Apples & blue cheese take avocado toast from basic and bland to all sorts of fancy!
Food confession time: I am not a big fan of avocados. I like guacamole, and I won’t actively avoid avocados. However, I don’t see why people get so excited about them. I think their texture is nice, but their flavor is kind of boring. Quite often when dining out, my husband is the recipient of most of the avocado that tops a salad or sandwich. Sure, a slice or two is nice, but I don’t need eight.
With that thinking in mind, it’s probably obvious that I’m not a huge fan of avocado toast. Although many, many people have raved about it for years, I’ve been of the “meh” thinking. The few times I have ordered it has been because: (A) there was nothing else interesting on the menu and (B) the toast had toppings that intrigued me.
Point B brings me to this recipe. When stay at home orders began this spring, I decided to start a weekly game of Family Iron Chef. You can read about it here. Now, three months into it, we have gone through many ingredients. A few weeks ago that ingredient was avocados. Now was time to meet my own challenge and make an avocado toast that I liked.
As I thought about avocado toast, I considered what this toast needed. The answer was flavor contrast. With the yeasty base of bread and the faint flavors of avocado, I knew it would need toppings with greater range. I also wanted to add more texture. Having seen many avocado toast recipes that included vegetables or a fried egg, I wanted to head in a different direction. Hello, fruit!
A sour apple became the obvious choice. It would add tart flavors and more crunch. Blue cheese followed along, as its funky flavors would definitely add brightness to this toast. The honey and salt were an afterthought. My first slice was eaten without either of those finishing touches and was enjoyable. The second slice, adorned with salt and honey, was much more than enjoyable; it was decadent.
Even better than being a delightful breakfast, lunch, or snack, this dish is also quite convertible. Want to make it lighter, serve it on a piece of flatbread instead of toast. Have a vegan in your life? Replace the blue cheese with toasted walnuts and the honey with maple syrup.
Not only does this toast make avocado toast something exciting, it does so for many different dietary profiles.
Dressed Up Avocado Toast
Ingredients
- 2 avocados
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice divided
- Freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 1 Granny Smith apple
- 2-4 tablespoons blue cheese
- 4 slices bread
- Honey
- Flaked sea salt
Instructions
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Peel and pit avocado; place in medium-sized mixing bowl.
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Add 1 teaspoon lemon juice, and mash with a fork until it has a mainly creamy consistency.
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Season with black pepper, and stir well.
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Cut apple into quarters, remove core.
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Thinly slice apple quarters.
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Sprinkle apple slices with remaining lemon juice; toss to coat.
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Place bread in toaster until golden brown.
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Spread smashed avocado on toast.
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Layer with apple slices, and sprinkle with blue cheese.
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Drizzle honey over the toast.
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Add a dusting of sea salt.
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Eat immediately.
Notes
Swap the blue cheese for toasted walnuts. Either replace the honey with maple syrup or simply eliminate the honey.
