The first time I made a recipe combining chocolate and avocado was in a chocolate chip cookie recipe a couple years ago. I substituted the avocado for butter. The difference was hardly noticeable. I don't cook with butter all that often, so I didn't miss the butter flavor. I still got a really moist, chocolatey cookie that my kids loved.

Over the weekend I was watching a recap of Leon's Triathlon. Just before the program ended, Ryan Hutmacher, Chicago's Centered Chef appeared. He was doing a quick cooking demo of some great looking mocktail and a chocolate avocado pudding. Ryan briefly mentioned a couple healthy ingredients, specifically avocado and cocoa, then proceeded to whip up the pudding in a food processor in less than two minutes.

I made this pudding a couple days ago with the help of my four-year-old. The result was an incredibly chocolatey pudding. I couldn't tell that avocado was in it, nor could my children. Ryan's recipe calls for 1/4 cup of unsweetened cocoa, which is more than I probably would have used. But he's the pro when it comes to making great food and I'm glad I used as much as I did. Every mouthful tasted like a really good piece of dark chocolate.

Chocolate Avocado Pudding

COCOA contains polyphenols, which help to minimize damage caused by LDL cholesterol (bad cholesterol). It also helps to keep us looking younger and moving better by reducing cellular oxidation that happens all over our body - inside and out! Cellular oxidation has the potential to damage our body much in the same way rust damages a car. No one wants to look old and run down!

AVOCADO is not just a great source of healthy fat, but it's also an excellent source of potassium and vitamin E. Another incredible thing about avocado is its ability to increase absorption of other antioxidants...like those found in cocoa!  Just another reason I love this recipe.

The avocados I used for my pudding were small, so I didn't need to use any water as called for in the ingredient list. Depending on the size of your avocados, and how thick you like your pudding, you may or may not add water. The pudding tasted good straight from the sides of the chocolate-covered food processor, but even better after it was chilled for an hour.