Tuna Sandwich with Pickled Radish, Fennel + White Bean Spread

Tuna Sandwich with Pickled Radish, Fennel + White Bean Spread | www.athoughtforfood @athoughtforfood

You may be wondering why my first post of the year is a tuna sandwich. I don't really have a good answer, only that I was craving one the other day and I thought, "You know, I bet people might actually like this." And that's about it. No other reason.

My relationship with tuna salad (I realize how bizarre that sounds) goes as far back as my junior year of high school, when I became pescatarian. We were a household that always brought our lunches (with the occasional exception when I'd order a side of fries and a sugar cookie from the cafeteria). Up until that point, I was a turkey sandwich guy. Maybe roast beef. Or, sometimes, my father would slice leftover meatloaf and place that on top of two pieces of bread with mayonnaise (I still give him a hard time about this). So, I needed to figure out what to bring. Which led me to tuna. And I ate lots and lots of it. Surprisingly, I never got sick of it (even more surprising was the fact that I still had friends who wanted to sit next to me as I devoured this fragrant lunch).

Tuna Sandwich with Pickled Radish, Fennel + White Bean Spread | www.athoughtforfood @athoughtforfood

Tuna Sandwich with Pickled Radish, Fennel + White Bean Spread | www.athoughtforfood @athoughtforfood

Tuna Sandwich with Pickled Radish, Fennel + White Bean Spread | www.athoughtforfood @athoughtforfood

So, that's my history with tuna. I'm still rather partial to it and will often throw it on top of salad, but recently I was just in the mood for a sandwich. I kept things on the healthier side by mixing the tuna with just a touch of mayo. The bread is spread with a creamy, garlicky white bean dip. Quick pickles will always add some depth (both in flavor and texture) to a sandwich, which is where the fennel and radish come into play. It may seem like a lot of elements, but, trust me, it's worth it.

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Tuna Sandwich with Pickled Fennel and Radish + White Bean Spread

Yield Makes 4 sandwiches

IngredientsFor the pickled vegetables 1 small fennel bulb, very thinly sliced 4 radishes, very thinly sliced 1/4 cup cider vinegar 1/2 teaspoon salt

For the white bean dip 1 small onion, coarsely chopped 1 garlic clove, minced olive oil 2, 15 oz cans of cannellini beans 1 teaspoon rosemary, chopped Lemon juice Salt Black pepper

For the tuna 2, 5 oz cans tuna, drained of any liquid 1 tablespoon mayonnaise 1.5 tablespoons chopped scallion, green part only Salt Black pepper

Sandwich ingredients 8 pieces thickly sliced ciabatta Butter Mixed greens

DirectionsTo make the pickled vegetables 1. Place the sliced fennel and radish into a shallow bowl. Sprinkle with salt and then cover with vinegar. Let sit for 30 minutes.

To make the white bean dip 1. In a medium pan, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat.  Sautee onion for 3 minutes over and season with salt and black pepper. Add garlic and cook for another 30 seconds. Add beans and rosemary to the pan and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Take off heat.

2. Using an immersion blender or regular blender, puree mixture along with juice of half a lemon. If necessary, thin out with a couple teaspoons of cold water.

To make the tuna salad 1. Add the tuna to a bowl along with mayonnaise, chopped scallion, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and coarsely ground black pepper. Gently toss to combine.

To assemble the sandwich Butter one side of each slice of bread. Place in a pan over high heat and cook until golden brown (depending on your preference, some darker areas are ok as well).

Spread the white bean spread onto the inner side (uncooked portion) of the each slice of bread.  Spoon tuna onto four of the halves, followed by the pickled vegetables and some mixed greens. Place the other slice of bread on top, press down gently, and then cut sandwiches in half. Enjoy!

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Smokey Shrimp Burgers with Fried Oysters

It's hard not to feel a little left out this time of year. You get invited to a barbecue and you know that there will be very little for you to eat. Potato salad is a wonderful thing, but it's not going to soak up the bottle of rosé you'll consume over the course of the afternoon. And, look, I totally get it. Burgers and hot dogs and chicken are cheap and easy to throw together. Some grilled veggies will make their way into the mix to give the vegetarians their fix. But most people are nervous about serving fish to a crowd. How do you prepare it? Will people eat it? Is it going to weird folks out?

I think most will get behind any kind of burger. On a hot summer day, who doesn't want to chow down on a big, messy sandwich while swigging from an ice cold beer? Which brings me to my point: seafood burgers are just as wonderful as the beef variety. Take, for instance, this shrimp burger. The patty is a combination of shrimp, grated apple and onion, some salt and pepper, and, for smokiness, a couple teaspoons of Chipotle Tabasco.

One might say I went a little overboard with the fried oysters, avocado, and mayo. But, really, when it comes to burgers, can you really go too far? No. The answer is no. Always.

Disclosure: This post was sponsored by Tabasco. Over the course of the year, I will be creating recipes featuring the Tabasco Family of Flavors and this is the first of those posts. All opinions expressed on my site are my own.

You can check out my recap from my trip to visiting Tabasco here.

