Avocado Breakfast Toasts

It seems silly calling this a recipe. Maybe I should call this "a glimpse into my weekend breakfast." No matter what we call it, just know that these cute little toasts are a perfectly simple and wonderfully tasty breakfast.

I totally love avocados--me and guacamole have a special love language. We get each other. Avocados are tasty whether you enjoy them with breakfast, lunch or dinner. They are smooth and creamy and, let's face it, soooo dreamy. Their soft texture make them the perfect replacement for butter, jelly, or whatever condiment you usually put on your morning toast.

This breakfast doesn't feel like "just toast" though. Oh no. We are upping the toast ante. It starts with a toasty piece of whole wheat or multi-grain bread. This is a no-fuss toasting process...I just popped the bread in my toaster. I happened to have a clove of garlic on hand, so I cut it in half and rubbed the warm toast with the garlic. This is something we should do always. Flavor Nation.

On to our garlicky toast goes a ripe and mashed avocado. Avocado begs for flavor, and we will answer these wishes with a bit of salt, pepper, and crushed red pepper flakes. A little spice in the morning will awaken our taste buds and get our day started on the right foot. I love tomatoes with avocado...must be a guacamole thing...so I place a few slices right on top of our 'cado mash. To finish off the breakfast thing, a sliced hard boiled egg seemed all too appropriate. For step by step instructions for perfect hard-boiled eggs, see this post.

I may be dwelling on this silly easy breakfast treat, but there are so many great things happening here. This breakfast is fulfilling and packed with flavor, and perhaps even better than that it is healthy for you! Forget the pancakes and the waffles and the cheesy omelettes. These Avocado Breakfast Toasts are your new "not-so-guilty" breakfast pleasure.

Cobb Salad Chicken Burgers

Cobb salad is such a classic dish. Wikipedia (very reliable internet source) tells me it has been around since the 1930s! It's simple but elegant and keeps people coming back for more.

For a salad, it is pretty robust. You get a good amount of protein from hard boiled eggs, added creaminess from avocado slices, a crunchy salty delight from bacon bits, and tartness from bleu cheese. All of these elements are served over a bed of lettuce and tomatoes with a red wine vinaigrette to create a traditional Cobb salad.

Because I can't leave well enough alone, I wanted to think of a fun new way to enjoy all the flavors of Cobb salad without eating a salad for dinner (don't judge me!).

So here's how tonight's dinner progressed. I thought "ok, Cobb salad is often served with chicken on top. I like chicken." Next I thought..."well, I really like burgers. All kinds of burgers."

Chicken...burgers...Cobb...salad...yes!

This recipe for Cobb Salad Chicken Burgers is simple and inviting. The flavors are all very familiar, yet when they are served in burger form on a bun, there is a nice complexity added to each ingredient.

The freshness of the toppings pairs well with the richness of our chicken patties, which I amped up by mixing them with panko breadcrumbs, blue cheese crumbles, and fresh parsley. Grilled up perfectly.

After hard boiling a couple of eggs, I created an egg salad topping. Diced eggs are mixed together with a dressing of greek yogurt, dijon mustard, chives, red wine vinegar, and a pinch of sugar. If you have any of this leftover, it makes a great egg salad sandwich for lunch!

Crispy bacon. Swoon.

Now all that's left is burger construction. This is my favorite part!

Toasted bun.

Burger. Egg salad. Bacon.

Avocado. Tomato. Lettuce.

The other bun.

Smash it down, cut it in half, and take a big bite. And always be on the look out for creepy kitty photobombers...

This is a great weeknight dinner that comes together in no time. It's also a real crowd pleaser. I served it alongside a mix of grains and steamed veggies, but french fries are also a logical accoutrement. So creative and super satisfying!

How To: Make Hard Boiled Eggs

Hard boiled eggs were such a mystery to me until about 1 hour ago.

They always magically appeared in our refridgerator the day before Easter. We would dye them all sorts of festive spring colors. Then we would smash the shells and eat them the next morning. Pretty typical, right?

Sometimes, when I order salads at restaurants, a few pieces of hard boiled eggs would be scattered about. Extra protein. Neat!

I don't know why I was so scared of making hard boiled eggs, but I was. I could just imagine my clumsy self putting some eggs in a pot of boiling water and being left with a broken shell, yolky mess. I don't think I could have handled it. I left well enough alone and never hard boiled any eggs.

After a few days of research, I finally just went for it. I was being silly. Hard boiling a perfect egg is SO simple (despite being so intimidating....were others intimidated during their first time?!) What's wrong with me?

Well, if you have been putting off hard boiled eggs due to fear, lack of knowledge, or any other weird reason, I'm here to help. If I can do it, I know you certainly can do it, too. Patience and technique is all you need! Below is the technique, I'll leave the patience up to you.

Here's what you need for Perfect Hard Boiled Eggs:

6 eggs, in the shell
1 5-quart pot*
1 large bowl
 Tap water

Here's what you do:

Gently place your eggs in the bottom of the pot. Fill the pot with enough cool (not hot) tap water so that there is about an inch of water above the top of the eggs. This is about the distance from the tip of your thumbnail to the first knuckle.

Place the pot on a burner and turn the heat to high. Bring the pot to a full boil.

This is not enough of a boil. You want it rocking and rolling...

Like this!

Next, turn the heat completely off (and, if on an electric stove, remove the pot from the hot burner). Cover the pot with a tight-fitting lid and set your kitchen timer for 17 minutes. Walk away and let the eggs do their thing.

17 minutes!

This is that whole "patience" thing

In the meantime, fill the large bowl with cold tap water. Add an ice cube or two if necessary to cool it down.

As soon as the 17 minutes are up, use your search and rescue spoon to CAREFULLY transfer the eggs into the cold water.

Let them sit for 10 more minutes or until completely cooled. Dry off the shells and store in the fridge until they are ready to be used (safest way to do this to make sure they don't crack is to re-use the original egg carton). 

Eggs are of course a wonderful breakfast option, and hard boiled eggs happen to go great with grilled kielbasa. You can also dice some up and toss them on top of your salad for lunch!

Check out this great new recipe that calls for a hearty helping of hard-boiled eggs! 

*Note: if you want to hard boil a dozen eggs, a 5 quart pot should still be fine. You just want to be sure the eggs have enough room to roll around without constantly smashing into one another.