I fell in love with tuna melts while working my first job at Heartland Cafe in Calgary’s trendy Kensington neighborhood at the ripe ol’ age of 19 years old. I’ve never been a big fan of mayo, so I used to use salad dressing to make tuna salad when I was growing up. Caesar salad dressing traditionally has anchovies, making it a perfect fit for tuna salad. Here’s my favorite version of a tuna melt with just the right mix of savory, sweet, cheesiness, and crunch.
Ingredients:
1 can ethically sourced tuna, drained
1/4 cup thick creamy caesar dressing (like LiteHouse)
2 T sweet relish
2 T red onion, finely diced
1 stalk celery, finely diced
Himalayan salt & fresh crushed pepper to taste
1 gluten-free whole grain bagel (like Udi’s brand) or 2 Multi-grain Ryvita crackers
1/4 cup of grated cheddar cheese
Instructions:
- Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Mix everything (except the bagel and cheese) together in a bowl.
- On a baking sheet lay out the two sides of bagel, face up.
- Glob half of the tuna salad on one side of the bagel and the rest on the other side.
- Top it the tuna with grated cheese on each bagel.
- Bake for 10 minutes. If you like your celery and onion a little softer, bake longer. I like a little crunch.
- Switch the oven to Hi broil setting and broil for 2 minutes till the cheese is lightly browned and bubbly.
- Enjoy!
Plum Hill 