Mesoamericans “discovered” the avocado, which had grown there for perhaps 50 million years. They called it ahuacatl, ah-hwa-CA-tay, which the Spanish conquistadors transcribed to aguacate. Archaeologists have found evidence of avocado consumption that dates back almost 10,000. Initially, people simply gathered wild avocados. Mesoamerican tribes such as the Olmec and the

Here’s more history of the avocado.

What’s your favorite recipe with avocados? Whatever it may be, check out these…
 
 
40 MORE AVOCADO RECIPES

We’ve omitted guacamole, which has its own holiday: National Guacamole Day, November 14th. Check out these guacamole recipe ideas plus a guacamole party bar and guacamole garnishes.

> How to pick a ripe avocado.

> How to ripen avocados quickly.

Once you have a ripe one, whip up:

Sushi Donuts

 
 
SEASONAL AVOCADO RECIPES

[1] The avocado originated in Mesoamerica (photos #1 and #2 © Haas Avocado Board).

[2] Add a wedge to everything from breakfast eggs to lunch salads to dinner mains.

[3] Grilled avocados are a treat. Here’s how to grill them (photo © Rachel Matthews | California Avocado Commission).

[4] One of our favorite recipes: avocado boat stuffed with ceviche (photo © Avocados From Mexico).

CHECK OUT WHAT’S HAPPENING ON OUR HOME PAGE, THENIBBLE.COM.

[1] Mom’s Classic Cheesecake recipe is made in 6″ springform pans (both photos © Green Valley).

[2] Green Valley Lactose Free Cream Cheese is also organic.

Want to celebrate National Cheesecake Day (July 30th) but have lactose issues?

There’s a great lactose-free cream cheese just waiting to be turned into cheesecake.

Pick up Green Valley Lactose Free Cream Cheese and bake away!

The excellent Green Valley line of organic, lactose-free dairy products also include:

 
They taste just like the conventional versions.

The products are processed as little as possible. The cream cheese, for example, has no gums or other thickeners.

The result is pure and flavorful, just organic cream and the cultures that are used.
 
 
LACTOSE-FREE CHEESECAKE RECIPES

These recipes, developed in the Green Valley kitchen, are a collection of classic cheesecakes and bars, as well as fun variations like cheesecake jars and truffles.

 
 
> How about some conventional cheesecake recipes?

July 30th is National Cheesecake Day. Last month we published a roundup of 43 cheesecake recipes, including classic, creative, full-size, individual, frozen and savory cheesecakes.

Today, we have a no-bake cheesecake. Why turn on the oven on a hot day, when you can serve a stunning, easy-to-make dessert without it?

Another bonus: this cheesecake has a gluten-free crust, made with almonds, walnuts and Medjool dates (the different types of dates).

The crust not only delivers extra layers of flavor, but nutrition, too.

And you don’t need a spring-form pan, just a pie plate.

The cheesecake sets in the refrigerator. You can make the recipe in the morning and serve it at dinner.

Thanks to Hello Fresh for the recipe.

> The history of cheesecake.
 
 
RECIPE: NO BAKE CHEESECAKE WITH FRESH FRUIT TOPPING

This recipe can be made year-round, with bright berries and stone fruits in the summer, and different-colored citrus fruits in the winter.
 
Ingredients For The Crust

 
Ingredients For The Filling

 
Preparation

1. MAKE the crust. First pulse the almonds and dates together in a food processor until well chopped. Add the walnuts, vanilla extract, cinnamon, and salt and blend until well combined, with only small chunks visible.

2. ADD the mixture to a lightly oiled pie plate and press down gently until even. Refrigerate at least 20 minutes, preferably close to one hour. Meanwhile…

3. BEAT the cream cheese and sugar with an electric mixer in a large bowl until smooth, 2-3 minutes. Reduce the speed to low and slowly add the heavy cream. Once all are added, increase the speed to medium and beat until peaks form, about 3 minutes.

4. STIR in the lemon juice before spreading evenly into the crust. Loosely cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until the filling sets completely, 4-6 hours. Top with fruit just before serving.
 
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*The Medjool is a large, sweet date (Phoenix dactylifera), originally from the Tafilalt region of Morocco. Medjools are a larger date, with more caramel-like flavors than other varieties. Today it is also grown in Iran, Israel, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, South Africa and the U.S. Israel currently produces more than 60% of the global Medjool crop, and is the world’s largest exporter of Medjool dates. In the market, look for Medjools from California’s Bard Valley, which are lush, rich and delicious.

