13 Creative Ways To Use Up Leftover Avocado

We've all been there: you've got a perfectly ripe avocado, sliced and halved, and so little time to use it. Whether it's the last few slices that you couldn't quite fit on your slice of toast, or the remaining half that you just didn't need for your guacamole, there are often times when you find yourself with an annoying portion of leftover avocado you have no immediate use for. If it wasn't for the rapid timeframe in which avocados seem to turn, perhaps this would pose less of a pressing issue, but it often feels as though the time is ticking when it comes to using up an avocado, and it can be hard to know exactly what to do with those tricky portions.

Thankfully, there are an array of quick and easy ways to use up leftover avocado that don't require putting another piece of bread in the toaster. For, thanks to its unique creamy texture and fairly neutral flavor, avocados are somewhat of a culinary allrounder. They can be used in both sweet and savory recipes to add depth, thicken things up, or simply impart their subtle but delicious natural nutty taste upon other ingredients. From silky pasta sauces to refreshing popsicles, there are a multitude of creative ways to use this glorious fruit before it turns to mush. So, if you've got a barely touched cut one, an extra half, or even a few slices lying around, here are 13 ways to put them to good use.

If you need dinner in a flash, avocado serves as the perfect base for a creamy, indulgent pasta sauce with minimum effort required. Indeed, thanks to its silky consistency, avocado works wonderfully when whipped up into a sauce, coating each strand of pasta effortlessly for a truly indulgent mouthfeel. Plus, thanks to its fairly neutral taste, you can combine your leftover avocado with whatever else you have on hand to make the perfect waste-free meal that's both enjoyable and economical. Mash or blend up your avocado and combine it with sautéed garlic cloves and a splash of lemon juice for an incredibly simple but delicious creamy garlic sauce. Mash and fold it into chopped tomatoes to thicken them up for an elevated tomato sauce. Or simply blend it with yogurt and a little oil for a tangy, Greek-inspired sauce. You may find that, due to avocado's thickness, you need to thin your sauce out a little, but a splash of pasta water or a small helping of stock should do the trick.

Of course, the amount of sauce you are able to make will depend on how much leftover avocado you have. If you're working with more than half, you might be able to stretch the sauce to cover more than a single portion of pasta, depending on the quantities of your other ingredients. Otherwise, your leftover avocado should have you sorted when it comes to making one serving of pasta with minimal prep.

When it comes to smoothies, it's hard to deny that thicker, creamier variations more often than not outshine their thinner counterparts, providing an indulgent texture that makes you feel as though you are drinking dessert. Though there are different ways to thicken up your smoothie to grant it that delectable silky smooth consistency, one of the best choices is avocado. With a relatively high fat content, avocados help to concentrate your smoothie, instead of diluting it like some fruits and vegetables with a higher water content can. The result is a buttery smooth drink with a luscious consistency, as well as an extra nutritional boost thanks to the multitude of vitamins, minerals, and healthy oils avocados are packed with. 

And if you're not a huge fan of green smoothies, you needn't worry about avocados altering the taste of your sweet and fruity drinks. When added to smoothies and blended up with an array of other ingredients, the taste of avocado becomes almost unnoticeable, providing only a subtle nuttiness and moreish creaminess. Regardless of how much avocado you have leftover to use, adding it into the blender next time you whizz up a smoothie will undoubtedly create a notable difference, making your drink feel just that little bit more satisfying.

Avocado may not be the first thing that comes to your mind when you think about what to put in your chocolate-based desserts, but it turns out that it's actually the secret ingredient for creating perfectly rich and creamy chocolate mousse. The natural butteriness of avocado blends seamlessly into melted chocolate to create a mousse that's just as velvety smooth as traditional versions made with dairy products like heavy cream. But this version has much less saturated fat and is an overall slightly lighter (but by no means less satisfying) dessert.

Particularly useful if you are looking to create a plant-based sweet treat, but also just a great means of putting your leftover avocado to good use by pairing it with some chocolate, making an avocado mousse is incredibly simple and takes minimal prep and additional ingredients. Simply mix together your leftover avocado flesh with a moderate amount of melted chocolate or cocoa powder in a blender and blitz the two together until everything is smooth. You may want to add a little sweetener, such as maple syrup, honey, or sugar to the mix if you find plain chocolate to be a little bitter, but at its core this recipe requires only two ingredients, and is one of the most pleasurable ways to use up your remaining avocado.

