Suzy Eats

Today’s Tuesday Toast is with The Polish Viking or Liv S. Vors. Her blog site is: http://dineandwrite.blogspot.com/ Her profile reads as follows “I dine, I write. I relish the new, treasure the old, and anticipate new opportunities to write about Edmonton’s food scene. I am a regular contributor to “Dish” in Vue Weekly. I also enthusiastically contribute to UrbanSpoon and Yelp. Questions? polishvikingfoodie’at’yahoo.ca”

Suzy Eats really enjoys her blog and creative ideas. We asked her to select a healthy recipe to feature this week on Tuesday Toast and here is her recipe for Lemon Fennel Tuna Salad

I’ve never been particularly good at following recipes to the letter.  Even my best efforts veer off course, but I posit that this is not a bad thing. A good recipe is like a melody, and a good melody allows the musician to riff and improvise. Case in point – I once discovered a recipe for salmon that involved lemon and fennel. I tried to stick to the recipe, but with each subsequent preparation, the ingredients changed. Salmon became tuna. Lettuce appeared. Honey spiked the salad dressing. Only the lemon and fennel remained intact. The current version (recipe below) has not changed. It maximizes fresh veggie intake, lean protein, and good fat in the form of olive oil.  It permits flexibility, for the veggies can be swapped for anything the diner desires. It is a delicious recipe as is, but like any recipe, it allows for improvisation.

 Dressing: 

• Juice of one lemon
• 2 cloves garlic, finely minced
• 1/4 cup tarragon vinegar
• 1/8 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 3 tbsp honey, melted

Combine all ingredients. Whisk well before dressing salad.

 1 head butter lettuce, washed and torn into pieces

• 1 fennel bulb, thinly sliced
• 1 red pepper, thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup mushrooms, sliced
• 1 large tomato, sliced (or 1 cup cherry tomatoes)
• 1 cup tuna
• freshly ground pepper

 To assemble, combine veggies in a large bowl and toss with dressing. Divide among four plates. Top each with 1/4 cup of tuna and a few lashings of freshly ground pepper. Serves four.