“Avocado toast was the beginning of the Goopification of breakfast, of green juices and designer Lycra worn all day. The fashion in the 1990s was heroin chic, black coffee and cigarettes for breakfast —suddenly it was fashionable to be up at dawn for meditation.…For hipsters now, avocado on toast is a naff order (never mind the sustainability of avocado farming) left to the basic yummy mummies, who have it “no butter, no chives” with chilli flakes before Pilates and after the morning school run (the most LA of the lot just eat the avocado off the top and leave the toast).”

Charlie Gowans-Eglinton, The Times

This was a massive hit with the chief taster who is notoriously hard to please. I served it on the local ‘shepherd’s bread’, but sour dough would be just as good. Or, indeed, any kind of carbohydrate: flatbreads, baked potatoes, strips of warm focaccia….. let your imagination fly.

This would also make a very good sandwich filling. But because the avocado will go brown it’s not ideal for a lunch box.

Fine for vegetarians.

Alternative version with tomatoes instead of eggs – the key ingredient here is the tapenade

You can make an alternative version which swaps the eggs for tomatoes – slather the bread with tapenade first, add avocado, top with tomatoes, season with smoked salt and Urfa pepper flakes (or ordinary salt and pepper) and drizzle over some peppery olive oil and some pomegranate molasses.

Avocado eggs for lunch

Serves 2, with a cookie or three with coffee afterwards

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Ingredients

• 2 eggs
• 1 avocado
• 2 spring onions
• 1 tbsp cider vinegar (or, I used the apple shrub I leant to make under the tutelage of Matthew Pennington)
• A handful of rocket or watercress
• Smoked salt
• Urfa pepper flakes (or freshly ground black pepper)
• Spanish sweet smoked paprika
• Walnut oil
• Toasted bread, or a base of your choice

Instructions

1. Hard boil the eggs.
2. Peel the avocado, take out the stone, and put the flesh into a medium-sized bowl.
3. Snip in the spring onions.
4. Add the cider vinegar and the salt and pepper flakes.
5. Mash all together.
6. Peel the eggs, roughly chop them and add to the rest.
7. If you aren’t planning to eat this for an hour or so, cover the surface of the mixture with cling film to stop the avocado discolouring.
8. When you are ready to eat, toast the bread, top with the avocado eggs, and a light veil of paprika.
9. Serve, with the peppery leaves on the side, drizzled with the walnut oil.