Smokey Shrimp Burgers with Fried Oysters

Yield 4 shrimp burgers

Ingredients For the shrimp burgers 1 lb shrimp, peeled and deveined 1 egg white 1 tablespoon grated onion 1 tablespoon grated apple 1.5 teaspoons Kosher salt .25 teaspoons black pepper 3 teaspoons Chipotle Tabasco 1 teaspoon chopped cilantro 1/3 cup bread crumbs Canola oil

For smokey mayonnaise 1/2 cup mayonnaise (we're a fan of Duke's) 1.5 teaspoons Chipotle Tabasco

For fried oysters 8 oysters, shucked and liquid drained 1/4 cup all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon Kosher salt .75 teaspoons cayenne pepper 1 teaspoon smoked paprika 4 cups vegetable oil, for frying

Burger toppings 1 avocado, sliced Mixed greens 4 hamburger buns or English muffins, lightly toasted or grilled

Directions

For the shrimp burgers

1. Coarsely chop half the shrimp and set aside.

2. In the bowl of a food processor, add the remaining shrimp, egg white, grated onion and apple, salt, black pepper, and Chipotle Tabasco and pulse until there's a mixture of finely minced pieces with a couple of coarsely chopped pieces. Transfer to a mixing bowl and stir in the chopped shrimp, bread crumbs and cilantro, until thoroughly combined.

3. For each burger, take 1/3 cup of the mixture and form into four, 1 inch thick patties (roughly 4 inches round). At this point, you can cook them immediately or wrap and freeze for later use.

4. Set a large skillet with a tablespoon of oil over medium-high heat. Cook the burgers 3-4 minutes on each side until they have browned and the edges turn pink. If all the patties don't fit in the skillet, repeat with remaining burgers.

For the fried oysters

1. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, cayenne pepper, and smoked paprika. Add the oysters to the flour mixture and toss until evenly coated.

2. Pour vegetable oil in a large, deep saucepan so it comes up 3 inches. Heat the oil to 360 degrees F.

3. Using a large slotted spoon, carefully place the oysters in the oil. Cook until golden brown, approximately 4-5 minutes. Line a plate with two layers of paper towels. Remove the oysters using the slotted spoon and transfer to the paper towel.

For the smokey mayo

1. In a bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise with the Chipotle Tabasco.

To assemble the burgers

Spread the smokey mayo on both halves of the buns/English muffins. Place the shrimp burger on top of the bottom half, followed by the avocado, greens, and fried oysters and remaining half of bun.

Seafood Stew

Another fifteen inches of snow fell on our neighborhood over the weekend. We spent most of Saturday preparing for this latest storm, clearing out the driveway as much as possible so that we'd have a place to shovel the new pile. Thankfully, it didn't start until later in the evening. But by the time we awoke on Sunday, the mounds surrounding our house had grown. After some breakfast and a few hours of reading newspapers, Eric suited up for some shoveling. I offered to help, but he said he was ok with taking care of it. As this was the first Sunday I wasn't working in over a month, I didn't argue with him.

That's not to say that I wasn't helpful. I did what I could, getting some laundry and cooking done. Eric had talked about making a goat stew, the task of which soon became mine to take on. I've never cooked goat, but I had a feeling it needed a couple of hours of simmering time. As someone who doesn't consume much meat and prepares it even less frequently, I feel a great deal of pride when a dish comes out tasting the way it's supposed to. And as good as it tasted, it smelled equally delightful. How wonderful it'll be when he walks through the door and can take in these wonderful aromas. 

As for my dinner, I had already planned on putting together a batch of seafood stew. Before the weekend, I'd stocked up on an assortment of fish and other sea creatures. This is my new obsession. Getting a little of a number of ingredients and throwing them into a pot. This time it was a combination of squid, shrimp, littleneck clams, bay scallops and salmon.  After a long day of shoveling, I poured us a glass of wine and ladled our his and his stews into our respective bowls. We threw a couple blankets on top of our laps and curled up on the couch. It wasn't an official Valentine's Day celebration, but it certainly was a nice reminder of the life we've built for ourselves and the little (and not so little things) we do for one another.

Seafood Stew

Yields: approx. 4 servings

Ingredients

1/2 lb salmon, skin removed and fillets cut into 1 1/2 to 2 inch cubes 12 littleneck clams 3/4 lb squid, cleaned tentacles (cut in half, if necessary) and bodies (sliced into rings) 1/2 lb bay scallops 1/2 lb shrimp, peeled and deveined 1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped 3 garlic cloves, minced 1 lb plum tomatoes, chopped 1 fennel bulb, chopped 1 russet potato, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch cubes 3 carrots, chopped 1 1/2 tbsps chopped fresh parsley 3 cups seafood stock Kosher salt Black pepper Olive oil

Directions

1. In a large skillet with a lid, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat. Add chopped onion, season with 1/2 teaspoon of salt and cook for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add garlic and cook for another minute. Add chopped fennel and potato and cook for 3 minutes, giving it an occasional stir.

2. Add chopped tomatoes and seafood stock.  Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to a simmer. Let cook for 15 minutes.

3. Add the squid, scallops, shrimp and clams. Cover and let cook for 2 minutes.

4. Take the lid off and add the salmon. Season with salt. Cover and let cook for another 6 minutes, or until the salmon is cooked through and the clams have opened.

5. Sprinkle fresh parsley over stew before serving. Can be served in bowls on its own, on top of couscous or rice, or with crusty bread.