Healthy devilled avocado with squash seeds

Serves: 8

Paris used to be a hostile place for vegetarians – let alone vegans. Outside of a handful of vegetarian restaurants, waiters and chefs had no idea what plant-based eating was about. Restaurant menus were devoid of meat-free options, and vegetarians had to settle for a hodgepodge of sides or a bowl of soup. The Paris food scene experienced a historic shift toward vegetables around the turn of the 21st century. Chef Alain Passard led the charge with a disruptive all-vegetable menu served at his three-star restaurant. It is now common to find inspired vegetarian courses at contemporary bistros, and the city is peppered with restaurants devoted to plant-based dining, the kind where you can take your omnivore friends and not have them notice the absence of meat. Chief among them is gastro-vegan restaurant Le Potager de Charlotte, where a signature appetiser is the avocat façon oeuf mimosa, a “devilled egg” avocado with turmeric-yellow hummus taking the place of the mashed yolk, and toasted squash seeds for crunch. I serve a bunch of them on a platter, with spoons for eating, for brunch; they look so appetising and are always the first item to disappear.

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Devilled avocado

Have you ever tried "devilled egg" made with avocado? It's the perfect signature appetiser for vegetarians! Instead of the traditional mashed yolk, Clotilde Dusoulier uses a delicious turmeric-yellow hummus to fill the avocado halves, and top them with crunchy toasted squash seeds. She serves them on a platter with spoons for brunch, and they are always the first to disappear!

Course: Appetizer, Starter

Cuisine: French

Keyword: French vegetarian recipes, French devilled eggs

Servings: 8 people

Author: Clotilde Dusoulier

Ingredients

• 1 15 oz/400g can or jar chickpeas, rinsed and drained (see Note)
• 2 teaspoons tahini
• 1 garlic clove
• 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
• Fine sea salt
• ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice or more to taste
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 avocados 6 oz/170g each, halved and pitted
• 1 teaspoon smoked or regular paprika
• Fleur de sel for serving
• ½ cup 115g squash seeds, toasted
• 3 tablespoons finely chopped chives

Instructions

• In a food processor, process the chickpeas, tahini, garlic, turmeric, 1 teaspoon salt, the pepper, lemon juice, oil, and 3 tablespoons water until smooth. Add a little more water, tablespoon by tablespoon, as needed until creamy but still scoopable. Taste and add more salt or lemon juice as needed.
• Scoop 2 rounded tablespoons of hummus into each avocado ‘hole’, as for devilled eggs.
• Arrange on a serving platter. Sprinkle with the paprika, fleur de sel, squash seeds, and chives.

Notes

To use home-cooked chickpeas, you’ll need 1¹⁄³ cups (240g). Soak ½ cup (110g) dried chickpeas overnight and cook in a saucepan of boiling water until cooked through and tender, about 1 hour. Drain well.

First printed in our sister publication France Today.

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