tuscan tuna salad

Just a simple tuna salad recipe for you today. It's the first thing I've cooked since I returned from my quick trip home for Memorial Day. I suppose this begs the question, "What did I eat all week?", and when I stop to think about it, I can't quite recall. Some jumble of Special K, Progresso soup, and South Beach Diet snack bars, I think. (Thumbs up to the South Beach chocolate mint bars, which only have 100 calories and taste just like thin mint Girl Scout cookies. Mmm...cookies.) I knew it was time to get back in the kitchen, but since I didn't really feel like cooking I had to pick something that was more or less effortless. Of all the effortless recipes out there, I'm not quite sure why I chose this one. I'm not particularly wild about fennel or tarragon, so if I were to make this again I would omit them entirely. Again, nothing particularly wrong with this recipe, but it didn't wow me and I can't say that I'm eagerly anticipating seeing it again as leftovers. Oh well -- back to the soup then, right?

Tuscan Tuna Salad
Adapted from Starting With Ingredients: Quintessential Recipes for the Way We Really Cook by Aliza Green
Serves 6

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon
1/4 cup chopped Italian parsley
2 (6-ounce) cans tuna in olive oil, drained
1/2 of one small head fennel, chopped
2 ribs celery, chopped
1 shallot, chopped
16 ounces mixed greens
Handful grape tomatoes, halved (optional)

In a medium bowl, flake the tuna. Add the fennel, celery, and shallot and stir to combine. Set aside.

In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, salt, pepper, tarragon, and parsley until emulsified. Pour enough dressing over the tuna mixture to coat it lightly.

Arrange the mixed greens on a serving plate. Top with the tuna salad, adding more dressing if needed. Garnish with grape tomatoes and serve.