I hear it every day at work; it’s all over the television; I even see it in my morning paper. Mostly used as fear mongering, sometimes used as an expletive, the F word is one of our favourite words to throw around. And if you ask people what it even means, most don’t actually know.

Let’s just talk openly about the word that makes everyone cringe…FAT.

First of all, it is everywhere. It’s on us, it’s on animals, and it’s on plants; it is definitely supposed to be here, so let’s stop trying to avoid it.

As a general rule, liquid fats are better than solid fats. Any fat that doesn’t solidify at room temperature is better than a fat that hardens. So in short, oil is better than butter. Or plant fat is better than animal fat. This has to do with the different kinds of atoms that make up fatty acids. There are hydrogen atoms and carbon atoms in fat and you want less hydrogen. When you read your food labels, avoid anything “hydrogenated”. And this, my friends, is the general rule.

So where does this leave other fats, the so called “good” fats, like avocado, that are not liquid fats? One avocado contains 30 grams of fat, but mostly monounsaturated fat (that’s the one with less hydrogen atoms), just like liquid fats. Our bodies need good fats to regulate our cholesterol levels. Like fat, we have good cholesterol (HDL) and bad cholesterol (LDL), these monounsaturated fats help lower LDL and increase HDL.

Avocados have a creamy, buttery texture, but without the bad fats that butter has. It’s a great ingredient because if you love the thick, rich textures, avocado gives you that and more. In addition to helping out your cholesterol, avocados also give you loads of potassium, fibre, and vitamins B, E and K. If you are still scared of fat because you equate it with fat on your body, think about this…moderate amounts of good fat everyday actually work to speed your metabolism — a higher metabolism means you are burning more calories during rest. It’s like weight training with your mouth.

Avocados are usually featured in side dishes or appetizers. This week’s recipes will give you avocado in the form of a starter soup and, surprisingly, as a dessert!

RECIPE #1

AVOCADO SOUP
2 large avocados
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
2 1/4 of chicken or vegetable stock (if you use a bouillon cube (make sure your brand does not contain MSG or monosodium glutamate)
1/4 cup milk or yogurt
2 tbsp chopped fresh dill (or any other flavour — I like paprika)
Salt and pepper to taste
Scallions (optional)

Halve the avocados and remove the stones.
Peel the half avocados, cut into small pieces and put into a food processor.
Pour the lime juice over and puree.
Add stock and milk and puree again.
Serve hot or cold with chopped scallions.
This recipe is a great base and can be mixed with any other meats or vegetables.

RECIPE#2
The second recipes is an avocado chocolate mousse. Avocado and chocolate is a perfect marriage with the cocoa powder having richness (and magnesium and iron) and the avocado having fullness (and potassium and fibre). It’s the Brangelina of the mousse world — rich and delicious on the surface, but always trying to give back a little bit more than others.

AVOCADO CHOCOLATE MOUSSE
3 large avocados
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup soft dates
1 tbsp cold pressed coconut oil or olive oil (recommend Omega Nutrition coconut butter)
2/3 cup cocoa powder
1/3 cup yogurt (optional)

Peel avocados (1). Place all ingredients into a food processor or blender (2). If you use a blender you may need a bit more liquid to help get those dates pureed which is why I added the option of yogurt. You can use any liquid though, especially if you are trying to keep this a “raw” or vegan recipe.

Add anything else you want to this mousse — raspberries, mint, coconut. Serve chilled (3).