Avocado Toast-ing like you mean it!

Now let's be honest.. who doesn't like avocado toast? Someone who hasn't had a REAL avocado toast! I went almost 25 years of my life without ever tasting avocados because we never got them in India back then (I'm quite young really.. the "back then" just adds some drama.)

And then one day in Oman, I wanted see what the fuss was about and try an avocado. Except I didn't know how to pick out one so I managed to buy one that wasn't ripe. And I tasted it, made a face and tossed it out. I decided that avocados were rubbish and bitter and that I never wanted to be near an avocado ever again..

And then...a colleague in the UK managed to convince me to try again, and I'll forever be thankful that she did. I'm in love with this mighty little powerhouse, so delightfully versatile and satisfying. Smash them on toast, blitz them into a smoothie, toss them into a salad, these little guys can glam up anything you throw at them. All, if you pick one that's ripe and creamy. Don't do what younger-me did. You'll hate it.

I have tried and tested avocado toast recipes ever since falling in love and here's one that made its way to the mangochutney hall of fame :)

Serves 2

Time: 10 minutes at most

Ingredients

1 medium Avocado
Juice of 1/2 lime
1 jalapeno pepper or 0.5 tsp chilli flakes
2 tbsp fresh coriander leaves
A pinch of Himalayan pink salt. Sub with regular salt or sea salt if you don't have pink salt handy.
2 horseradish, finely sliced
1 tsp pumpkin seeds
4 slices of toast

Method

1. Cut and pit the avocado. Scoop out the flesh.
2. To a small food processor bowl, add the avocado halves, squeeze in the lime juice, sprinkle your salt and roughly chop in the jalapeno pepper.
3. Blitz in the food processor for half a minute or until you're happy enough with the texture. If you want it really creamy, add a splash of extra virgin olive oil. Don't go overboard, we're trying to be healthy here :)
4. Stir in the chopped coriander leaves. And we're ready to serve. My guess is this took you 3 minutes so far..
5. Pop your toast in the toaster. Meanwhile thinly slice up the radish. Lovely, vibrant pink ones which you get easily in your local supermarket.
6. To serve, spread some avocado mash on your toast, sprinkle some pumpkin seeds and dress it up with the radish.
   
   And there you have it. Creamy avocados with the kick of the jalapenos, the crunch of the seeds, the tang of the lime and the peppery freshness of the radish. Perfect, perfect start to the day!