Some days, nothing but tuna will do. Healthy, tasty, already-in-your-pantry canned tuna has solved many a meal dilemma at my house and probably at yours, too. Blast from the past ladies’ luncheon tricks like tuna salad stuffed tomatoes (or Hot Tuna-Stuffed Peppers)
rate right up there in my fast-dinner book with big, thick hot and cheesy tuna melts served with–of course–a side of huge, spicy dill pickles and a tower of salty Fritos. I no longer make tuna casserole as I overdid that meal as a young bride and my husband is done with it, but I still once in a blue moon adore a big bowlful– if it’s the good kind my sister Helen made with crushed crispy potato chips on top.
These days I like my tuna casseroles served with a big glass of Chardonnay instead of milk.
This week’s FRIDAY FISH falls exactly into that homespun oh-so-comfy and also inexpensive category. No pricey fillets to buy at the fish counter and no vegetables to sauté (unless you want to) or potatoes to roast, but just a quick grill (stove top or outdoor), …
…broil, or toast of purchased flatbread like mini-naan (add cheese or not) with a few tasty things like the tuna, greens, diced fresh veggies…
…tossed on top plus a perky drizzle or two of Sriracha mayo over it all. Do splurge a tad and buy canned Italian tuna in a jar or 5-ounce cans that say, “pole-caught tuna in olive oil” as it’ll make all the difference in your mouth and in our world. Have some already-cooked veggies from last night? Chop those up and throw them on, too.
Set the table and pour the wine first, because dinner will be done too quickly to do it afterward. Try this:
tuna flatbread
Ingredients
- 4 4- inch flatbreads, such as mini-naan
- Olive oil
- Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper
- ½ cup grated sharp Cheddar cheese or Parmigiano-Reggiano 2 ounces (optional)
- 1 cup baby arugula or thinly sliced baby spinach leaves
- 1 tablespoon each: whisked together with a pinch of salt and pepper: fresh lemon juice and extra virgin olive oil (vinaigrette)
- ¼ cup each: julienne cucumber, minced red bell pepper, thinly sliced green onion, thinly sliced red radishes, sautéed chopped asparagus
- 5- ounce can tuna, drained, and broken up into ½-inch pieces with a fork
- Sriracha Mayonnaise: see below
Instructions
- If grilling or broiling, brush flatbreads lightly with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Grill or broil for about 2 minutes on each side or until grill marks appear or breads are a bit crispy on the outside. Turn flatbread over and add a tablespoon or two of grated cheese, if using. Grill or broil for another minute or so or until cheese is melted. (If toasting, toast for 2 minutes and then drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper, and top with cheese.)
- Remove to plates.
- Meanwhile, toss the arugula with a drizzle of the lemon and olive oil vinaigrette. Divide the dressed greens between the grilled flatbreads and top with a sprinkle each of the vegetables (cucumber – asparagus). Add the chunks of tuna on top of the vegetables. Sprinkle with a last bit of salt and pepper. Drizzle with Sriracha Mayonnaise and serve warm or at room temperature.
Sriracha Mayonnaise: Whisk together ¼ cup mayonnaise with ¾ teaspoon Sriracha sauce; thin with a teaspoon or so of milk so that it drizzles easily.
Notes
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Interested in the new spring cookbooks? Read up here.
They include MOSTLY PLANTS by Tracy, Dana, Lori & Corky Pollan–shown below.
Mass killings, monster storms and weather wracked us this last week. We had 100-mph hurricane winds with a blizzard last Wednesday here in Colorado, witnessed the reporting of the horrific murders in New Zealand via television on Friday (luckily I missed them live on fb), watched with bated breath the midwest flood destruction, and heard the Utrecht tram shooting news in tears. Prayers and positive thoughts for increasing and unceasing peace, acceptance, love, tolerance, health, and maybe some spring in our own worlds,
In a world so torn apart by rivalry, anger, and hatred, we have the privileged vocation to be living signs of a love that can bridge all divisions and heal all wounds.”
–Henri Nouwen
Cook on, be a blessing, and spend more time at the table, friends…
Alyce
Your flabread tuna has me intrigued. It sounds very good.
A little change-up from the lunchtime tuna sandwich, though we ate it happily for dinner with a cup of leftover St. Patrick’s Day potato soup. We have a few Irish movies we like to watch this time a year and saw the excellent “Waking Ned Devine” while we enjoyed our tuna flatbreads. Happy Wednesday, Mary!
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