Frey, Nabal, and Lamb Avocados (left to right)
Photograph by Brenda Cusick, The Avocado Diva

Heritage Avocados of California

Article and images by Brenda Cusick, The Avocado Diva as Published in The Golden Taste of Southern California from CTG Publishing.

How many kinds of avocados do you think there are? Would you guess one, five or maybe even fifty? Try five hundred in California alone, and over fifteen hundred world wide! Most people are only aware of the black-green summer fruit called the Hass avocado, as it makes up 95% of the commercial market. However, there are 499 other fabulous varieties to try and they grow year-round in the California sunshine.

SUMMER AND FALL AVOCADOS

In summer, you can easily find Hass and its newest cousin, the Lamb. Both these fruits — avocados ARE a fruit — are grown in abundance. They are a classic summer avocado with dark green, pebbly skin that turns black and soft as they ripen. Other summer avocados include the Gwen which is very round, small and greenish-black. The Gwens also have a smokey flavor. They are delicious on sandwiches with that hint of BBQ smoke. Other summer heritage avocados are the Santana, MacArthur, Reed, Nabal and Frey. You will find these more unique avocados at Southern California farmers’ markets or on-line at specialty retailers such as my shop www.AvocadoDiva.com. They are worth searching out!

THE MEXICOLA

Probably the most unique summer avocado is the tiny, black Mexicola. This avocado is literally the “root” of many
California avocados. It harkens back to the original Mexican avocado and is used as the root-stock for many modern avocados which are grafted onto the top of the Mexicola. These can be described as resembling a mission fig with a purplishblack edible skin that is about the size of a plum. It is the edible skin of the Mexicola that makes this a quick and easy snack, enjoyed anywhere. It is delicious and has an interesting black licorice (anise) flavor. This fruit is VERY oily and rich. The thin skin of this heritage avocado also makes the picking, packing, storage and transportation methods used for the Hass avocado unsuitable for the Mexicola since the extra oil makes them ripen too quickly for long-term storage.

Other uses of the Mexicola avocado include the leaves which can be used to make a tea or as a spice. The leaf can be used in the same ways as the bay leaf. Although I often use the dried leaves to make a delicious iced tea, this past holiday season, we used the fresh leaves to season some pork. To roast and braise pork with the leaves, the meat was wrapped in the pliable leaves after adding salt, pepper and garlic. We used water and tequila as the braising liquid and it was delicious! The meat pulled apart into tender strips, perfect for soft tacos with Mexicola avocado slices on top!. The recipe and Mexicola avocados, when in season, can be found on http://www.avocadodiva.com.

WINTER AND SPRING AVOCADOS

What if you would like fresh avocados during winter or in the spring months? The good news is that there are hundreds of varieties grown that can be sought out at local farmers’ markets or through avocadodiva.com. The first fruit of winter avocados is usually the Zutano, followed closely by the Bacon and then by the Pinkerton in early spring. These varieties are all bright green and pear shaped. Winter and spring avocados tend to be lighter in flavor and have less oil, making them most suitable for delicious fruit salads. An ideal winter and spring fruit salad would include avocado, grapefruit, pomegranate and melon. The less nutty flavor of the winter and spring avocado also make it a perfect choice for a blended drink and makes for a healthy, protein-filled shake. Add ice, milk and a banana for a delicious breakfast smoothie. Winter avocados work well for creating desserts. Other countries, such as Brazil, view the avocado as a fruit that is appropriate for sweet recipes. Use these delicious fruits for creating a mousse or ice cream and for baking in recipes such as nut breads.

The winter avocado should not be used as an ingredient for a favorite guacamole recipe. Try a spring variety instead. All avocados increase in oil content as they ripen on the tree. So a Bacon avocado picked in late January to March is full of delicious oil and, I believe, makes the BEST guacamole! So think of Bacons, harvested in January, for a perfect Super Bowl guacamole.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Brenda Cusick owns and operates http://www.avocadodiva.com that sells fresh avocados,
tasting kits, dried avocado leaves, Baja sea salt, and avocado accessories.

AVOCADO RECIPE RESOURCES
California Avocado Commission’s website at http://www.avocado.org/recipes/

AVOCADO VARIETY DATABASE
Contains a variety of information on avocados including type of fruit, growing conditions. http://www.ucavo.ucr.edu/