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Sun-dried Tomato Tuna Melts

Posted by in Step-by-Step Recipes

Tasty Kitchen Blog: Sun-dried Tomato Tuna Melts. Guest post by Georgia Pellegrini, recipe submitted by TK member Natalie Perry of Perry's Plate.

 
Natalie from Perry’s Plate always has such wonderful recipes that spice up my life. Recently, I have been cooking just for myself and this recipe for Sun-dried Tomato Tuna Melts really made my afternoon. It is a wonderful rendition of the classic tuna melt but it is so much more than that. It’s a luscious version filled with fun ingredients and I think you’ll love it.

 
 
 
Tasty Kitchen Blog: Sun-dried Tomato Tuna Melts. Guest post by Georgia Pellegrini, recipe submitted by TK member Natalie Perry of Perry's Plate.

You will need: sun-dried tomatoes in oil, olive oil, salt and pepper, red wine (or balsamic) vinegar, mustard, tuna, good bread, spinach (or arugula), goat cheese, and butter!

 
 
 
Tasty Kitchen Blog: Sun-dried Tomato Tuna Melts. Guest post by Georgia Pellegrini, recipe submitted by TK member Natalie Perry of Perry's Plate.

Give your sun-dried tomatoes a nice chop.

 
 
 
Tasty Kitchen Blog: Sun-dried Tomato Tuna Melts. Guest post by Georgia Pellegrini, recipe submitted by TK member Natalie Perry of Perry's Plate.

Place your tuna in a small bowl.

 
 
 
Tasty Kitchen Blog: Sun-dried Tomato Tuna Melts. Guest post by Georgia Pellegrini, recipe submitted by TK member Natalie Perry of Perry's Plate.

Add the tomatoes and olive oil and salt n’ peppa and mix it all together.

 
 
 
Tasty Kitchen Blog: Sun-dried Tomato Tuna Melts. Guest post by Georgia Pellegrini, recipe submitted by TK member Natalie Perry of Perry's Plate.

And get your bread ready!

 
 
 
Tasty Kitchen Blog: Sun-dried Tomato Tuna Melts. Guest post by Georgia Pellegrini, recipe submitted by TK member Natalie Perry of Perry's Plate.

Smother each half with a good dose of mustard.

 
 
 
Tasty Kitchen Blog: Sun-dried Tomato Tuna Melts. Guest post by Georgia Pellegrini, recipe submitted by TK member Natalie Perry of Perry's Plate.

Drizzle on some vinegar to give your bread some tang.

 
 
 
Tasty Kitchen Blog: Sun-dried Tomato Tuna Melts. Guest post by Georgia Pellegrini, recipe submitted by TK member Natalie Perry of Perry's Plate.

Place your greens on there in a heaping pile. Natalie calls for spinach, which would be lovely, but I was in an arugula mood. I like the peppery-ness.

 
 
 
Tasty Kitchen Blog: Sun-dried Tomato Tuna Melts. Guest post by Georgia Pellegrini, recipe submitted by TK member Natalie Perry of Perry's Plate.

Place the goat cheese and tuna mixture in a nice pile on the other bread half.

 
 
 
Tasty Kitchen Blog: Sun-dried Tomato Tuna Melts. Guest post by Georgia Pellegrini, recipe submitted by TK member Natalie Perry of Perry's Plate.

Then squish your halves together.

 
 
 
Tasty Kitchen Blog: Sun-dried Tomato Tuna Melts. Guest post by Georgia Pellegrini, recipe submitted by TK member Natalie Perry of Perry's Plate.

Get a cast iron skillet nice and hot with some good butter.

 
 
 
Tasty Kitchen Blog: Sun-dried Tomato Tuna Melts. Guest post by Georgia Pellegrini, recipe submitted by TK member Natalie Perry of Perry's Plate.

Press your sandwich down well.

 
 
 
Tasty Kitchen Blog: Sun-dried Tomato Tuna Melts. Guest post by Georgia Pellegrini, recipe submitted by TK member Natalie Perry of Perry's Plate.

Use a spatula or another skillet to weight it down and get it a bit flat and toasty. If you use thinner bread, it will be even easier. Brown it on both sides until the insides are melty and the bread is toasted.

 
 
 
Tasty Kitchen Blog: Sun-dried Tomato Tuna Melts. Guest post by Georgia Pellegrini, recipe submitted by TK member Natalie Perry of Perry's Plate.

This will be a heavenly lunch to enjoy on your own or share if you can bear it. Thank you to Natalie from Perry’s Plate for this absolute winner! She’s a fellow TK Blog contributor and her posts are simply amazing. Don’t forget to visit her blog Perry’s Plate too. It’s packed with so many delicious recipes, and she has the cutest little girls you’ll ever see!

