Who doesn’t love avocados? I don’t think anyone can say they don’t! The key to enjoying an avocado is to eat them when they are ripe for maximum flavor. Avocados are ripe if they yield to gentle pressure when you squeeze them. HASS avocados, which are my favorite because of the buttery taste, soften as they ripen and change in color from green to purple black. Fuerte and Bacon varieties stay green in color while ripening.

Here are a few tricks to ripen your avocados quickly: Place avocados in a paper bag at room temperature with a banana, you can store them in the oven (not when it’s on!) for a few days for a warm, still atmosphere, and the easiest way is to just place them in a bowl on the counter, where you can check them daily. If you want to keep up avocados a little bit longer, you can store them in your fridge for about a week until they are ready to eat.

To prepare an avocado:

1. Cut the avocado in half lengthwise, around the seed.

2. Rotate the 2 halves and separate them.

3. Remove the seed by lifting it out with the tip of a spoon or gently insert the blade of a knife in the seed, rotate the knife and lift the seed out.

4. Peel the avocado half with a knife or scoop out with a spoon.

5. Sprinkle all the cut surfaces of the fruit with lemon or lime juice to retain the beautiful golden-green color.

6. Your avocado is ready to eat! Breakfast, lunch or dinner, avocado can be added to your meal for instant flavor and lots of healthy vitamins.

The next time you stop by the Ventura Certified Farmers Markets, check out the variety of avocados offered throughout the market.