We eat tons of avocados, it's kind of a basic ingredient in our house. My husband spreads them on toast instead of butter, for breakfast or lunch. He'll often add cheese, luncheon meat, smoked fish, whatever's around. You know how some people salt their food? He'll slice avocado on it. Pretty much no matter what I cook he'll add either tomatoes or avocado (or both) to it! I'll put it in just about any sandwich, especially egg salad, turkey, or tuna, and it's good with mild green chilis and cheddar on a hamburger or in an omelette. Just wrapping slices with thin-sliced smoked turkey is a tasty snack too. You can add it to almost any salad, but my favorite is lettuce, avo, jicama, corn, tomato, black beans, shredded cheese, chicken, ranch dressing with a little fresh basil. We both go into withdrawal when there are no ripe avos in the house!

Rjinga, I hope you see this, since it's not moving to the top. I was out of town for the holiday, but I found your posts in my email. Thanks so much for your lovely compliments! The painted top held up well. We sold the house a few months ago, and all the potential buyers thought it was granite! Even many Realtors (who have likely seen plenty of the real thing). I never did redo the poly to smooth out the brush strokes, and never even had to touch it up. My husband and I aren't hard on things, but I did have water, perfume, hairspray, curling irons, etc. on and around the counter with no problems. It wiped clean with a spritz of 409 and a soft cloth. If I ever do it again, I will try the oil poly with a pantyhose applicator, but I definitely recommend this easy technique if you want a faux granite top.

Chi, we live in the same area. I regularly find inexpensive avocados. Sprouts, Mission Ranch Market (Los Alisos, M.V.)and the Laguna Hills Farmer's Market (Laguna Hills Mall on Friday), to name a few. The grower at the L.H. Farmers Market is wonderful--I learned more about avocados in fifteen minutes talking with him than I gathered from all my years prior! And in December, he sells Fuertes--real Fuertes, not inferior varieties sold as Fuertes in stores. Ok, those aren't $1 each, but in Dec '15 (I missed going in late '16) they were 6 large Fuertes for $10. Worth every cent.

Artemis, kind of off topic, but I have to admit I have no idea what 'pakoras' is, so I googled it yesterday. Found there are a gazillion (or so it seems) different definitions and/or recipes. Would you please share your recipe? It sounds like something I would like to try, but I have no idea where to start. Thank you! Rusty