Cinco de Mayo: TexMex Stuffed Avocados

I grew up in Texas and lived here until after I graduated college and moved to Los Angeles. Mexican food is sort of my favorite food group. I distinctly remember spending a summer at FIT in New York my junior year of college and searching for Mexican food. I wasn’t vegan at the time so I would eat anywhere. I stumbled upon a place in the Lower East Side that was pretty darn close to the Mexican I had at home. I proceeded to eat their 4 nights in a row!! I wonder if that place is still there.

I’ve been back in Texas for a year now and the urge to celebrate Cinco de Mayo is coming on strong. OK I don’t need an excuse to eat Mexican food! But this time of year blogs and websites across the internet are sharing recipes to bring out your inner ay carumba! Today is simply a drool fest for me. Do these stuffed avocados make you drool?

Mexican food or Tex Mex as we call it here in Texas doesn’t have to be unhealthy, fat-laden, greasy, or heart-clogging. In fact you can make very healthy recipes using the fresh ingredients of the culture and a combination of the spices they traditional use. That’s what we do with this recipe today.

It was inspired by a trio of stuffed avocados I had recently at Sundown at Granada. Thankfully their chef is vegan and made sure that the menu boasted a number of vegan choices. Many items are adaptable like the stuffed tacos.

(Please click through to the post to watch the video if viewing this in email)

Here are some other recipes to wet your Mexican appetite including a video and recipe for TexMex-Stuffed Avocados!

JL Goes Vegan posted Tofu Tacos and Tempeh Tostadas over at ElephantJournal.com.

The “V” Word has a number of recipes that are making me drool.

Check out this whole brunch over at VegNews.

For your drinking pleasure try this Chia Margarita over at One Green Planet.

These Veggie Tofu-Grilled Fajitas over at Ecorazzi are drool-worthy.

PCRM’s corn chowder is lookin’ pretty good, but I’ll be holding out for organic corn to make this recipe.

Raw tacos is one of my favorite foods! These from the Vegetable Centric Kitchen look good.

I love serving the filling inside some blue crispy taco shells. You could also serve it on a bed of lettuce or in a burrito!

TexMex Stuffed Avocados
Makes 2 servings

2 avocados, ripe but not mushy
2 roma tomatoes, small dice
1/4 cup chopped cilantro packed
1/4 cup black beans
2 tablespoons minced shallot or red onion
2 tablespoons lime juice
1-2 teaspoons cumin
1-2 teaspoons chili powder
Dash smoked paprika
Dash cinnamon
Dash cayenne (optional if you want it spicy)
Sea salt and black pepper to taste
Slice avocado in half and remove the pit

Directions:
Dice avocado in the shell without slicing through it or remove the meat with a spoon and then dice (I show you both in the video!). Place avocado in a medium bowl and toss in the rest of ingredients. Stir until well combined then season with salt and pepper to your liking. Fill the avocado skin with the filling and garnish with cilantro. Great served with corn chips endive leaves or with a spoon!