Tuna Melt

Tuna was something that was really in the background of my diet before this sandwich. Eh, not even in the background. It was like a blip on my radar that showed up only occasionally, like in chip dips and tuna salad. Usually I bypassed it without a thought.

Everything changed when I was up in the mountains with a few relatives. We were staying in a small cabin with one little stove and a fridge as the kitchen. We ate out frequently, but sometimes we'd cook a little something up for a quick lunch. Anyway, on that fateful day, one friendly relative handed me a tuna melt, right from the hot pan. I inspected it warily before taking a bite.

Love happened. Between the toasty bread and the melty cheese and the crunchy celery, there lay a hunk of tuna.  I suddenly regretted ever having ignored this amazing food.

Unfortunately, we returned home and the tuna melt memory was forgotten for awhile. Surprisingly. You're not supposed to forget experiences like that, are you? Well, I did. I think it was almost year before I hopped onto the computer and bugged him for the recipe. He was very nice and emailed me back with the recipe.

Tuna Melt
makes two sandwiches

4 slices of bread
One can of tuna
Cheese
1-2 stalks of celery
1-2 Tbsp mayonnaise
Butter

Heat a pan over medium - medium high heat.

Drain the can of tuna. Place into a bowl with mayonnaise. Adjust it to suit your taste. I usually use a tablespoon. I like to think of it as the glue that holds everything in this sandwich together.

Chop the celery and throw it in. Mix it all up.

Slice the cheese if you are using a block, or just pull out a few slices. I used cheddar because it's a good combination, but I bet some pepper jack would work well too. Whatever cheese you want.

Assemble the sandwiches. I put some butter in the pan at this point. If it sizzles, I usually take it as a sign that my pan is hot enough.

In the sandwiches go. You don't really have to time each side or anything like that. Really, it's kind of like making a grilled cheese sandwich. Everything should be heated throughout, bread should be toasty, cheese well melted and it's all good.