Avo (not ovo) salad sandwiches

Or maybe not

"Your recipes (not just the salmon) really did help the clouds go away" — Amy, paid subscriber

You’re right, it is totally insensitive to send an avocado recipe today. Totally!

90% of the United States’s avocado supply is grown in Mexico, and yeah, well, tariffs. (Or maybe not? By the time you read this, who knows.) The price of a precious avocado may be rising, but there must be some humor in the situation. A sweaty, anxious humor.

For one: I came up with this recipe thinking it would be a solution to the ever-fluctuating egg situation. So I solved one problem with an ingredient that is becoming or already a problem. Is any ingredient safe and abundant right now? It’s starting to feel like no.

There’s one more haha to the story, which is that I made this recipe during a few precious weeks in the California desert, where avocados grow — and are in season right now.

There was a stand on the side of the highway that was selling 20 avocados for $5. My carry-on tucked by my feet right now is carrying underripe avocados from my favorite stand at the farmers market, which also sells citrus, passion fruit, macadamia nuts, and guava — in March. (Peter Romero at Primavera Avocados taught me that the fruit is one of the few that ripen off the vine, making them easy to transport.)

So this avocado salad sandwich is for anyone who is near avocado trees, who doesn’t eat eggs but wants to understand egg salad, or who still has avocados on hand. It’s essentially an egg salad made with avo instead of ovo. For the rest of us whose avocado supply is dwindling, at the end of the recipe, there are substitutions for the substitution.

One more thing: For a new project (more laughing-crying), I would love to know what dinners you’ve been making recently and repeatedly. What are the meals on heavy rotation these days? That you know you can always make and always sound good? I’ll start in the comments, or you can write to ali.slagle@substack.com.

Avocado salad sandwiches

Serves 2

• 1/4 packed cup dill or parsley leaves

• 2 scallions

• Salt and black pepper

• 2 ripe, large avocados

• 1 tablespoon lemon juice (about half a small lemon)

• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

• Crusty bread

1. On a cutting board, chop 1/4 packed cup dill or parsley leaves and 2 scallions with a pinch of salt. Smash and chop until the mixture is juicy, then transfer to a medium bowl.

2. Pit and cube 2 ripe, large avocados and add to the bowl, along with 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard, and salt and pepper. Mash with a fork until creamy but still chunky. Season to taste with more lemon, salt, and pepper as you like.

3. Mash onto a slice of crusty bread, toasted if you like.

SWAPS

• Dill and parsley: Basil, dried dill or mint, or another herbaceous something like pesto or another herby green sauce.

• Scallions: use everything bagel seasoning, garlic powder, a little chopped shallot, chives — something with a bit of spunk.

• Avocados: Soft-boiled eggs, canned tuna, smoked trout, chickpeas, edamame, white beans, or chopped leftover chicken — or some combination.

• Lemon juice: Pickle brine, pickled jalapeno brine, or white wine vinegar

• Dijon mustard: A little oil or mayo.

• Crusty bread: eat it in a pita or scooped with pita chips, on a bed of salad greens, with sliced cucumbers — however you like egg salad.