A few years ago I was convinced that I’d never write another cookbook. My software start-up was eating up all of my time and energy, and the world of food writing started to revolve more around clickbait than culinary adventuring. As someone who loves the create-and-make part of the job, and loathes anything resembling promoting what I’ve published, I relegated my blog to the dusty part of the attic that gets looked at with fond memories every now and then, and started saying no to cookbook ideas.
So, for this book, I owe a huge debt of gratitude to my editor Susan Roxborough, who every so often would remind me that writing about food is something I actually love. Every six months or so, I’d get a gentle nudge from her, checking in to see if I had any interest in starting a new book and, in particular, if I had any interest in a book on avocados. For a couple of years, I politely declined, using the (tired old) excuse of I just don’t have enough time. Until, finally, she gave me one more little push, and I realized that I was ready. Susan, I’m so glad you stuck with me. After diving deep into avocados during development, I realized how much more I experience and enjoy my food. Every meal becomes a spark of inspiration, and it’s a joy. To Susan, and the whole Sasquatch family, thank you so much.
To my recipe checkers, thank you so much for your feedback! A special thanks to Susan Carter for trying out so many recipes!
Thank you to the avocado growers who shared with me such fantastic avocados, especially Michael Fenton from Fenton Family Farm for including such a lovely variety of heirloom avocados and Bailey Brown for the gorgeous sackful of homegrowns.