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Here are the muscle-building, weight loss avocado recipes you need to boost your health from breakfast right through to dessert

Search #avocado recipes on Instagram and you’ll find no shortage of posts – a mind-boggling 9.8 million of them, in fact – which represent the tip of the iceberg (lettuce) of Europe’s annual consumption. Collectively, we smashed, chopped, blended, baked, deep-fried and pickled – yep, pickled – our way through more than 600 million kilos of the creamy green stuff in 2018. We are avo-obsessed, and we don’t care who knows it.

It’s a healthy obsession, at least from a nutritional standpoint (less so as far as your local A&E department is concerned...), so vast and all-encompassing are the body-fortifying credentials of this bona-fide superfood.

Per 100g serving, the mighty avocado contains a generous 2g of protein, among the highest found in any fruit, around 20 different vitamins and minerals – there times the potassium found in a banana – and has a powerful antioxidant profile as well as gut-boosting soluble fibre.

Not only is the avocado life-giving in and of itself, but its high fat content delivers a knockout blow to a bunch of other healthful foods – the avo is truly the Andy Ruiz Junior of the salad bowl – by helping your body make use of the various vitamins and antioxidants that can only be absorbed when combined with dietary fat. Time and time again peer-reviewed scientific studies peel fresh health benefits from the fruit, from warding off disease to shaving literal years off your looks.

In fact, avocado eaters are just healthier in general, a 2013 study published in the Nutrition Journal found that devoted avo fans tend to eat more nutrients and have higher levels of so-called ‘good’ cholesterol. They also weigh less, with less belly fat and lower rates of metabolic syndrome. Short of doing your laundry while you’re at work, there aren’t many ways the avocado won’t improve your life.

But let’s get real for a second. You already know that the avocado is the epitome of plant-based salvation, because it’s on the menu of every Aussie-inspired brunch place in town, so we’ll spare you the lecture. Instead we’re going to acknowledge the versatility of avocado recipes – something most established avocado toast purveyors fail to do while still, dare we say it, charging you £13 for the privilege – with the assistance of Britain’s avo-savvy nutritionists, dieticians and chefs.

Below, you’ll find a selection of avocado recipes that’ll help you build muscle, lose weight and boost your health, from breakfast right through to dessert.

Getting enough calories in is a must – there’s a reason Eddie Hall ate 12,000 calories a day before he clinched the title of World’s Strongest Man. Avocados, being packed with fats, are an easy way to ramp up your daily kcals. A large one contains around 322 calories, 29 grams of fat and 17 grams of fibre. However, don’t let the F-word throw you, fats are essential to your muscle mission – your body isn’t too efficient at repairing itself when your hormones, immune system and heart health are out of whack.

Lily Soutter, leading London nutritionist

1 can tuna in olive oil, half a ripe avocado, one quarter of an onion, finely sliced, half a lemon, juiced, 1 handful coriander, finely sliced, 2 small sweet potatoes, baked.

- Mash all ingredients in a bowl with a fork along with seasoning.

- Place tuna and avocado mix on top of baked sweet potato. Done.

Scarlett Green in Soho by the team at the Daisy Green Collection

200g beef mince with 50 per cent fat content, 75g mature cheddar cheese, 1 medium sweet potato, 50ml olive oil, 20g pineapple salsa*, 100g seed mix**, 2 tbsp handful sliced onions, 1 slice beef tomato, 1 leaf batavia lettuce, 1 ripe avocado. How to:

- Cut the sweet potato in half lengthways and each half into thirds. Season with salt, pepper and olive oil.

- Line a baking sheet with greaseproof paper and place the potatoes skin side down. Roast in the oven at 200 degrees celsius for 20-25 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside.

- To make the patty, form a ball with the beef mince, flattening it into a 2cm-thick disc. Heat a frying pan with oil, place the patty in the middle of the pan and cook until golden brown and slightly charred on the first side (about 4 minutes).

- Flip the burger over, place the cheese on top and cook for another 3 minutes covered so that the cheese melts, before removing from the pan.

- Wash and dry the lettuce before folding it to the size of the burger and placing it on a small plate. On top, add sliced onions and 1 slice of tomato. Place the lettuce tower on top of the burger.

- Cut the avocado in half, scooping out the flesh in one go using a large spoon. Cut a sliver off the bottom of 1 avocado half to make it more stable as you build the burger. Place the burger tower with all the trimmings on top, adding 2 heaped tablespoons of pineapple salsa. Dunk the second half of avocado into the sesame seed mix and place on top. Hold in place with bamboo skewer and serve roasted sweet potatoes on the side.

*Pineapple salsa: Peel 1 pineapple and cut in quarters lengthways. Remove the hard stalk in the middle and discard. Chargrill over coals or roast at 200 degrees celsius for 15 minutes. Allow to cool, dice finely and then mix with 1 red onion, 2 finely-diced red chillies, 20g chopped coriander, 5g salt, 1g black pepper and 100ml olive oil.

**Seed mix: Combine 50g toasted sesame seeds, 50g black sesame seeds and 1g salt, and place into an airtight container.

The biggest obstacle to a weight loss transformation isn’t the bi-weekly office birthday cake floating about. It’s hunger. Fail to fuel your body properly and – shock – all the junk food you’re trying to avoid suddenly becomes 1,000 times more appealing. Again, avocado recipes come out on top. Adding just half an avocado to your lunch results in a 26 per cent increase in meal satisfaction and a 40 per cent decrease in the desire to snack within three hours, researchers from Loma Linda University in Los Angeles found.

