Last summer I watched a live-stream cooking demonstration hosted by Certified Master Chef Edward Leonard, Corporate Executive Chef for Le Cordon Bleu cooking schools in the U.S. One of the dishes he prepared was an amuse-bouche that paired strawberries with avocados – an intriguing flavour combination I had never seen before.
In North America, avocados are usually used in savoury preparations (the most well-known of which is guacamole) but in other countries like Brazil and the Philippines, avocados are a dessert ingredient. In Indonesia, they even make avocado milkshakes by blending the bright green fruit with ice cream, then drizzling it with chocolate syrup!
In this recipe, I’ve used Chef Leonard’s imaginative flavour duo for inspiration but put a sweeter spin on it to create Strawberries with Avocado-Mint Mousse.
| Strawberries with Avocado-Mint Mousse |
- 2 tbsp hazelnuts
- 2 avocados
- Juice from 1 lime
- 1 Tbsp fresh mint
- 4 tbsp berry sugar (extra-fine granulated, also known as castor sugar)
- 3 tbsp water
- 1 pint strawberries
- icing sugar (optional)
- Place hazelnuts in a single layer in a small skillet. Toast over medium heat for 5 to 7 minutes, until they are fragrant. Remove from pan and let cool, then chop coarsely.
- Cut avocados in half. Remove pits. Scoop flesh into blender or food processor.
- Immediately add the lime juice to prevent the avocado from turning brown.
- Add fresh mint leaves, sugar and water.
- Puree until silky smooth. Spoon avocado purée into a pastry bag. Set aside.
- Wash strawberries. Use a Parisian scoop to remove the hull. Set cut side down on paper towels for about 5 minutes.
- Pipe avocado purée into hollowed out strawberries.
- Arrange in a serving dish. Sprinkle with chopped hazelnuts and dust with icing sugar (if desired).
You can prepare the mousse and the strawberries ahead of time, but wait until just before serving to fill them.
When I first took a bite of one of these juicy strawberries, the sweet burst of buttery, minty, avocado surprised me. (I can’t remember ever having eaten a filled strawberry.) The crunchy hazelnuts gave a nice contrast to the silky texture of the mousse, and all the flavours blended together very well.
Strawberries with Avocado-Mint Mousse are very simple to prepare, super healthy, and make the most of the season’s beautiful berries.
Related articles
- How to Determine Whether an Avocado Is Perfectly Ripe Inside (thekitchn.com)
- Welcome to AvocadoCentral.com – Get Avocado Recipes, Nutrition Facts & More! (avocadocentral.com)
Wow! I never in a million years would have thought of avocado being a dessert food. This pairing is intriguing, I can’t even begin to think of the taste combination in this recipe. They look beautiful.
Me either until I did a quick google search for avocado desserts and found there were over 8,000,000 of them! I could eat an entire bowl of the avocado-mint mousse on it’s own. It’s that good.
Thanks for stopping by Angeline
This sounds like a very cool combo. I’ve had several sweet avocado desserts (one a variation on Key-lime pie), but never one with strawberries. I’m going to put this one in my back pocket to surprise the hell out of everyone some summer night. Nice pics. Ken
Thanks a lot Ken! When I saw Chef Leonard make his amuse he served the berries on a little round of toasted brioche, hulled end down. That way your guests wouldn’t even see it coming
Cheers, Laura
Wow! Now that is a great use of many yummy foods. And as always, I LOVE your food photos.
Thanks so much! You gotta love a guilt-free dessert. Have a great weekend
I’ve never even conceived of strawberries with avocado! This looks awesome!
Thanks Ryan! They are very good.
Love the idea of using an avocado with the strawberries, how clever!
Thanks Heide! Wish I could take the credit for it