 
 

Printable Recipe

Sun-Dried Tomato Tuna Melts

See post on Natalie | Perry's Plate’s site!
5.00 Mitt(s) 3 Rating(s)3 votes, average: 5.00 out of 53 votes, average: 5.00 out of 53 votes, average: 5.00 out of 53 votes, average: 5.00 out of 53 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5

Prep Time:

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Difficulty: Easy

Servings: 2

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Description

I’ve come to love tuna dressed up in a vinaigrette rather than laden down with mayo. This is a sandwich that’s much more exciting than it looks.

Ingredients

  • 1 can Tuna, Drained, 6-7 Ounce Can
  • 1 Tablespoon Sun-dried Tomato Pesto (in My Recipe Box) Or Minced Oil-packed Sun-dried Tomatoes
  • 2 teaspoons Red Wine Vinegar
  • 2 teaspoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • 1 pinch Salt And Pepper, to taste
  • 2 teaspoons Dijon Mustard (or To Taste)
  • ⅓ cups Goat Cheese Crumbles
  • 1 ounce, weight Fresh Baby Spinach Leaves (about A Handful)
  • 4 slices Sandwich Bread
  • 2 Tablespoons Butter

Preparation Instructions

Combine the tuna, pesto, vinegar, olive oil, salt & pepper in a small bowl; mix well.

Spread a little Dijon mustard (to your liking) on one slice of bread (or both). Top with a few spinach leaves, half of the goat cheese, and half of the tuna mixture. Place another slice of bread on top and repeat with the other sandwich.

Melt a tablespoon of butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Once melted, tilt the pan around to spread the butter. Lay sandwiches in the skillet and put a lid on the pan. Turn heat down to medium-low and cook for 3-4 minutes or until bread turns golden brown and the filling becomes warm. Remove sandwiches from the pan, place remaining 1 Tablespoon of butter in the skillet and cook the other sides of the sandwiches, covered, for 2-3 minutes until golden brown and the filling is hot.

Remove from pan, slice in half (like your mom did – I always slice it into rectangles because she did), and serve.

Makes 2 sandwiches.

Notes:
1. If you wanted it more “melty”, try using a different type of cheese. I bet gouda, gruyere, or Swiss would be good, too.

 
 
_______________________________________

There’s so much to say about Georgia, we don’t know where to start. Leaving Wall Street for the French Culinary Institute, followed by a stint at the Gramercy Tavern and La Chassagnette in France, her passion for food and food traditions are evident and inspiring. Visit her site at Georgia Pellegrini, where you’ll find more recipes, photos, learn all about her wonderful books Girl Hunter and Food Heroes, and enjoy her latest adventures.

 
 

13 Comments

Comments are closed for this recipe.

Wanda on 12.28.2012

Is there some reason why the Flickr photos for this recipe and others that I’ve tried to access are not available?

Benita on 9.19.2012

We tried this tonight and it IS excellent. A couple of things: the mustard is alittle too much vinegar to an already tangy filling. When I make it again, I might go for pesto (I used the cut up sun-dried tomatoes) or even a flavored mayo. I used spinach, but I think the arugula will be better (the spinach was just bland). I also used a nice sandwich bread, but I do think a foccacia or ciabatta like the pictures at the top would make this more of a “finished” sandwich. But we all loved it – even our 12 year old.

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julies on 9.16.2012

This looks good! Going to have to try it

sindy magee on 9.13.2012

why goat cheese? does it really make a hugh difference as it’s hard to find.

Sandi Blahut on 9.13.2012

This sounds really good…..I can’t seem to get enough of those sun-dried tomatoes.

Laurie {Simply Scratch} on 9.13.2012

This sounds (and looks) so GOOOOOD!

Val on 9.13.2012

Delicious! This is a Tuna Sandwich for grown-ups! So long mayo and pickle relish!

andrea on 9.12.2012

those sound really yummy but it sure looks like you made it with roasted red peppers.

j3nn on 9.12.2012

That sounds heavenly! Sun-dried tomatoes are definitely an underused ingredient in my kitchen.

Allyn on 9.12.2012

I really love using sundried tomatoes in unexpected places. It’s amazing the amount of flavor they bring. One of our favorite vegetarian dishes uses them with chickpeas and sweet potatoes and spinach and we love it (http://lollingabout.wordpress.com/2012/05/04/foodie-friday-coconut-braised-spinach-and-chickpeas/).
Now I need to try them on a tuna melt!

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Natalie | Perry's Plate on 9.12.2012

Aw, Georgia thank you so much!!

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Andrea on 9.12.2012

These sound awesome. Can’t wait to give it a try.

Travis Cotton on 9.12.2012

Hmm….those look pretty good. Never been a fan of tuna melts but these might change my mind.