Pumpernickel Is The Sweet Bread You Need For Elevated Avocado Toast
In its simplest form, avocado toast only needs two ingredients: fresh avocado and a slice of bread. Delicious as a humble avocado toast may be, it can be elevated in myriad ways. Rather than focus solely on adding other tasty toppings, turn your attention to the primary ingredients and experiment with different types of bread. While every loaf and roll can offer its own unique aesthetic, texture, and taste, there's just something about combining creamy avocados with sweet, earthy pumpernickel.
Falling under the umbrella of rye bread, both bittersweet American and grain-forward German pumpernickel are made from coarsely ground rye flour. As a result, this gives loaves distinctive features including a dark brown color, which can contrast bright green avocados in a visually appealing way. But it's the bread's unique flavor that makes pumpernickel the ideal base for avocado-laden toast. Earthy with honeyed nuances and traces of spice, pumpernickel can effortlessly amp up any recipe for avocado toast. Not only can the toasty sweetness of the brown bread balance the buttery quality of the avocados, but the avocado's underlying grassiness can even emphasize the earthiness of the pumpernickel successfully.
Working with slices of pumpernickel can also provide a textural benefit for avocado toast. Given its dense crumb, the darkly hued bread proves sturdy enough to support the weight of mashed or sliced avocado, along with any number of flavorful extras.
Making a more balanced pumpernickel avocado toast
Pumpernickel, much like avocado, pairs easily with a multitude of ingredients. However, the sweetness of the pumpernickel and creamy richness of the avocado fare particularly well with punchier ingredients as they can work to balance the big and bold flavor profiles of these zingier toppings. As for which ingredients you might want to consider working into your next pumpernickel avocado toast, the list is lengthy.
Ideally, any spicy topping will complement a pumpernickel-based avocado toast. Think a drizzle of sriracha, a spoonful of chili crisp, or freshly chopped jalapeños. Even a dollop of sweetly fiery red pepper jelly can complement the avocado toast. Similarly, tangy and acidic ingredients can be a great way to jazz up the decadent avocado toast. A helping of pickled onions, a sprinkle of dehydrated lemon powder, or a scoop of grainy mustard are all wonderful starting points. Otherwise, it never hurts to play into the avocado toast's earthiness by adding more umami with a jammy poached egg, a few slices of pastrami, or a snowfall of grated Asiago.
Regardless of how you construct your avocado toast, with pumpernickel as a base, boosted flavors (and visuals!) are always guaranteed. Dress it up or dress it down, using the honeyed and earthy bread is sure to transform how you make avocado toast from here on out!