Tunatastic!

I've loved tuna since I was kid brown bagging tuna sammies for lunch at school. But as an adult worrying about mercury (females of childbearing years beware!) and sustainable fishing practices (endangering giant fish and dolphins alike), the tuna aisle makes my head swim. This kind of tuna is low in mercury but only if fished from these waters, but it's endangered in one of the oceans, and who knows if it's been line or troll caught or what. Not to mention "light" means skipjack and "white" means albacore and... and.. and... AAAUUUGGGHHH!!!

Then I discovered Wild Planet.

All of their canned fish is sustainably caught. According to their website:

In order to adhere to the highest standards of sustainability possible, each product in our line is carefully researched according to the reports generated by leading environmental organizations.

Plus they are all high in omega 3s (brain power and healthy skin, thank you) and low in mercury. Phew! They even clearly label each variety so you can find the ones with the lowest mercury or highest omega 3s, depending on your priorities. And they call things by their name - no more light vs white. Best of all, it tastes good - like fresh fish, not fishy mush. And it only costs a dollar or two more a can than the other stuff - way worth it for my health and the planet's. The only ones not loving this find are my cats - you don't drain these cans, so they miss out on their bowls of tuna juice. Oh well, they have other treats.

I'm betting, like me, none of you eat your tuna straight from the can. Regular tuna salad can be ho-hum mayo-soaked gunk. But with a little creativity, it can be full of flavor as well as nutrition. Here are some of my favorite tuna salad recipes.

Apple Classic Tuna Salad

This is the tuna salad I grew up on and it is still my favorite to this day. The combination of apple and tuna is wonderful. I recommend using Smart Balance mayo, but your favorite brand will work as well. Also experiment with the type of relish: sweet, dill, green tomato, or (my personal favorite) Wickles. Whatever you like, it will work great in this recipe.

1 5oz. can tuna
1 Tbsp mayo
1 tsp mild yellow mustard
1 Tbsp relish
1/2 crisp apple, chopped

Mix together all ingredients. Eat on crackers or in a cold or hot sandwich or wrap. I love this on traditional crackers, like Saltines, Ritz, or Wheat Thins. Pairs well with cheddar or American cheese.

Savory Celery Tuna Salad

This salad has a much deeper, more complex flavor palate. I recommend using Smart Balance mayo, but your favorite brand will work as well.

1 5oz. can tuna
1 Tbsp mayo
1 tsp dijon mustard
1/2 tsp celery seeds
1/4 tsp celery salt
1/3 cup chopped celery stalk

Mix together all ingredients. Eat on crackers or in a cold or hot sandwich or wrap. I like this version in a grilled melt on rye with swiss or provolone.

Pesto Tuna Salad

1 5oz. can tuna
1 Tbsp basil pesto, drain off much of the oil

Mix tuna and pesto. Eat on crackers or in a cold or hot sandwich or wrap. I like brushing a crusty french bread with pesto olive oil or spreading a sandwich thin with pesto mixed with mayo to make an aioli. Top with fresh mozzarella and fancy greens or heirloom tomatoes for a very adult sandwich.

Salmon Salad with Lime Crema

I used some of my leftover Lime Crema from yesterday's sweet potato tacos to make this fresh tasting salad. For a change, I used a can of Wild Planet salmon - a great substitution in any of these recipes.


For the Lime Crema:

1 cup sour cream
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
2 Tbspn fresh lime juice
2 tsp fresh lime zest
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 tsp salt

Blend all crema ingredients together in a medium bowl. Makes a full cup of crema. Refrigerate leftovers.

For the salmon salad:

1 5oz. can salmon

1 Tbsp lime crema

Mix salmon and crema. Eat on crackers or in a cold or hot sandwich or wrap. Today I sprayed a skillet with olive oil PAM and, on medium-high, crisped a tortilla topped with salmon salad. To finish, I sprinkled it with crumbled cotija for an easy fish taco, perfect for this season of the 500 Taco Summer.

