Avocado

Avocados are a fruit, not a vegetable.
There are more than 500 avocado varieties.
Avocados are native to Central and South America, where they have been cultivated for over 10,000 years.
Another name for the avocado is the “alligator pear,” so-called because of its alligator skin texture and pear shape.
Spanish explorers could not pronounce ahuacatl, so they called the avocado aguacate. This is the origin of the word guacamole.
The origin of guacamole is the Aztec avocado sauce called ahuaca-hulli.
The Hass is the most common avocado in the United States and is the only avocado grown year round.
The average avocado contains 300 calories and 30 grams of healthy polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fat.
Avocados have the highest protein content of any fruit.
Avocados contain more potassium than bananas.
One avocado contains 81 mcg of lutein, an important nutrient for healthy eyes.
Once an avocado is picked, it takes between 7 and 10 days to ripen. Keeping it in the refrigerator will slow down the ripening process, while putting it in a paper bag with a ripe apple will speed up the process.