Avocado Toast with Pink Egg, Sweetcorn Salsa and Feta:
Bloody Bens was borne out of Ben’s Canteen. The Canteen was famous for Brunch and to complete the experience we needed to create a banging Bloody Mary which, after much experimentation, we absolutely nailed. The secret was the Spice Mix. Then customers started asking us to bottle it, and just before Christmas 2017, Bloody Bens was created.
Sadly the Canteen is no more, following the two years or so after the Brexit referendum, footfall began to reduce, spend went down and costs went up and up, so eventually, like so many other shops and restaurants, the business couldn’t carry on. However, the silver lining is that Bloody Bens continues!
The other day, we were going through the Canteen archives and came across some old recipes, so we thought we’d share them with you. Please note, these are chef specs rather than more precise home cooking notes, so bear that in mind, especially when you’re yearning for a bit more detail.
Now this one was controversial, actually controversial is arguably a little strong but when you’re Brunching, emotions can get a little strained, offer you’re tired, hangry and possibly a little hungover, so we get it. Anyway, why did the Canteen Avocado Toast cause a little consternation? The Avocado wasn’t smashed! Crazy we know. It was sliced, and this more than raised eyebrows, smash enough Avos for long enough and people won’t always accept going back to sliced. And the other thing which blew minds was that the egg was Pink. A Beetroot Pickled Egg, totally delicious but for some totally unacceptable it seemed, anyways, trust us, it’s delicious and you should so give it a go.
It’s also so pretty and will look great on your Gram. Obviously this and a Bloody Mary are meant to be, get a bottle of our Spice Mix here, to make perfect Bloodys at home in moments.
This is basically an assembly job but you do need to make your Beetroot Pickled Egg in advance, have a Google or try this recipe from Sarsons. They keep for ages as you’re pickling them, so make a batch.
Slice your Lime in half and grill it, whilst you’re doing that toast a slice of lovely Sourdough – ideally from an independent baker rather than the supermarket, not just to support the small guy but generally speaking the quality is so much better.
Cut your Avocado in half and then very thinly slice it and push it flat to cover the Sourdough Toast. Sprinkle over the Sweetcorn Salsa and crumbled Feta, slice your Beetroot Pickled Egg in half and snuggle it up against the Toast. Garnish with Salt and Pepper and the Coriander. Once you’ve got your Instagram picture perfect, squeeze the Lime over.