Alternative Breakfast Spreads
During the summer of 1998, my older brother and I road-tripped around Northern California. A foreshadow of my future move to Alaska stands out: post-holing through rotten snow on a section of the Pacific Crest Trail and infuriating mosquitoes deep in the woods at a campsite. At the time, I worked as a baker at a café in Burlington, Vermont. My brother, Joe, had spent seven years in management of small, organic food manufacturing companies. We had thoughtful conversations about food back then, and we still do today. From the window of the rental car, a billboard caught my eye proclaiming, simply, “It’s not wrong to be in love with the avocado.” I captured the moment with a photograph, and for many years, the resulting print reminded me to indulge in delicious, exotic foods.
Fast-forward to 2025, when even in Talkeetna, avocados are no longer exotic but available at nearly any grocery store on any day of the year. Most restaurants and home cooks enjoy the subtropical fruit in countless savory dishes and even a few sweet ones. On Anchorage errand trips, I have been known to go out of my way for a Vietnamese avocado milkshake, a sinful invention that deserves some sort of award for combining unusual flavors with the illusion of healthfulness. Now a staple dish at cafés, avocado-slathered toast hits all the marks for a satisfying breakfast— so good with a slice of local tomato or freshly smoked salmon.
Though I briefly considered a permanent move to a Hawaiian island just so I could grow a tree in the yard and eat avocados every day, I have come to question this climb from once-thought fattening curiosity to popular superfood. Nearly 90 percent of avocados in U.S. stores originate in Mexico. Sixty to 80 gallons of water are required to grow one pound of avocado. Harvested as rock-hard nubbly orbs, they travel over 3,500 miles from central Mexico to Southcentral Alaska. We shoppers, after spending upward of $3 apiece, pray for that creamy, buttery texture when slicing into one. Don’t you feel horrified and saddened when, after such a long journey, brown, lumpy, stringy flesh materializes under the now almost black outer shell?
So, what’s an avocado toast lover to do? The cravings are valid: a tasty, wholesome, rich, and nutrient-dense spread enjoyed on crusty bread from a local bakery or my own oven with a variety of veggies and a touch of salt. Over the last year, I became determined to find practical, year-round alternatives. After some trial and error, I settled on three favorite avocado swaps. Each of these recipes is flexible, can utilize locally grown and wild Alaska ingredients, and is extra delicious with a sprinkling of next-level toppings such as smoked sea salt, toasted nuts or seeds, heirloom tomato slices, microgreens, sprouts, pan-fried or hard-boiled eggs, smoked or leftover salmon, thinly sliced cabbage or radishes, or cured meats. Or even a few slices of… avocado.