A thick and creamy dressing can take your salad to the next level, coating every leaf to ensure maximum flavor with each bite. You can't go wrong with well-loved classics such as Caesar or ranch dressing, but if you have leftover avocado to use up and are planning on making a salad, it's the perfect opportunity to try something new and utterly delicious. Simply combine your leftover avocado with a little oil,water, and lemon juice in a blender until everything is smooth, adding more water if necessary to thin it out. Add in any herbs, seasonings, or other ingredients of your choice to personalize the dressing, or tailor it to the specific salad you are making. Garlic adds a flavorsome punch that is perfect alongside peppery greens, whilst herbs such as dill or chives will bring a lively freshness that works beautifully alongside the earthy nuttiness of the avocado.

An avocado dressing makes the perfect topping to a chicken, bacon, and avocado salad, creating a sense of harmony and elevated indulgence, as well as being a particularly useful means of preventing waste if you don't often use up an entire chopped avocado when assembling your salad. Thanks to the lack of dairy needed to create such a dressing, too (for the avocado takes its place effortlessly), your entire dish will not only feel more flavorful, but also a little lighter too.

Deviled eggs are a classic and popular appetizer and brunch dish that are well-loved for their moreish texture, bite-sized form, and spicy kick. Though traditionally stuffed with condiments such as mayonnaise or mustard, swapping out these classic fillings for something new is an easy way to upgrade these inviting little snacks, and avocado presents itself as the perfect choice. By mashing avocado into the filling, you get a smooth and creamy filling that perfectly complements the tender exterior of the egg whites whilst also imparting a subtly sweet and nutty richness. The resulting mouthfeel is one that arguably trumps any other variation of deviled eggs, with a truly luxurious and unctuous texture, undercut by a lively freshness that keeps things from feeling too heavy.

Thanks to their hand-held size, deviled eggs are the perfect vessels for using up a smaller amount of leftover avocado, for example if you're dealing with less than a half. A single serving made from a couple of eggs can accommodate even a modest amount of leftover avocado. So, if you're looking to use up the remains of a fruit at breakfast but don't quite have enough for a piece of toast, get cracking those eggs instead and treat yourself to something that feels a little more special.

If you're trying to turn your leftover avocado into a savory snack as opposed to a meal, consider making crispy avocado chips. With a little more flair than regular potato chips and an intriguing and enticing texture, avocado chips are the perfect crunchy snack to satisfy those mid-afternoon cravings. And, though you may not have thought avocados amongst the most suitable fruits for turning into chips, they are surprisingly easy to make. Simply mash-up your remaining avocado and combine it with grated Parmesan cheese, a little lemon juice, and seasonings of your choice. Scoop out balls of the mix and flatten them on a lined baking sheet before cooking in the oven until crisp and golden brown.

The finished chips can be eaten as is for a tasty, low-carb, and unique salty snack, but they are also ideal for dipping. Salsa, queso, or even hummus, all work remarkably well coating these crispy little discs of nutty avocado goodness. Or double down on the avocado taste and dip them in guacamole for an elevated take on the classic chip and dip combo.

Earthy, nutty, and subtly sweet, coconut and avocado go hand in hand, and come together to make the most refreshing, tasty, and incredibly easy popsicles. You can choose to use coconut water for a more hydrating popsicle or coconut milk for a creamier popsicle with a velvety texture. The combination of the flavors of avocado and coconut meld together beautifully, and can be customized using whatever other ingredients you have to hand. Blend your leftover avocado and coconut water with honey or maple syrup and a squeeze of lime for a light and floral popsicle with a delicately sweet and nutty taste. Or pair blended avocado and thick coconut milk with berries for a creamy, slightly more decadent frozen treat.

Whatever you opt for, you're guaranteed to end up with a delicious, fresh, and vibrant popsicle, thanks to the natural sweet taste and luxurious texture of avocado. Just pop your mix into a mold and leave it to freeze and you've got a tasty, guilt-free treat ready to go whenever the call for a little something sweet arrives.

Though you may tend to associate fries with firm vegetables like sturdy potatoes or crunchy zucchini, and less so than with the creamy and delicate avocados you spread on toast, it turns out that they make some of the most delicious fries around. Indeed, their soft and silky interiors actually make them the perfect candidate for coating in a crispy exterior and baking or frying until crisp and golden brown, on account of the wonderful contrast in texture that the final result grants. Perfect for serving alongside a juicy burger, avocado fries are an excellent way to repurpose your leftovers and bring a new, exciting twist to this classic side dish.

To make avocado fries, simply slice whatever remaining flesh you have into wedges into the thickness of your choice, dip them in beaten eggs, and coat them in a light batter. If you have breadcrumbs, panko, or desiccated coconut in the kitchen already, these options also make for fantastic and flavorsome coatings. Sprinkle the fries with your desired seasonings — garlic powder, paprika, or cayenne pepper work especially well if you're looking for a  little more oomph beyond salt and pepper — and bake them in the oven for around 15 minutes, turning them over halfway through. Alternatively, you can pop the avocado fries in the air fryer for that extra crispy, golden brown exterior and authentic deep-fried feel.