Roasted Sweet Potato Tacos with Lime Crema

I'm just pleased as punch with myself right now. It's kind of disgusting how proud of myself I am over this recipe. These are just about the best darn tacos I've ever made, and I would put them up against just about any restaurant's.

As you may know, I'm participating in a 500 Taco Summer (though I'm expecting my number to be just upwards of 100). Tacos can be surprisingly cheap, easy, and healthy to make at home, so I've prepared most of the 30 I've eaten so far myself. I wanted to experiment with more vegetable varieties and remembered some yam tacos I loved at a Seattle Mexican joint, Agua Verde. They may have been the only decent thing on the menu, but they were very good. I figured I could make my own version. And boy did I ever!

I started with some tips from Cook's Country on successfully roasting sweet potatoes and tweaked it for my needs. They suggest double roasting sweet potato wedges - first on a rack at a lower temperature, then on a preheated cookie sheet at a high temperature. I adjusted the time for smaller pieces better to fill tacos and created my own seasoning mix. Then I threw together a lime crema that is so slurpilicious you'll want to eat it out of the bowl with a spoon.

As for the cheese, I tried mine with both queso fresco and cotija. Both were excellent, but I liked the salty squeak of the cotija a little better with the sweetness of the potatoes. If you can't find cotija at your local grocer, try substituting queso fresco, feta, ricotta salata, or cheese curd crumbles. This recipe makes four tacos, enough for two people. It doubles easily.

Roasted Sweet Potato Tacos with Lime Crema

Roasted Cumin Sweet Potato filling:
2 small sweet potatoes (about a pound), any color, peeled
1  1/2 tsp vegetable oil
1 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp seasoned salt
1/8 tsp black pepper
 3/4 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp chile powder, mild


Preheat oven to 325 with rack set to middle position. Chop sweet potatoes into chunks just larger than bite-sized (they will shrink upon roasting). Arrange chunks on wire rack set inside rimmed baking sheet.

I used one yellow sweet potato and one orange. Purple would work great, too.

Bake until just tender, about 20-25 minutes. Meanwhile, combine sugar, seasoned salt, black pepper, cumin, garlic powder, and chile powder in a small bowl. Remove potatoes from oven and increase heat to 425. Wipe off baking sheet and return, empty, to oven to preheat. Cool potatoes on wire rack for a few minutes.


In a large bowl, gently toss potatoes with oil and seasoning mix until evenly coated. Remove heated baking sheet from the oven and arrange potatoes in a single layer. Roast, flipping once, until browned, about 12 minutes.

Lime Crema:

1 cup sour cream
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
2 Tbspn fresh lime juice
2 tsp fresh lime zest
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 tsp salt

Blend all crema ingredients together in a medium bowl. Makes a full cup of crema. Refrigerate leftovers.

For the tacos:

4 corn tortillas

Roasted Cumin Sweet Potato filling

2 ounces cotija cheese

4 Tblsp Lime Crema

Front taco topped with crumbled cotija. Back taco topped with chopped queso fresco.

Heat tortillas on both sides in a dry skillet over medium heat. Divide sweet potato filling evenly between tortillas. Top with crumbled cotija cheese and lime crema.

Ocean Beach Sunset

Tonight we watched the sun set over the Pacific from Ocean Beach. Until tonight, I'd managed to miss out on this San Francisco experience, but not for lack of trying. On previous attempts, the fog always seemed to roll in while I bused across the city, meaning I heard fog horns through the dense mist and smelled the smoke from bon fires, but saw nothing other than gray and white. On this clear night (clear enough to see the Barbers!), the husband man humored me after dinner in a nearby neighborhood, even though having grown up here (his childhood home is blocks away and he even got drunk for the first time on this very beach), this wasn't as special for him. Or maybe this time was more special than ever because he shared it with me. #cheeseball Bear with me while I chronicle the memory.

The dashing husband man.

The vhamster herself, very excited to enjoy her peach colored meringue from the Russian Bakery.

Beach dog in front of the Cliff House. He liked to dig trenches.

Feetsies in the sand.

Seal Rock

Put a bird on it! 

Ships criss-crossed the horizon. 

Ghostly barge.