Avocado & Marmite Toasts Inspired By Alex Petrides

I have to admit that when I asked Alex for his favourite sandwich I was taken aback by his answer: avocado and marmite toasted sandwiches. My immediate thought was that it sounded rather like a pregnancy craving. But when my sister was pregnant, I joined her in her new found habit of eating humous and marmite crackers. I am nothing if not a supportive sister, and found, much to my surprise that it was a delicious combination! I learnt there and then, that there can never be any judgement when it comes to food and I have a very open mind. Plus I am inherently nosy and inquisitive and I needed to know what this odd sounding combination tasted like.

I started experimenting by making it just as Alex had instructed. In the oven, as a toasted sandwich. I was skeptical right up until the point where I pinched my nose, told my boyfriend to wish me luck, and took a bite. To my complete amazement, it was delicious and I ate the lot!

I was going to say that I played around with the recipe, but the word "recipe" might be slightly misleading. I am not always a huge fan of warmed avocado, and do tend to prefer it cool and creamy.

I experimented with sourdough, with rye, with crackers, with wholemeal and with pita. I tried the avocado crushed, sliced, and chopped. I tried it with bovril (I love bovril), feta and cheddar cheese. Alex is a big advocate of vegan eating so I wanted this dish to reflect that, although I did like the addition of cheese.

Ultimately, after lots of eating, I found I liked hot toast, with butter and then marmite and then cool creamy avocado on the top. I added a sprinkling of fresh sliced radishes to add a bit of heat and a crunch. And just like that, my new favourite snack was born.

Now I know a lot of people have reached peak avocado and I certainly eat less than I did but honestly this is a dish you need to try. I know you're curious. Plus I heard Carole Vordeman say her secret to not ageing (and she really isn't ageing, in fact she seems to be doing a Benjamin Button), was to eat half an avocado every day. If it's good enough for Carole and her multi award winning rear of the year...well, it's good enough for me.