[1] A no-bake cheesecake topped with fresh fruit (photo © Hello Fresh).

[2] A crust made from almonds is gluten free, and adds fiber, protein and vitamins not present in cookie crusts (photo © Good Eggs).

[3] Medjool dates from California. Dates deliver a significant amount of fiber and variety of vitamins and minerals, including B vitamins, copper, iron, magnesium and potassium. The Medjool variety also has a significant amount of calcium (photo © Bard Valley Natural Delights).

July 29th is National Chicken Wing Day, celebrating a dish that rose to prominence in 1964 when a bar owner in Buffalo turned the inexpensive cut of chicken into an impromptu bar snack: fried wings, blue cheese dressing for dipping and celery stalks on the side.

The popularity of that bar snack turned Buffalo Wings into an appetizer at bars and restaurants across the country, not to mention a must-serve item for the Super Bowl and other sports games.

Here’s the history of Buffalo Wings. And here’s why you might not want to eat them very often.

In recent decades, chefs and home cooks have been putting their own spin on wings. The crispy skin is a canvas for international flavorings of any kind (here’s our recipe for Spicy Thai Chicken Wings).

How about Argentinian Chimichurri Wings, Filipino Adobo Wings, Greek Souvlaki Wings, Indian Spiced Extra-Crispy Wings, Indonesian Coconut Curry Wings, Moroccan Harissa Wings, or West African Spicy Peanut Wings?

You can find these recipes here. (And why not plan a wings party, while you’re at it?)

But with the rapidly growing interest in plant-based chicken nuggets and other formats, we’re stepping away from meat for this year’s chicken wings recipe. Instead, how about a plant-based alternative: Cauliflower “Chicken Wings.”

They’re baked-not-fried (although you can fry them), and served with the same blue cheese dressing and celery sticks as the original Buffalo Wings.

Some might call them cauliflower “bites,” but where’s the creativity in that? Carpe diem.
 
 
RECIPE: CAULIFLOWER BUFFALO WINGS

Thanks to Frigo Cheese, who created this recipe (photo #1) using their crumbled blue cheese (photo #6).

Prep time is 20 minutes, cook time is 20-25 minutes.
 
Ingredients For 6-8 Servings

For The Buffalo Cauliflower

 
Ingredients For The Blue Cheese Dressing

 
Preparation

1. PREHEAT the oven to 450°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment or foil and set aside.

2. COMBINE the milk, beer, flour, baking powder, onion powder and salt in a medium bowl. Mix until everything is just combined, being sure to not over-mix.

3. DIP each cauliflower floret into the batter, allow any excess to run off, and transfer to the baking sheet. Repeat the dipping process until you’ve battered all of the florets.

4. SPRAY the tops of the florets with cooking spray; this will help with the crisping. Transfer the baking sheet to the oven and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the tops are lightly golden brown. Meanwhile…

5. MELT the butter in a medium saucepan on low heat, and whisk in the Buffalo Wing Sauce or the Garlic Honey Wing Sauce until butter is thoroughly incorporated.

6. MAKE the blue cheese dressing. In a food processor or high powered blender fitted with a blade*, pulse together until smooth the crumbled blue cheese, sour cream, blue cheese, milk, garlic powder, onion powder and salt, plus the optional lemon and dill. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
 
 
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*Alternatively, mix in a medium bowl with a rubber spatula until smooth.

[1] Instead of classic Buffalo Wings, go vegetarian with cauliflower wings (photo © Frigo Cheese).

[2] Here’s a second recipe for Buffalo Chicken Wings from Broma Bakery (photo © Broma Bakery).

[3] A beautiful head of cauliflower. The name derives from the Italian cavolfiore, “cabbage flower,” after the Latin caulis, cabbage and flōs, flower (photo © Good Eggs).

[4] Crumbled blue cheese (photo © Good Eggs).

[5] Crumbled blue cheese (photo © Frigo Cheese).

[1] Salmon sashimi with marinated cucumbers and caviar, recipe #1 (photo © Le Coucou | NYC).

[2] Salmon sashimi on fancy tostadas, at LT Bar & Grill in Hackensack, New Jersey (photo © LT Bar & Grill).

