Avocados are taking over the world and no one seems to mind

I know you clicked on this article because “avocado” is in the title. I know that means you love avocados, because one does not simply “like” avocados. In fact, avocados have suddenly become an obsession, not just nationwide, but even here at little ol’ Binghamton.

Almost every morning when I wake up, someone has already written in my groupme, “Does anyone know if there’s avocados in the dining hall today?” or even better, “There’s so many cados in the dining hall today!!” There’s almost no point of going to C4 dining hall if they don’t have avocados in stock.

People have been eating avocados for a long time (almost 10,000 years!), but for some reason they’ve blown up just recently. They’re the new super food, praised for the healthy fat content and creamy deliciousness. Add them to your next sushi order, put them in your green smoothie, or dip chips and carrots in guacamole.

My favorite way to eat avocados is mashed up on whole-wheat toast with a zigzag of sriracha or some red chili flakes. The avocado’s creaminess balances out the spicy sriracha or fiery flakes. If I’m in need of some protein or have extra time on my hands, I’ll cook up an egg over easy and balance that on top and maybe even top it all of with a pile of arugula if I’m on a health kick.

When I was home for spring break last month, I met my friend for brunch at a cute little restaurant in NYC. Looking at the menu, I saw the usual suspects- waffles, omelets, fruit salad, etc. Then right there, smack in the middle of the menu, was my beloved avocado toast. For 14 freaking dollars. My friend commented on how overpriced that was and I nodded, completely in agreement with her. It was outrageous!

But it was also avocado toast, my favorite thing ever. More beloved than ice cream (I’ve been known to polish off an entire pint of Ben & Jerry’s in one sitting) and more beloved than pizza (like all college students, I have eaten half of a pie… wait, everyone has done that right?). Now take a wild guess what I had for brunch that day.

Avocados have been steadily rising in popularity not only in kitchens and restaurants everywhere, but also on social media. On Instagram, #avocado has over 3 million posts. That’s 2 million more than #kale (more like #SoYesterday). They range from perfectly sliced avocados being the star of a rice bowl to topping off burgers to being hidden in healthy avocado brownies.

No matter how you slice them, dice them, mash them, or spread them, avocados are here to stay.