You’ve probably seen a few of the countless pictures of avocado toast on Instagram, everyone seems to be obsessed with it. Frankly, the first few times I saw avocado toast, I thought people were crazy! I’d just see slices of avocado on toast with some salt and pepper, and think about how bland that must taste. My dad is crazy about avocados, though, and he quickly embraced the avocado toast trend and started whipping up some delicious versions, and he made me a believer. I’m not crazy about the prices of avocado toast in restaurants and cafes, so I’m happy my dad taught me how to make some pretty good avo toast at home. Here are my three favourite interpretations of avocado toast, courtesy of my dad’s culinary genius!
1. Avocado Toast with Beet Hummus. This one is definitely worthy of the (insta)gram, the colours are so bright and vibrant, and it’s super healthy too! To make this, first prep your beet hummus by cooking some peeled beets until they’re soft; combine them in a food processor or blender with a tin of chickpeas, 2 Tbsp of tahini paste, 5 Tbsp of lemon (or more, depending on your tastes), 1-2 Tbsp of olive oil, between 2-5 cloves of garlic, and some salt and pepper. Toast your bread, and spread a layer of hummus on each piece of toast. Slice an avocado however you feel like slicing it, and layer it on top of the hummus. Chop some tomatoes, or halve some cherry tomatoes, and sprinkle them on your toast, and if you’re feeling adventurous, drizzle some balsamic vinegar on everything. You get lots of vitamins from all the vegetables in this, healthy fat, and protein from the chickpeas, so this is a great breakfast.
2. Arabic-Inspired Avocado Toast. Zaa’tar is a delicious Arabic spice blend that you can put on anything from bread to chicken, it’s amazing. Every Arab home makes their own version of zaa’tar, but the general recipe ingredients are sumac, thyme, oregano, salt, marjoram, and sesame seeds… but if you don’t feel like making it, you can find it at most big supermarkets or Arabic grocery stores. Make an avocado mash by smashing avocado with some pepper (no salt, since zaa’tar has that already), and spread it on your toast. Crumble some feta cheese on top of the avo, and top it with a drizzle of olive oil mixed with lots of zaa’tar. Delicious!
3. Avocado Toast with Salsa. This one is really good, I’ve had it for dinner a few times. Put some avocado mash on your toast, then top it with whatever salsa you like– corn salsa, tomato salsa, or mango salsa are all delicious with this. sprinkle some shredded cheese on top of everything, and pop it under the broiler until the cheese melts. A friend of mine makes this with bacon for some extra protein, but I like mashing some beans in with my avocado instead.