If you've already dabbled in plant-based baking, you're likely already aware of the power that avocado has when it comes to ensuring decadent dairy-free desserts. If you're unfamiliar with using avocado in your baked goods, however, or if you're not vegan or following a dairy-free diet, let this be your sign to start adding it to your favorite sweet recipes at once. Using avocado as a replacement for butter is a genius way to make a rich and moist dessert without the excess saturated fat, not to mention imbue them with the delicious, naturally sweet and earthy taste of the fruit for a subtle upgrade. It couldn't be easier, either, to substitute avocado into your favorite recipes: simply use a 1-to-1 ratio for the amount of butter, oil, or cream that is originally called for.

Though the remaining half of an avocado may not be enough to swap out the butter for in a whole batch of brownies or cookies, you can certainly use your leftover avocado in place of other fats in single serve dessert recipes to make things a little lighter. Swap out the tablespoon of butter, for example, in our zesty lemon mug cake for a healthy and tasty switch up, or simply substitute in whatever amount of avocado you do have to hand for the same amount of butter. You'll add a subtle nuance to your bakes whilst also cutting back on the overall calorie content.

After a more grown-up way to put your leftover avocado to good use? Blend it into your margaritas! The decadent texture of avocado brings a novel creaminess to the drink that makes it more palatable without overpowering or altering its original taste and composition. Indeed, the nutty and earthy flavor perfectly complements the zesty vibrancy of lime for a subtle upgrade and helps to balance out the sharpness of the tequila for a perfectly well rounded cocktail.

To spruce things up even more, you can add in a little chili for a spicy avocado margarita, or load up on refreshing cilantro like in our frozen cilantro and avocado margaritas. However you choose to customize them, there's no doubt that avocado margaritas will be a crowd-pleaser, with a mild, earthy sweetness that enhances those well-loved flavors, making this one of the top choices for using up your leftovers in style.

Most of us are well aware of the infuriatingly short window of time in which we have to use up fresh avocado. It often seems that they are at the perfect level of ripeness of approximately one afternoon, before turning into unusable, brown mush. The problem is only exacerbated once you cut into the fruit, too, whereby it feels as though you have mere hours to use up the remainder of your avocado before it becomes inedible. That's where pickling comes in handy. Though you may have never thought to pop avocado slices in pickling brine, this is in fact an excellent means of not only extending the life of your leftovers, but also bringing them a new lease of life through altering their taste and texture.

To pickle avocado, simply slice your leftovers into small chunks or wedges and submerge them in a vinegar-based brine, the same way you would if you were pickling cucumbers, onions, or your usual go-to veggies. You can customize the brine with spices and aromatics such as garlic, peppercorns, chilis, or mustard seeds for an added kick, before leaving the mixture to sit overnight. The finished result will be avocado slices with a perfectly firm and appetizing texture and a delicious zesty tanginess, ideal for adding a tantalizing bite to your sandwiches or sprucing up your salads.

There is arguably no fruit better suited to making ice cream with than avocado. Though bananas and coconuts also boast sweet and creamy characteristics that make them appropriate for using in frozen desserts, avocados possess the perfectly smooth but still sturdy enough texture that make them the perfect choice for making ice cream with. With avocados providing the velvety soft texture that defines excellent ice cream, there's no need for dairy products like heavy cream, which makes for an all-round healthier, but equally delicious, frozen treat that is sure to satisfy your sweet tooth.

Just blend leftover avocado with a little almond or oat milk, a sweetener of your choice, and any mix-ins you want. Nuts like pistachios and almonds, fresh herbs such as mint or thyme, or juicy berries are all excellent options. Once everything is smooth and well combined, pop the mix into a container and freeze it, giving it a stir every now and then to prevent ice crystals from forming. If you have an ice cream machine, even better.

Creamy, rich, and unctuous, hummus is a delicious and indulgent spread in its own right, but it is nonetheless given a boost via the inclusion of avocado. Avocado's silky texture brings an extra layer of silky, buttery goodness to hummus, making it even more spreadable and velvety for that utterly moreish mouthfeel. Plus, the sweet and nutty flavors present in avocado go hand in hand with the natural nuttiness and earthiness of delicate chickpeas and sesame-based tahini, making the combination a match made in heaven.

If you happen to have a pot of hummus in the fridge, just blend it together with your leftover avocado, or mash the fruit and stir it in for a slightly chunkier, coarser consistency that adds a wonderful texture to sandwiches. Depending on how much avocado you add, the hummus may take on a subtle pale green hue, too, which makes for an all the more inviting and attractive looking dip, especially ideal if you're looking to serve something unique and impressive to guests.