An Ode To Avocados: Oh, How We Love You. Let Us Count The Ways

10 reasons avocados are the best

2015 was the year that avocado obsession soared.

The versatile, creamy-lush fruit was the most-pinned food trend on Pinterest this year, and a picture of an ‘avocado egg bake’ was the UK’s top pin. For real. Not only do we love eating avocados, we like looking at pictures of them and contemplating what we will do with them next.

We can’t get enough, and the internet knows it. The hashtag #avocado brings up almost 3 million images on Instagram (good to know if you’re after an instant visual fix during the hours when you’re not consuming avocados). Plus, the gang of bigwigs who standardise emojis have promised an avocado emoji for 2016 (a chair dance is entirely appropriate).

So have we reached peak pear? ‘No way, no way, mah na mah na’ (sing it like the Vanilla did back in 1997). Avocados just have so much good stuff to give, let's break it down:

1. THEY TASTE AMAZING. And everyone can eat them – they’re gluten free, cholesterol free and dairy free, and suitable for both vegans and vegetarians.

2. They are infinitely adaptable. They make every kind of breakfast better, transform salads, moisten baked goods and can be blitzed in moments to make soups, dips and ice cream (or a butter alternative).

3. Even the stone is a treasure chest of nutrition. Blend it to a powder and add it to smoothies - it’s packed with antioxidants and fibre.

4. Want to spread avocados all over yourself? Sure you do. You can also use the pit as an exfoliating mask. Grind it up and mix with almond oil, honey and water for an all-natural scrub experience.

5. Avocados are also known as alligator pears and if you want to be precise (we do) they’re a single-seeded berry (definitely not a vegetable).

6. They are the good kind of fat (unsaturated) and they make you feel full. Avocados contain oleic acid, which has been proven to send this super important message to your brain: stop eating, you've had enough. Sometimes we really need that head's up.

7. Cutting in to an avocado and seeing that it is perfectly ripe makes your face crease in the happy way. It’s like realising there is still one Malteser left in the packet when you were sure you’d eaten them all.

8. One avocado contains more potassium than a banana and four grams of protein – so they’re the perfect post-workout snack. 9. They are green, and the colour green restores balance and well-being. So even staring at their insides is good for you.

10. No cling film needed. Avocados come in their own eco-friendly wrapper. Cue virtuous feelings.

11. Miley Cyrus has an avocado tattoo. It looks awesome and is definitive proof that avocados go with everything.

Avocado recipes you need to try