Avocado Lettuce Tomato Sandwich (ALT)

Sliced avocado and tomato, lettuce with toasted whole wheat bread.

By
Elise Bauer
Elise Bauer
Elise Bauer
Elise founded Simply Recipes in 2003 and led the site until 2019. She has an MA in Food Research from Stanford University.
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Updated February 16, 2021
Elise Bauer
Avocado Lettuce Tomato Sandwich
Elise Bauer

Have you ever written a list of your favorite foods?

Avocado is at the top of my list. Yes of course there are other favorites—artichokes, blueberries, a good steak—but avocado is queen of them all.

As long as I can remember, my family has always had avocados in the house, either out on the counter ripening, or in the fridge. For a couple glorious years we even had an avocado tree, until it died in a freeze. :-(

So no wonder my father's most treasured sandwich is, as he affectionately calls it, the A.L.T.—avocado, lettuce, and tomato, on toast.

Avocado Lettuce Tomato Sandwich
Elise Bauer

Of course he thinks he invented this sandwich, and he did, as have thousands of other avocado lovers around the world. I once asked him, why not add bacon?

His response? A grumbled, "Why should I? It's perfectly fine with avocado," along with a look that said, if I wanted a BLT I would have made a BLT.

That's my dad. Do not get between him and his food.

Of course if you want to add a couple strips of bacon to your ALT (that would make it a BLAT), be my guest!

Avocado Lettuce Tomato Sandwich (ALT)

Prep Time 10 mins
Total Time 10 mins
Serving 1 sandwich

The key to a delicious A.L.T. is salt. The flavor of both avocados and tomatoes shines with the addition of a little sprinkling of salt.

Ingredients

  • Toasted whole grain bread
  • Sliced avocado (see How to Cut and Peel an Avocado)
  • Lettuce (Boston Bibb or butter lettuce work well)
  • Sliced fresh tomato
  • Kosher salt
  • Mayonnaise

Method

  1. For each sandwich, toast two slices of whole grain bread. While the bread is toasting, slice your tomato and avocado.

  2. Slather as much (or little) mayonnaise as you like on one side of each slice of toasted bread. Add a layer of sliced avocado and sprinkle a little kosher salt over it. Add a layer of lettuce and a layer of sliced tomatoes. Sprinkle a little salt over the tomatoes too.

  3. Top with the second slice of toasted bread. Cut the sandwich in half if you want, to make it easier to eat. Enjoy!