Hello, everyone! Mia P. Manansala here, and I'm so thrilled to introduce my guest today! Olivia Blacke is one of my fellow Berkley 2021 debuts, and her book KILLER CONTENT is so much fun! Her protagonist, Odessa Dean, is utterly charming and I can't wait for the sequel, NO MEMES OF ESCAPE (October 5, 2021).
Today, she's sharing one of my favorite light meals: Avocado toast (I'm a Millennial, after all). She's also giving away a signed, physical copy of her debut (US only), so make sure to read to the end!
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| DIY Avocado Toast |
Avocado toast gets a bad rap.
This simple and delicious light meal has somehow come to represent
everything that’s wrong with the world these days. Personally, I don’t get it.
Avocado toast deserves all the love.
Back in the days where we took restaurants for granted, I sat
down at a quaint little café with a dear friend-slash-colleague of mine who is
in his mid-sixties. He saw avocado toast on the menu and his eyes lit up. “I’ve
always wanted to try this!” he said as he ordered it. He enjoyed his meal
thoroughly, and when it was done, said, “Now I see what all the fuss is about.
Does that mean I’m a Millennial now?”
I think if more people, like my friend, tried avocado toast,
they’d realize that they’re missing out on a wonderful treat.
In my debut cozy mystery, KILLER CONTENT, main
character Odessa Dean moves
from a tiny town in Louisiana to the Brooklyn neighborhood of Williamsburg and works
at Untapped Books & Café, where she is introduced to all sorts of wonderful
dishes created by Chef Parker, including simple but delightful homemade hummus
to his own take on avocado toast.
Then again, up until a few weeks ago, I hadn’t even heard
of avocado toast. I hadn’t known that avocado was good for anything other than
mashing into guacamole, but to my surprise, avocado toast was not only
delicious, it was also more complex than the name suggested. There were dozens
of ways to prepare it, but here at Untapped, it was two slices of locally
produced multigrain bread, lightly toasted, topped with creamy avocado chunks,
a slice of heirloom tomato, a squirt of lime, a sprig of cilantro grown in the
next- door rooftop garden, and feta cheese crumbles, with a perfectly poached
egg on the side. – KILLER CONTENT
Odessa Dean loves Parker’s avocado toast, along with his famous
peanut and tofu Thai salad, savory sandwiches served on warm artisan bread, raspberry
Nutella crepes, and every other dish he can imagine. Unfortunately for the rest
of us, Untapped Books & Café only exists in the Brooklyn Murder Mysteries,
but that doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy Parker’s avocado toast at home!
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| Cast of characters |
You’ll need:
- Toasted bread. Like Parker, I
prefer a nice hearty multigrain but your favorite toast will do well. Two to
three slices per serving (unless you’re using unusually large or small bread).
- Ripe avocados. The trick to
knowing when avocados are ripe is easy – if the step pops out easily, the
avocado is ripe! A whole avocado is good for one heaping serving.
- Salt – which can be left out if
you’re watching your sodium intake. And good for you!
- Pepper
- A splash of lime juice
- Tomatoes. Diced, sliced, cherry,
beefsteak, heirloom, you can’t go wrong.
- Cilantro – again this is up to
your personal preference. One of my besties runs screaming from the room if she
even hears the word “cilantro,” so if you’re not a fan, leave it out.
- Feta cheese crumbles
- Diced red onions
- Egg. One egg per serving.
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Directions:
- Toast the bread
- Poach the egg. Again, this comes down to personal
preference. Parker serves his eggs poached but I prefer hard boiled.
- Cut the avocado in half, remove the seed, and scoop out the
yummy avocado goodness
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| Dice the avocado |
Dice or lightly smash the avocado. “Lightly smash.” Don’t
you just love that phrase?- In the bowl with the avocado, add in diced tomatoes, diced
red onions, a splash of lime juice, a dash of salt, and a dash of paper.
Combine gently – or mash it all together into a creamy paste if that’s your
jam.
- Spread the avocado mix on the toast. Add feta crumbles on
top. Garnish with cilantro if desired.
- Serve two to three slices of delicious avocado toast with a
poached egg on the side.
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| Finished avocado toast |
Before we go any further, let’s address the elephant in the
room. Your favorite avocado toast always has fresh garlic. Or jalapenos. Or sea
salt. Or radishes. But I didn’t mention any of those wonderful additions in my
recipe! That’s because there are as many different ways to prepare avocado
toast as there are people to enjoy it. As with any dish, feel free to
experiment and add your own touches to make a meal uniquely yours!
GIVEAWAY: I’m happy to giveaway a signed paperback copy of KILLER CONTENT (US Only). Just answer the question: What ingredients do you like to add to your favorite avocado
toast?
BIO
Brooklyn Murder Mysteries author Olivia Blacke writes quirky, unconventional, character-driven cozy
mysteries. After shuffling around the U.S.A. from Hawaii to Maine, she
currently resides with her husband and their roly-poly rescue puggle, but is forever homesick
for NYC. In addition to writing, disappearing into a good book, and spending
way too much time on social media, she enjoys SCUBA diving, crocheting,
collecting tattoos, watching hockey, and baking dog cookies. She can often be found
on Twitter as @oliviablacke or on her website at OliviaBlacke.com. Sign up for her newsletter for access to exclusive content.
It’s murder most viral in this debut mystery by Olivia Blacke.
Bayou transplant Odessa Dean has a lot to learn about life in Brooklyn. So far she’s scored a rent free apartment in one of the nicest neighborhoods around by cat-sitting, and has a new job working at Untapped Books & Café. Hand-selling books and craft beers is easy for Odessa, but making new friends and learning how to ride the subway? Well, that might take her a little extra time.
But things turn more sour than an IPA when the death of a fellow waitress goes viral, caught on camera in the background of a couple’s flash-mob proposal video. Nothing about Bethany’s death feels right to Odessa–neither her sudden departure mid-shift nor the clues that only Odessa seems to catch. As an up-and-coming YouTube star, Bethany had more than one viewer waiting for her to fall from grace.
Determined to prove there’s a killer on the loose, Odessa takes matters into her own hands. But can she pin down Bethany’s killer before they take Odessa offline for good?
