Simple canned tuna makes a tasty, casual dinner when you dress it up in
something other than mayo and chopped celery. And grilling the bread turns an
ordinary sandwich into a hot, crunchy panini. This recipe combines
tuna with Mediterranean flavors and ingredients sandwiched between pieces of
grilled baguette—like a Greek salad sitting on a big French crouton.
I think it’s important to keep sustainability in mind when purchasing
canned or fresh seafood (or any food,
for that matter), and sometimes it’s as simple as reading the label on the
product. I used wild albacore tuna, no-salt-added, packed in water, and noted
as “100% pole & troll caught” on the side of the can. There are several good canned tunas on the market, so go green with
whatever is most available in your area.
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Albacore Tuna |
While we don’t normally think of sandwiches as light, lean meals, I’ll argue that this one is at least close to
it. I used small pieces of baguette per sandwich simply to cut down on the volume of bread
and replaced fatty mayonnaise with plain Greek yogurt in the sauce. Feta has a
mild, yet briny taste, so you don’t need much to give the tuna mixture a flavor
boost. And the rest of the ingredients? Lemon juice, garlic, olives, cucumber,
tomato, and watercress—fresh and natural. What’s not lean (or to love) about
that?
Serves 4
Ingredients
- 2 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
- 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 1/4 tsp ground cumin
- sea salt
- freshly ground black pepper
- 2 5-oz cans of wild albacore tuna (preferably no salt added)
- 1/2 cup thin slices of pitted kalamata olives
- 1/2 cup crumbled feta
- 1 long baguette, cut crosswise into 4 even pieces, each piece sliced
into bottom and top
- 16 very thin slices of cucumber
- 12 very thin slices of roma tomato
- 1 cup trimmed watercress
- olive oil, for brushing
Preparation
- Combine the garlic, yogurt, lemon juice, and cumin in a small bowl and
season with salt and pepper. Set aside for 30 minutes to allow flavors to
develop.
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Garlicky Yogurt Sauce |
- Combine the tuna, olives, and feta in a medium bowl. Add the yogurt
mixture to the tuna mixture and stir well to combine.
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Tuna, Feta, and Olive Mixture |
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Tuna Mixture with Garlicky Yogurt Sauce |
- Lay the bread slices on a work surface and divide the tuna mixture on
the bottom halves. Top the tuna with cucumber, tomato, and
watercress. Place the tops on the sandwiches and gently press together.
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Tuna-Sauce Mixture on the Baguette |
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Sandwiches Ready to Top |
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Sandwiches Ready to Grill |
- Heat a grill pan over medium high heat and brush with olive oil. Place 2
sandwiches in the pan and place a grill press on top (or use a small, heavy
skillet as a press).
- Grill 2-3 minutes on 1 side until the bread is toasted and shows grill
marks. Turn and grill, pressing, 2 minutes on the other side.
- Remove the panini to a cutting board and repeat with the other 2
sandwiches. Slice each panini on the diagonal and serve hot or at room
temperature.
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Grilled Panini |
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