Almost 3 Ingredient Tuna Salad

I lost my job on Valentine’s Day.  After mulling things over for a week or so, a plan of sorts fell into place. I sold my old house. The movers will be here in a couple of days and by the end of this week I'll be living with friends. But, it really isn’t as dire as it sounds!

Next month I will head out on an extended road trip. It’s been over 5 years since my last vacation and I can’t wait to hit the road. I have no idea at all how long I will be gone. I'll be heading west (via Amarillo) to Santa Fe and Taos. From there I’m thinking of Mesa Verde, Four Corners, Bryce Canyon, Zion National Park, The Grand Canyon, Flagstaff, Petrified Forest and Phoenix before landing in San Diego. There’s so much to see in this country!

Once I’m in California, I’ll explore the southern coast and spend a bit of time in L.A. where I have family. Then I will head north to Santa Cruz and Capitola, two places I visited and loved years ago. I’m planning on exploring the entire coast right up to Canada.

I doubt I will be cooking much unless I rent something with a kitchenette for a week or so here and there. I do plan to continue blogging because I imagine I will come across some pretty amazing meals.

In any case, my cupboards are almost bare. For lunch today I managed to scrape together a really simple tuna salad. I used 3 ingredients, well 4 if you count the black pepper, lol.

I bound the salad together with mayonnaise because that’s all I had. You can lighten this up by replacing half or all of the mayo with plain yogurt or light sour cream, if you prefer.

2-3  tbsp dill pickles, finely diced

1-2 tbsp mayonnaise

5oz chunk light tuna packed in water and drained

a few grinds of black pepper, to taste

Place everything into a small bowl and combine until thoroughly mixed.

Serve.

Homemade Mayonnaise & Chicken Salad

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On occasion I'll make my own mayonnaise. It's not difficult and it's much tastier and a lot cheaper than anything you can pick up in a jar. I think what holds many people back from giving it a try is the concern about raw eggs. It's sad this seems to have become more of an issue in recent years.

My mum told me my grandmother used to leave her eggs out on the counter, unrefrigerated for weeks. My grandmother's eggs were fine and no one ever got sick.

Nowadays, when it comes to perishable foods, I often toss "brand loyalty" out the window and shop by the best expiration date. The eggs I brought home this week happened to be "pasteurized"; perfect for making mayonnaise. If you can't find any pasteurized eggs, then you can do this yourself.

This basic recipe can be doubled or tripled, but I prefer making a smaller amount and using it up within a week.

All ingredients need to be at room temperature.

Basic Mayonnaise
1 large pasteurized egg yolk
1/2-3/4 cup flavourless vegetable oil
a pinch or two of fine sea salt
1-2 tsp freshly squeezed lemon juice 

Options
lime juice, vinegar or flavoured vinegar in place of the lemon juice.
1/2-1 tsp plain or hot mustard
1-2 tsp ketchup, (makes a nice pink mayo)
replace part of the oil with sesame or olive oil

I like making my mayonnaise with a hand-held electric beater and a two cup glass measure. You can use a blender, a food processor, an immersion hand blender or even a whisk if you are brave enough, and up to a good workout.

Beat the egg yolk until it lightens in colour. Add one or two drops of oil and continue to beat. Keep beating in one or two drops of oil at a time (very slowly) until you have used up about a tablespoon of oil. The slower you do this, the greater rate of success you will have at creating a smooth emulsion. The yolk mixture will look creamy and *smooth. At this point you can add a small amount of salt and lemon juice or one or two of the options.

Once you have added about a tablespoon or so of the oil successfully, you can add it a bit more quickly; several drops at a time or in a very thin stream until you have used the desired amount of oil. I rarely add more than 1/2 a cup of oil per yolk, but you can add as much as about 3/4 cup of oil, if you prefer. Taste the mayonnaise and beat in more salt and lemon juice as needed.

*If the yolk begins to separate from the oil, then either the oil was added too quickly or the egg and oil were not the same temperature. Put this mixture aside (don't throw it out) and begin again with another yolk. Beat this yolk until it begins to lighten, then beat in a 1/4 tsp of the separated yolk mixture at a time until you have used all of it. At this point, you will need to double the recipe and add twice the amount of the ingredients above to finish your mayonnaise.

This will keep for about 1 week or so, refrigerated. It might keep longer, but I always finish mine before that amount of time passes.

Chicken Salad
2 tbsp mayonnaise
1-2 tsp cider vinegar, to taste
1/2 tsp hot mustard
1/4 tsp honey
1 tsp poppy seeds

2/3 cup leftover cooked chicken, chopped
5-6 grapes, quartered
1 tbsp chopped celery
2 tsp dried cranberries
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Combine the mayonnaise, vinegar, mustard, honey and poppy seeds. Mix that in with the chicken, grapes, celery and cranberries.

Check and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper, if needed.

Radishes with Fromager d'Affinois

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I'm so excited! My radishes are ready! This year I planted French breakfast radishes (Raphanus sativus) mid January. We had cool wet days, perfect weather for radishes in Texas.

The squirrels have had a field day this year. They dug up half my garden which I planted with spinach, kale, beets, potatoes and various types of lettuce. They even rearranged my spring bulbs. There's a daffodil in the middle of my parsley!

crackers or bread
*Fromager d' Affinois or brie
radishes, sliced
green onions, sliced
salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste


Spread the cheese on the bread or crackers. Top with a layer of sliced radishes. Sprinkle with sliced green onion and dust with salt and pepper, to taste.

*Fromager d'Affinois is a very creamy, brie-like cheese with a soft delicate tasting rind. 

Deviled Egg Salad

(2 servings)

Whenever I hard boil eggs, it's hit and miss. They are either underdone or overdone. I decided to look it up this time and followed these directions. They turned out just right.

Chopped Herring Salad

(about 1 cup)

Last week I picked up a huge jar of Canadian pickled herring which I've been snacking on. I've made my usual herring salad a few times now, using beets. This is another version, sans beets, I like to make on occasion.

3/4 cup pickled herring (in wine sauce)
1 tbsp green onion, chopped
2 - 3 pickled gherkins, chopped
2 tsp fresh dill, chopped
1 hard boiled egg, chopped
1 tsp olive oil
1 tsp hot mustard or prepared horseradish
freshly ground black pepper


Briefly rinse the herring fillets or pieces in cold water, then pat them dry, and chop up coarsely. Place them in a small bowl and add the remaining ingredients. Combine well.

I like to refrigerate the salad for an hour or so before I have it, but it's pretty good right away as well.