Are You More Adventurous in the Kitchen Than a Chimpanzee?

According to a recent study involving scientists from Harvard and Yale, chimpanzees could cook if only they knew how to work a stove. That gives me hope that everyone can make a meal if they try.

I do have proof of this concept. Many years ago my husband agreed to trade places with me for a week. I would sit at the typewriter and compose wonderful stories while he would care for our two toddlers and cook.

He took an unusual approach to the cooking aspect. Instead of planning meals with dishes he liked, he started with recipes beginning with A. I guess he thought he would work his way through the alphabet by the end of the week, but 7 days later he hadn't yet gotten to B.

Never again did we switch roles, although I did applaud his Homemade Applesauce, Apple Pie, Apple Pancakes, Artichokes, Angel Hair Pasta and Armenian Lamb Stew. My favorite was his Avocado Appetizer, a ripe avocado cut in half with the seed removed and some salad dressing in its place. I still serve it today.

Couldn't-Be-Easier Avocado Appetizer - serves 2 or a greedy 1

1 ripe avocado (see NOTE below)
Salad dressing

Rinse and dry the avocado. Cut the avocado in half through the stem end, so that you will have 2 ovals. The seed will be stuck in one of the halves. Gently remove it by levering it up with a knife or the tines of a fork.

Place the avocado halves on plates and fill the hole left by the seed with salad dressing. Serve with a spoon, with which you scoop out bites of avocado.

NOTE: To test for an avocado's ripeness, gently press the skin. It should give slightly. If it's rock hard, set it aside for a few days to ripen. If it's very soft, it's too ripe and likely to be filled with brown spots. Choose a different avocado.

Photo by Nancy Mills

Connect with Nancy Mills at momscookinghelp.blogspot.com