Avocado Toast

Toast bread until lightly browned. Set aside.

Grip the avocado gently on one side with one hand, and with a large, sharp knife in the other hand, cut the avocado lengthwise around the seed. Twist the two halves to expose the pit.

To be cautious, place a folded kitchen towel in your hand to hold the avocado half with the pit. Gently tap the pit with the knife so the knife edge wedges into the pit, but not so hard as to cut all the way through it. If you're unsure, tap it a couple times, each time with increasing pressure, until the blade sufficiently lodges in the pit.

With the edge of the knife, twist the pit out of the avocado and discard.

To slice it, use a knife to slice the inside of the halves into strips crosswise, then use your fingers to separate them from the skin, or a large spoon to spoon it out in one swoop.

Transfer the sliced avocado to the two pieces of toasted bread and fan it out. These are ready to be topped with a sunny-side up egg and chile crisp, or everything bagel seasoning with pickled red onions and microgreens.

To Make a Sunny-Side Up (or Over Easy) Egg: Heat 2 tablespoons unsalted butter in a nonstick skillet over medium-low heat and swirl the pan once or twice to evenly coat the pan. Crack one egg into each side of the pan and let the whites begin to set, about 30–45 seconds, then use a silicone spatula to tap the unset white around the yolk in 3–4 places, which will allow the white encasing the yolk to release and begin to cook.

Turn the heat to low and cook for another 3–4 minutes. When the eggs have almost reached your desired doneness, use a spoon to baste the whites with the melted butter in the pan and top with salt and pepper as desired.

For over-easy eggs, carefully flip eggs and cook for 1 more minute.

To Make the Quick-Pickled Red Onions: Place sliced onions in a nonreactive metal bowl. Combine water, vinegar, beet, sugar and salt in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat; stir until salt and sugar are dissolved.

Pour brine over onions and allow to stand at room temperature until cooled. Recipe makes 1 cup pickled onions. Refrigerate any leftovers for up to two weeks.