Fresh tomatoes with avocado make a great snack

What’s better than inviting friends over to enjoy a snack featuring vegetables from your garden? But it doesn’t have to be summer and you don’t need a garden to enjoy this recipe. All you need is an appreciation for delicious, easy and satisfying whole foods!

Ingredients

  • 8 Campari tomatoes
  • 2 Poblano peppers
  • 1 avocado, pitted and scooped
  • 1/2 bunch cilantro, including stems
  • 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons fresh lime juice
  • 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
  • 2 tablespoons toasted sunflower seeds

Directions

  1. Rest the peppers on the grate of a gas stove. Turn the fire on medium and char the peppers, turning them with tongs until evenly blackened and blistered, about 5 minutes. (Alternatively, you can roast the peppers over a gas grill or under the broiler.)
  2. Transfer the peppers to a bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let steam. When cool enough to handle, rub off the charred skin and discard, along with the stems and seeds.
  3. While the peppers cool, slice off a little from the top and bottom of each tomato to create flat surfaces. Cut the tomatoes in half. Scoop out the seeds and discard.
  4. Transfer the peppers to a food processor, along with the avocado, cilantro, lime juice and salt. Puree until very smooth.
  5. Transfer the puree to a zipper-top plastic bag and snip a hole in one corner. Pipe the avocado mixture into the tomato halves. Top with the sunflower seeds and serve.

Ingredient health benefits

  • Tomatoes: They may not be the most exciting ingredient of them all, but don’t let that fool you; tomatoes are still worthy of being the star of the show. These relatives of the nightshade family are a good source of inflammation-fighting antioxidants like beta-carotene, lycopene and vitamin C. Beta-carotene and lycopene give tomatoes their color while promoting your vision and heart. Potassium and vitamin B9 (folate) also have some heart-helpful properties to share, while vitamin K helps your blood clot so your wounds can start the healing process.
  • Avocados: Buttery and mild, avocados are easy to work into many dishes. They have vitamins C, E and B6 — antioxidants that protect your eyes from disease and boost your immune system. Like tomatoes, you can count on vitamin B9 and potassium to support your heart, and vitamin K to keep your bones strong. Avocadoes are also rich in unsaturated fats and fiber that can contribute to your heart health by increasing your “good” (HDL) cholesterol levels and decreasing your “bad” (LDL) cholesterol. And before that fiber helps move things along, the unsaturated fats may help your body take in fat-soluble vitamins from the foods you eat (like those found in olive oil!).
  • Cilantro: Maybe it tastes like soap to you (in which case you might leave it out), or maybe it tastes like a flavorful herb. Either way, the benefits of cilantro aren’t up for debate. It has antioxidants to protect your cells from damage and disease, and it’s a natural diuretic. The minerals magnesium, manganese and iron are also found in this potent little leaf. They help keep your bones strong and your blood cells in top shape. Another little-known fact; cilantro is a natural nausea suppressant, so it may have the power to calm your upset stomach as well!
  • Extra virgin olive oil: This cooking oil has been around for millennia, and for good reason. Its unassuming flavor blends well with most dishes, and it also happens to be as nutritious as it is versatile. Extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) is full of heart-healthy unsaturated fats and antioxidants like polyphenols. It also has fat-soluble vitamins like vitamin A and vitamin D. And last but not least, EVOO may help lower your risk of cancer as part of a well-balanced eating plan, and adding it to your diet is as easy as pouring it onto a pan.
  • Sunflower seeds: These seeds may be tiny in your hand, but they have a lot to offer! Sunflower seeds have vitamin E and flavonoids, antioxidants that promote your skin, heart and brain. They’re also high in selenium (one cup of sunflower seeds has around 35% of your daily recommended intake), which helps balance your hormones and may lower your risk of certain cancers. Sunflower seeds are even a surprising way to get some magnesium and vitamin B5, essential nutrients that help support your bones, maintain a healthy metabolism and regulate your cholesterol.

Nutrition information (per serving)

Makes 4 servings
Serving = 2 stuffed tomatoes

Calories: 140
Fat: 9 g
Saturated fat: 1.5 g
Cholesterol: 0 mg
Fiber: 4 g
Protein: 2 g
Carbohydrates: 12 g
Sodium: 300 mg

— Recipe from Mark Hyman, MD.