Hearty Butter Lettuce, Fruit, and Tuna Salad
Written by Rachel, Posted in Cheese, Fish, Fruit, Gluten Free, Lunch, Main Dishes, Meat, Quick and Easy, Salads, Sides, Thoughts, Vegetables
This was one of those days when lunchtime was inspired. Usually, I make the quickest and easiest something or other‚ that I can eat at my desk. Often it’s PB&J, or almonds, fruit, and cheese. But today was different. I don’t really know why.
Whatever the reason, I thought of the head of butter lettuce (which I do believe is my new favorite kind of lettuce) that was waiting in the produce drawer. I hate it when I wait too long to use lettuce and it goes bad. That’s a sad sad fate.
Then all sorts of yummy toppings popped into my head.
Tuna for protein. And almonds too, for the protein and the crunch. Chopped, so it seems like there are more.
Super ripe pears that just made it into the fridge yesterday, because I’d forgotten that they were hiding in a bowl. An apple. I ordered 10 pounds of apples two weeks in a row. It’s taking a while to get through them. I don’t mind.
I’m totally in love with peony grapes. I’m not crazy about how awkward it is to get the seeds out, so I halved them and scraped them out before tossing them into the salad.
We have a couple cucumbers in the fridge that need to be eaten. Cucumber is a nice accompaniment to tuna. Also adds a nice crunch. I love a good crunchy salad.
I like a few small chunks of cheese in a salad anything. Today I chose gruyère, because that’s what I had on hand. It’s my current best cheese. I have to cut just one or two slices when I eat it, or I can easily eat half the brick.
For the dressing, I made a simple vinaigrette, my go-to recipe. It has balsamic vinegar, olive oil, salt, pepper, dijon, and maple syrup.
Combining all of this was a good idea. I wasn’t sure how the fruit would go with the tuna. But, I loved it. There’s all sorts of sweet, savory, salty, acidic flavors going on. At one moment deep mellow, the next light and fruity. Oh, and it’s healthy. I love that healthy tastes great. No cardboard-like food for moi! And, bonus, there’s lots of tuna and dressing leftover, so it will be perfect for making a tuna sandwich for tomorrow’s lunch, and maybe another salad the following day.
If you don’t like tuna, some shredded chicken would be lovely. If you want to add croutons, I think that would be swell. If you don’t like gruyère, try an aged sharp cheddar.
This would go well with the Leek and Potato Soup that I made for dinner yesterday. I wanted to have some, but was just too hungry to wait for it to heat up. Maybe next time. 🙂
Happy Eating!
- Tuna: 1 can tuna
- 1 t lemon balsamic vinegar (or 1 T lemon juice)
- 1 T olive oil
- pinch salt
- pinch pepper
- Dressing: 1/3 C balsamic vinegar
- 1 t lemon balsamic vinegar (or 1 T lemon juice)
- 1/2 T maple syrup
- 1/2 t dijon mustard
- to taste, salt
- to taste, pepper
- 1/3 C olive oil
- Salad: 4 C butter lettuce, washed and torn
- 2 slices cheese, chopped
- 1 apple, chopped
- 1 pear, chopped
- 10 peony grapes, halved
- 18 thin slices cucumber, peeled
- 12 roasted and salted almonds, chopped
- Combine tuna ingredients.
- Whisk together dressing, adding oil last – streaming it in slowly as you whisk, creating an emulsion.
- Make two salads. Place 2 C lettuce in a bowl and top with fruit, cucumber, cheese, nuts, and 2 T tuna. Drizzle with dressing. Repeat on second salad.
There is plenty of roasting that goes on in our home, no matter the season. But, there’s just something about the cool, crisp days of autumn that invite cozy, warm, roasted meals… and SOUP!
