Skip to main content

Tuna Boats


I realize I haven't actually posted a recipe lately on this blog because I've been too busy going here and there all summer but let me assure you, I have been eating and not just at restaurants.  Our usual meal consists of some type of grilled meat on the barbecue with salad or zucchini or corn or other summer vegetable.  Pretty simple, nothing fancy.  And since we still have a freezer full of fish from Bruce's fishing trip, we have no shortage of supply of fish which is what we usually barbecue.  Last week we had fish 3 times, as you can see why.

Chicken is the second most popular choice, or game hens or something like that.  I admit, however, I have been lazy this summer and I've been buying those salmon and hamburger patties of different flavors at Whole Foods which are delicious on the barbecue, too. Shopping at Whole Foods can make you a lazy cook because all their pre-made stuff is so delicious!  

Recently, I made a family favorite we call Tuna Boats.  These make for a very simple meal and kids love them because they are sort of like individual pizzas (only healthy) that you can pick up and eat.  Finger foods are always a winner with kids, you know.  With all the interesting kinds of breads in the grocery store these days, I decided to use sandwich thins instead of the usual hoagie rolls.

These sandwich thins have 7 grams of fiber each which is really good for a skinny little piece of bread.  Original recipes of tuna boats (often called tuna melts) use English muffins or hot dog buns but now we can be adventurous with all the options available.

Serves 4

1 (12-ounce) can solid white tuna, drained
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/2 peeled cucumber, seeds removed and chopped
1/2 cup chopped red onion
1/2 cup chopped pickles (or less but I like lots of pickles)
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
splash of pickle juice
4 sandwich thins, halved
8 slices of tomatoes
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1.  Put tuna in bowl and flake with a fork.

2.  Add celery.

3.  Remove seeds from cucumber by slicing cucumber lengthwise

then scoop out seeds with a spoon

chop and add to tuna.

4. Add onion.

 5.  Add pickles.  

I use spicy pickles which are like sweet pickles but very spicy and delicious.


6.  Combine tuna mixture well.

At this point you better be careful because the aroma of the tasty tuna will be attracting some unwanted guests.

7.  Mix mayonnaise, mustard and pickle juice and add to tuna mixture.

8.  Toast the sandwich thins and spread tuna mixture on each half.

9.  Top each half with tomato (which we have plenty of from the garden right now!)

10.  Top with grated cheese.

11.  Place under the broiler for 5 minutes until cheese is melted and bubbly.

And since they are called tuna boats, that's when you place a little cucumber sail on each one.  Better hurry up and eat them before they sail away!












Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Meatloaf by Mark Bittman

Once again, I turned on the television yesterday and saw that Mark Bittman was on the Today show and was making his version of  meatloaf .  This must be meatloaf season.  It was surprisingly similar to the  Pioneer Woman's version  who was also recently on.   I was a little surprised of his version because Mark Bittman is into healthy eating and has lost a lot of weight and improved his health by changing his diet which he writes about in his book,  Food Matters .  His meatloaf recipe also included bacon and cheese!  I must be doing something wrong.  The thing to remember, which he writes about in his book, is that you can eat healthy without going extreme or changing your whole life.    If you don't know who Mark Bittman is, he is a food writer and a four star chef with multiple cookbooks who loves to eat but changed his food philosophy to improve his health.  He tells his story in Food Matters and provides ...
4 comments
Read more

Trader Joe's Gluten-Free Oatmeal, Peanut Butter and Chocolate Chip Cookies

I don't have very many gluten-free cookies on my blog because quite frankly, I usually don't like gluten-free.  But occasionally, I do find a good recipe and this is one that is from the back of the Trader Joe's oatmeal and it's a good one.  My friend brought some over to our house last weekend when Nick and family were here for our birthday celebrations  and we all loved them. My friend lives a few blocks away and we walk the neighborhood together on weekends.  We can easily go 5 miles in no time, talking non-stop.  She loves exploring our neighborhood as much as I do and we discover so many favorite little spots.  We even found a property with a horse (or more like a pony, I should say.)   The views are always quite lovely, too.  Bruce and I had our thirty-ninth wedding anniversary on July 18th and I made a point of walking past the house where we had our wedding reception.  I told my friend, "Thirty-nine years ago today, t...
2 comments
Read more

Waking Up in Vegas

and just like that...we were Waking Up in Vegas.   Just like the Katy Perry song. We went to her 78th performance which was her second-to-last Las Vegas residency show entitled "Play".  That was perfect for us because we went to Vegas simply to play.  Her concert was a great finale for us because it was high energy and full of silliness, just the way Katy Perry is.  And we were feeling it after three nights in Las Vegas. "Get up, and shake the gutter off your clothes now, That's what you get for waking up in Vegas".    Here's what she said about her show: "I created this show after the birth of my daughter, Daisy Dove. When I met her, it was like all the love I was ever searching for finally showed up. This show is for everyone’s inner child and for the hope that maybe if we could all see life through the eyes of a child, we would be free. Because never forget, love is and will always be the key,” she said. We went to Vegas spur of the moment because Br...
Post a Comment
Read more