Grilled mushroom with breakfast guac, poached egg and a cheeky banger

I love an avocado concoction at breakfast but standard guacamole can be a bit too potent for me first thing so in this recipe I substitute the garlic and red onion for chive. You still get a bit of the delicious oniony flavour but without the anti-social consequences!

I like to finish off the mushroom fried with a tiny bit of butter but if you’re watching your fats and cholesterol then leave them under the grill for around 15 minutes, depending on their size.

The only reason I’ve put this breakfast in the low-carb section is the cheeky banger. The carb count, though minimal, will depend on the quality of your sausage. Cheaper sausages may have lots of filler that can cause a rise in blood glucose so you may need to inject to cover this but for non-diabetics this is a no-carb recipe. I am very fortunate to live near an excellent local butcher, Meat N16 in Stoke Newington – highly recommended in you’re ever in the area! Their Cumberland sausages are next-level meaty and I’m yet to eat a banger that beats it, plus the meat content is very high so, although I’ve put this in low-carb section to be safe, I don’t actually need to inject for this meal – hurrah!

Ingredients (Serves 2)

2 large portobello mushrooms
2 sausages
2 eggs
1 avocado
A handful of chives, chopped or snipped with kitchen scissors
Juice of 1/4 a lemon
Juice of 1/2 a lime
4 cherry tomatoes, washed and diced
Salt and pepper
Small knob of butter if frying off the mushroom (optional)

Method

Preheat the grill (around 180) then place the sausage and mushroom on the grill pan. They need to cook on a moderate heat for around 15 minutes, depending on their size, turning every few minutes so they are cooked through.
Meanwhile, dice the cherry tomatoes and pop them in a medium-sized bowl, then snip the chives over the top.
Next, prepare your avocado – cut it in half and the remove stone. With a knife, score around the edge between the flesh and the skin. Using a spoon scoop out each half of the avo so both halves are laying flat side down on the chopping board.
With a large chopping knife, cut each half into thin slices lengthways; repeat in the opposite direction so you are dicing the avo into tiny chunks. To get a nice chunky guacamole paste, keep chopping the avocado until it begins to get mushy. You can squish it a bit with the knife’s edge to break it down a bit more. Add a squeeze of lemon or lime juice to get it slightly sloppy.
Once the avocado is beginning to form a chunky paste scoop it into the bowl with the cherry tomatoes and chives. Season with salt and pepper, add the lime and lemon juice and give it all a good mix together until the liquid is absorbed into the mixture. Place in the fridge.
Check your mushrooms and sausages and turn them if needed. The mushrooms can be finished off in a frying pan with a small knob of butter or glug of olive oil if you prefer, or leave them under the grill.
Poach the eggs – bring a pan of water to the boil, adding a splash of white wine vinegar and a pinch of salt. Once the water is boiling, turn the hob right down to the lowest heat. Gently crack your eggs into the water and poach for three minutes.
Place mushroom on the plate so that the stalk and underside are face up. Dollop a spoonful of the breakfast guacamole in the mushroom cup and spread it so it fills it.
Place the poached egg on top of the mushroom and guacamole, with the banger and any extra leftover guacamole to one side.