FFWD: ANNE LEBLANC’S PISTACHIO AVOCADO
- I suspect you’re wondering, “Who is Anne Leblanc?”
- Probably, you’re also dying to know if Pistachio Avocados are grown in the States?
- In addition, Readers of my blog often ask me about food blogging. Who? What? Where? When? and How?
In this week’s short Post, I’m offering a 3-for-the-price-of-one Special by answering all these weighty questions.
Our French Fridays with Dorie recipe is Anne Leblanc’s Pistachio Avocado. As Dorie explains, this really can’t be called a recipe. It’s more about being a great idea followed by a list of ingredients.
My Ingredients
The late Anne Leblanc was of Huilerie J. Leblanc fame. According to Dorie, this French company still makes some of the finest, fullest-flavored nut oils in the world. Buy them here or in speciality food stores. More than a decade ago, Ms. Leblanc suggested that Dorie pair a ripe halved avocado with pistachio oil to be offered as a easy side to crab, shrimp and lobster salads or grilled meats. After halving the avocado, sprinkle with fresh lemon juice and Fleur de sel (sea salt) and pour Pistachio Oil into its hollow cavity in the center. It’s simple and simply delicious.
Avocado with Meyer Lemon olive oil and Dukkah
With apologies to Anne, I improvised with ingredients I had on hand. My oil was Sonoma Harvest Meyer Lemon olive oil. I sprinkled Dukkah, a Middle Eastern nut and spice blend, over the top. Although I bought my Dukkah at Trader Joe’s, I love this flavorful combo and will make my own in the future. Find the recipe for Dukkah here or here or here. This was a delightful snack.
Avocado with Meyer Lemon olive oil and Dukkah
The results of the State of Food Blogging Survey, conducted by Foodista and Zephyr Adventures, were released this week. Not surprisingly, our FFWD group mirrors the Survey profile.
Although not pretending to be uber-scientific, here’s a brief re-cap by Allan Wright of Zephyr Adventures: “Six-hundred and seventy-nine food bloggers completed a 32-question online survey. The respondents were primarily Citizen Bloggers (77%) with a minority of Entrepreneurial Bloggers promoting their own company (19%) and the remainder connected to corporations (4%). Based on the respondents, food bloggers tend to be from the United States, female, between the ages of 25 and 44, and either married or living with a significant other. [The number of food bloggers 65 or older, like me, is miniscule.] Forty-two percent are parents and 81% are employed or self-employed full or part time. Forty-two percent of respondents have no background related to food blogging while 58% have some related experience.
When asked “Why do you blog?” 87% of respondents replied, “Food is my passion.” Four additional answers that drew heavy response included: to make a name for myself in the food world; Writing is my passion [like me] ; In hopes of turning my blog into a job; and, to have a voice so I can say what I want to say.”
To see the entire survey’s interesting results, go here.
Many of my FFWD colleagues had their own interpretation of this week’s avocado recipe which you can see at our group Link.