[3] Raw salmon fillet (photo © Sitka Salmon Shares).

[4] Salmon caviar, called ikura in Japanese (photo © Petrossian).

[5] Mini cucumbers (photo © Sunset Produce).

[6] Look for small radishes (photo © Sweetgreen).

[7] Corn tortillas for the tostadas (photo © Good Eggs).

We’ve collected a few sashimi recipes to make copycat versions at home, and the big feast was last night. If you have a sharp knife and a source for sushi-grade fish, these easy sashimi recipes are a treat for family and guests.

The photos show salmon, a popular fish that also has the most eye-appealing color. But you can use any fish, or a combination of them.
 
 
RECIPE #1: SALMON SASHIMI WITH SALMON CAVIAR
& MARINATED CUCUMBERS

This pretty, healthful recipe from Le Coucou restaurant in New York City is shown in photo #1. The restaurant cures the salmon to make a thick-sliced gravlax. We used regular uncured salmon. If you want to cure yours, it’s easy: here’s how.

Our local produce market sells mini cucumbers, which are cucumbers that are harvested early, when the fruit is small. They are tender, and the skin is thin enough to eat.

These are ideal for this recipe, creating slices that fit onto the salmon. If you can’t find them, substitute the narrowest cucumber you can find. After you make thin slices, you may have to further slice them to fit onto the salmon slice (but that’s fine).

No soy sauce is used with this recipe. Instead, if you want more flavor, squeeze a lemon or lime wedge.

We substituted a smoothly-puréed store-bought guacamole.
 
Ingredients

 
Preparation

1. SLICE the cucumbers as thinly as possible, ideally with a mandoline. Cut them in half and place them in a marinade of white balsamic vinegar, finely minced dill, plus salt and pepper to taste. They can marinate for as little as one hour, or be made a day or more in advance. The longer they marinate, the stronger the vinegar flavor.

2. SLICE the salmon from 1/2″ to 3/4″ thick. You want them to be able to stand, but still easy to bite. As necessary, level the bottom of the slice to help it stand.

3. TOP the salmon with overlapping cucumber slices. Garnish with fresh dill.

4. ADD the salmon caviar. You can further garnish by grating lemon zest on the plate before adding the salmon; or garnishing the plate with a light sprinkle of sesame seeds. Both of these add to the flavor of the sashimi.
 
 
RECIPE #2: SALMON SASHIMI TOSTADAS

Here’s some fusion food. Hold the nori*; the raw salmon is paired with Mexican tostadas. Some may protest that this is not a sashimi dish, but a crudo, the Spanish word for sliced raw fish. We won’t contest it!

This recipe, inspired by LT Bar & Grill in Hackensack, New Jersey, uses a Japanese seasoning, red koshu.

Koshu is a traditional Japanese condiment made from the tart yuzu citrus. A specialty of the Kyushu region of southeastern Japan, it packs a powerful punch and is used sparingly. It’s made in three varieties.

 
In this recipe, red koshu is used instead of green, to add more color.

Koshu can also be combined with other ingredients—mayonnaise or sour cream, for example—or added to sauces and spreads. You can even use it to make spicy honey.

You can buy koshu at Asian markets or order it online. Here’s a green and red duo, available on Amazon. If you like vivid flavors with heat, you’ll find more than a few uses for it.

If you don’t want to buy koshu, substitute sriracha, chili paste or wasabi.

Ingredients

 
Preparation

1. MAKE the tostadas (see recipe below).

2. THINLY SLICE the salmon, cucumber and radishes and set aside.

3. PURÉE the avocado, seasoning with lemon juice and salt to taste. Add three dollops to each tostada (if not using immediately, tamp plastic wrap over the surface to avoid browning). Intersperse with tiny dabs of red koshu.

4. LAYER with sashimi slices, and top with cucumber and radish slices. Garnish with cilantro.
 
 
RECIPE #3: BAKED TOSTADA SHELLS

Some people prefer fried tostada shells, but we like to bake them.

Ingredients

1. PREHEAT the oven to 400°F. Spray corn tortillas on both sides with cooking spray. Lay them in a single layer on a greased sheet pan. Lightly sprinkle with salt.

2. BAKE for 5 minutes, then flip and bake them for an additional 5-10 minutes, until the tortillas are crispy.
 
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*Nori are the dark green, dried sheets of seaweed used in sushi, sashimi and other Japanese recipes.