Lily Soutter, leading London nutritionist

4 small courgettes spiralised into noodles, 1 ripe avocado, half a cucumber, chopped, half a lemon, juiced, 1 clove garlic, 2 tbsp nut milk, 8 basil leaves, handful cherry tomatoes, halved.

- Place courgette noodles in a bowl. Blend the remaining ingredients (apart from tomatoes) in a food processor along with salt and pepper.

- Toss the avocado sauce with the courgette noodles until fully coated. Garnish with cherry tomatoes, basil leaves and more seasoning if necessary.

Scarlett Green in Soho by the team at the Daisy Green Collection

120g salmon fillet, 200g Tandoori marinade, 30ml natural yogurt, 1 avocado, diced in 1cm cubes, 40g cucumber, 2 limes, 3g salt, 1g pepper, 5g pomegranate seeds, 50g bhel puri mix, 10g diced tomato, 5g red onion, finely diced, 5g fresh coriander, 5g fresh mint, 10ml tamarind sauce.

- To make the salmon marinade, combine 20g Tandoori masala, 120g natural yogurt, 50ml rapeseed oil, 2g salt, juice of 1 lemon and submerge the salmon in the dressing for anywhere from 10 minutes to 24 hours.

- Pan-fry the salmon skin side down for 2-4 minutes and then 1-2 minutes each side and set aside. For the avocado and herb salad, make a long cucumber ribbon with a vegetable peeler and put in iced water until needed.

- Deseed the remaining cucumber and dice in 1/2 cm pieces. Add to this to the other half of diced avocado, pomegranate seeds and juice of 1/2 lime. Season with salt and pepper and set aside.

- Combine the bhel puri mix with half the diced avocado, toasted peanuts, diced tomato, diced onion, fresh coriander, fresh mint and tamarind sauce. Plate and garnish with coriander and mint leaves.

A brunch mainstay, for many avocado on toast acts as something of a gateway dish to more experimental avo-based dishes. Packed with healthy fats and fibre, super easy to make and, yes, highly Instagrammable, it really is the ultimate morning fuel. However, man cannot live on toast alone. Switch up your morning order with breakfast avocado recipes.

Scarlett Green in Soho by the team at the Daisy Green Collection

1 celeriac, half an avocado, 2 poached eggs, 100g sprouting broccoli, 2 grilled tomatoes, half a lime, 1 cucumber ribbon, 25ml maple syrup, pinch of Aleppo chilli, salt and pepper to taste. How to:

- Peel the celeriac, cut into 1cm thick slices and season with salt, pepper, Aleppo chilli, maple syrup and olive oil. Place on lined trays and bake at 200 degrees celsius for 15 minutes.

- Blanch the broccoli for 30 seconds and slice the tomato lengthways before seasoning and grilling.

- Poach the eggs and plate up the dish, garnishing with a cucumber ribbon, chopped chives, half a lime and half an avocado.

James Cochran of 12:51 in Islington

2 avocados, 100g pine nuts, 1 garlic minced, 1 bunch basil, 100g Parmesan, 100ml olive oil, lime juice, 2 salmon fillets, 1 lime, 100g jerk spice, 1 chopped red chilli, 1 handful chopped coriander, 2 tbsp natural yoghurt.

- Put avocados, pine nuts, garlic, basil, Parmesan, olive oil and lime juice into a food blender for two minutes and season with salt and pepper.

- Dry rub salmon fillets with jerk spice and season with salt and pepper and bake for 8-10 minutes at 200 degrees celsius. Squeeze lime juice over after cooking.

- Place salmon on plate, with a tablespoon of blitzed avocado on top and garnish with chilli, coriander and yoghurt.

Thanks to the sugar-laden, preservative-packed bottles that line supermarket shelves, smoothies tend to get a bad rap. Made at home, however, they’re a speedy nutrient-rich snack: protein, healthy fats, fruits and vegetables all wrapped up in one portable package. You don’t need Michelin Star-worthy cookery skills to make them taste delicious, nor do you need tonnes of ingredients. Adding avocado will make your smoothie rich, creamy and thick without overpowering other more flavourful ingredients.

Lily Soutter, leading London nutritionist

Half a frozen avocado, half a frozen mango, 300ml unsweetened almond milk, 1 handful spinach, half a lime, juiced.

Lily Soutter, leading London nutritionist

50g frozen avocado, 100g frozen banana, 1 scoop protein powder.

For some people, dessert means combining sugar, flour, eggs and milk in one form or another to make something indulgent and not particularly nutritious. They will accept no imposters. That’s fine, but for the rest of us, satiating our sweet tooth once in a blue moon just doesn’t cut it. They may be considered heresy in some circles, but avocado-based desserts are an ideal way to indulge without sending your blood sugar levels spiralling through the roof. Trust us, you won’t even know it’s there…

Lily Soutter, leading London nutritionist

1 ripe avocado, 1 ripe banana, 4 tbsp cacao, 3 tbsp coconut oil, 100ml almond milk.

- Blend all ingredients, place into small pots or glasses, set in fridge and top with raspberries.