How to Turn Avocado Toast Into a High-Protein Breakfast

The fewer dishes and less work a breakfast requires, the more likely it is to make it into my rotation. Avocado toast fits that quick and easy bill, but there’s just one slight snag that keeps me from always reaching for it—it doesn’t exactly deliver the satisfaction I need in the morning.

This more than likely has to do with its protein content, or rather, lack thereof. Like a lot of other popular breakfasts—namely, oatmeal—plain old avocado toast doesn’t provide all that much of the nutrient on its own, typically coming in between four and five grams depending on which bread you use. And that can be a problem, since protein is key for feeling full (and staying that way), as well keeping your blood sugar levels more stable throughout the day.

Thing is, avocado toast really is so easy to make—and it is rich in other important nutrients like healthy fats and fiber—so I wasn’t willing to write it off just yet. Topping it with a fried egg seemed like a good way to get a protein boost, but even then that only gave me six extra grams of the stuff, and kind of defeated the whole goal of not having any dirty dishes to deal with in the a.m.

But then I stumbled on this recipe from Nicole Addison, RD, while scrolling through TikTok. With just a hardboiled egg and half a cup of cottage cheese, she instantly tripled the amount of protein that’s usually in the breakfast classic—no cooking in pajamas required.

“I thought, ‘Why not try adding cottage cheese?’ and it ended up being a hit, adding a nice creamy texture to the toast and creating a much more filling meal,” Addison tells SELF. In order to cut down on the same-day work, she hard boils a large batch of eggs—enough for a week—so they’re ready to grab and go for this recipe, but you can also buy the pre-boiled ones at the supermarket to save even more time.

When I set out trying this breakfast, I actually had to boil my eggs that morning, but I was still impressed by how little time it took. I popped my egg into a pot of water and set it over a high heat, got ready for the day, and by the time I was done, so was it!

From there, I tossed a couple pieces of bread in the toaster, mashed up the central three ingredients in a bowl—egg, cottage cheese, and avocado—and stuck with the same flavoring agents Addison recommended: Dijon mustard, chili powder, and a bit of salt. Minus the hard-boiling, the whole thing took five minutes from start to finish and left me with just one bowl to clean.

I was a big fan of the spice mix she used in her original recipe, but the choice is really yours on what way you want to go with it—you can flavor the dish pretty much whichever way you’d like, since all the main ingredients are pretty neutral flavor-wise, Addison says.

For something spicy, Addison likes to swap mustard and chili powder for sriracha and red pepper flakes. Or if she’s in the pizza-for-breakfast mood, she’ll top the whole thing with a blend of basil, oregano, dill, and garlic powder or dehydrated garlic. You can even make it sweet with a touch of honey and cinnamon, she says.

As for me, I’m already mulling over other ways to dress up this easy recipe—like a version with olives, capers, and tomatoes to satisfy my briny cravings, or one with cumin, chili powder, and coriander powder for something more in line with traditional guacamole. No matter which way I decide to take it, I know I can always count on this unique combination of ingredients to help me start my day off on the right foot—and with a happy belly.

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