with better diet quality and nutrient intake, and lower metabolic syndrome risk in US adults.

The study also found that people who ate avocados were more likely to have a lower body weight, BMI (body mass index), and waist circumference.

Now that we’ve proven that the avocado will make you a healthier man or woman, let’s touch on picking the right one.

If you’ve shopped for the fruit before, you know to rummage until you find a soft to the squeeze representation. It should yield to just a bit of finger pressure. However, only the true avocado connoisseur knows this clever trick– flick that little stem from the top; it should snap off with ease. You’ll know it’s ripe if you see only a bright green. If it’s overripe, you’ll see brown.

Now, if in your search, you see a bunch of avocados with no stems, you’ll know I was there just before you and have the best of the lot in my shopping cart already. Down the street you go.

Now, I love guacamole as much as the next fantasy football playing cat, screaming at the TV on a Sunday morning at 10:00am (West Coast, baby). Honestly, however, I just eat half an avocado with a few pinches of sea salt and a shake of garlic powder.

Need a recipe?

1. Slice in half
2. Remove pit
3. Sprinkle salt
4. Shake garlic powder
5. Repeat and enjoy