Description
This incredibly delicious, oil-free Roasted Tomato Stuffed Avocados with Balsamic Reduction will bring all those summer vibes with this simple recipe!
Ingredients
Salad Ingredients:
- 4 avocados, sliced in half
- 8 small tomatoes *
- ¼ cup thinly sliced red onions
- Fresh basil, julienne sliced
- 2/3 cup balsamic vinegar (+/-) *
Spice/Herb Ingredients:
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ teaspoon dried basil
- Pinch dried crushed thyme leaves
- Pinch dried crushed rosemary
- ½ teaspoon sea salt (+/-) *
- 1/8 teaspoon black pepper (+/-)
Optional Ingredients:
- Flatbread or toast
- Hemp seeds
Instructions
- Place the Spice/Herb Ingredients into a small bowl, mix well. Set aside.
- Roast, pan “fry,” or grill the tomatoes (see notes), place the roasted tomatoes into a bowl, sprinkle with ¼ teaspoon of the Spice/Herb Mix. Stir to incorporate. Cover with plastic wrap to allow the tomatoes to steam in the bowl and stay warm.
- In the meantime, make the Balsamic Reduction (if needed). Place 2/3 cup of balsamic vinegar into a small saucepan, boil for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent burning. Remove from the stove, then add ¼ teaspoon of the Spice/Herb Mix to the Balsamic Reduction, stir well, then set aside.
- Assemble the dish by placing the avocado halves onto a plate or slice the avocado and place on quinoa flatbread. Sprinkle the avocado with the Spice/Herb Mix, then pick up the roasted tomatoes, squeeze out some of the liquid and arrange on top of the avocados. Top with thinly sliced red onions, freshly sliced basil leaves, and drizzle with the balsamic reduction. Top with a sprinkling of hemp seeds (optional). Serve and enjoy!
Notes
*Roasted Tomatoes: It is very easy to roast tomatoes. You have several options with this recipe. Oven: You can simply place 8 small tomatoes onto a parchment paper lined baking sheet and put them in a 425 F oven for 10 minutes. Grill: You can place them on the grill for 10 minutes. Do not use the hottest part of the grill. Stove Top: You can place them in a skillet with 3 Tablespoons of water and steam “fry” them until the skins wrinkle and burst (approx. 5 to 7 minutes). After you have roasted the tomatoes, place them in a bowl covered with plastic wrap to allow them to concentrate their sugars. Don’t forget to give them a squeeze before plating as they tend to have a lot of water and you don’t want all that water on your serving platter. We squeezed/ smashed the roasted tomatoes over a bowl to get rid of most of the water. Then we laid them down on a cutting board and cut them into pieces.
*Balsamic Reduction: Most major grocery stores carry Balsamic Reduction (make sure you check the ingredients) in the Salad Dressings or Vinegars sections of the store. If you can’t find it; it is very easy to make. We have included instructions in Step 3. A Balsamic Reduction is simply boiling off the excess liquids from Balsamic vinegar to create a concentrated, syrup-like consistency. The sugars concentrate and develop into a delicious syrup. Making a balsamic reduction does tend to perfume the air in the kitchen a tiny bit! Some enjoy the smell while others may find it strong. We didn’t mind it, but we wanted to make sure you were aware. Note: After boiling the balsamic vinegar for 10 minutes, if it doesn’t appear “syrupy” yet, simply remove from the stove and allow it to slightly cool. As it cools, it tends to thicken up. If still not “syrupy” enough, you can either use as is (which is also delicious) or continue to cook until the desired syrup thickness is achieved.
*Red Onions: Cut the red onions into very fine slices. They should almost be razor-like slices. This creates a better mouth feel as you are not chomping down on chunks of onion.
*Avocadoes: It is visually appealing to show this dish using avocado halves, yet we found it was easier to eat when we sliced the avocadoes as shown in the photos with the flatbread.
*Quinoa Flatbread: We served ours on individual pieces of Quinoa Flatbread, it was amazing! We used sliced avocadoes on the flatbread.
*Sea Salt: Please adjust the sea salt based upon your family’s sea salt preferences and/or based upon dietary needs.
*Storage: Refrigerate, use within 1 to 2 days.
*Servings: Serves 4