Feast & Lore

Food stories featuring heritage recipes and new experiments.

Recipe

Pleb Feasts: Apple Celery Tuna Salad Sandwhich

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sandwich elements being assembled

In my never-ending search for better lunches to bring to the office, I bring you “Pleb Feasts”. It’s all too easy to be lured in by the foodcourts and unhealthy dining options available for purchase when buying lunch. On the other hand, making lunches takes time and planning, and I don’t want to compromise on flavour or freshness by eating something made in advance. What’s a common office pleb like myself to do? I’ve been working on some creative solutions. This sandwich is super easy and doesn’t take a lot of time. I’ve also included tips on how I like to wrap mine up for maximum freshness the next day.

I’ve combined a favourite of mine—crisp apple celery salad, with tuna and light rye bread for these sandwiches. Parsley is a hardy herb that doesn’t get soggy; here it replaces your typical lettuce leaves to brighten up the tuna (and protect the bread from getting soggy).

I experimented with apples on one half, sliced cucumber on the other. Apples won for me hands down, but you could make these with cucumbers as an option to change things up a bit.

Assembling the sandwiches

A note on the packaging. I find wax paper is the best wrap for sandwiches—enough protection to avoid drying the bread out, but not a tight seal like plastic where things start to get soggy. Roll out a piece of wax paper, build your sandwich on top, wrap it up, throw in a fruit snack and lunch is done!

sandwich assembly in progress
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Apple Celery Tuna Salad Sandwhich

A perfect lunch to take to work—quick and easy to make, and stays fresh.

Course Lunch
Cuisine American
Prep Time 10 minutes
Servings 2 sandwiches

Ingredients

  • 1 can solid white tuna packed in water
  • 3 tbsp mayonnaise
  • 1 tsp lemon juice
  • pinch salt
  • freshly ground pepper to taste
  • 1 celery stalk
  • 1/2 apple Gala or Empire, cored and sliced thin
  • 1 bunch fresh curly parsley roughly chopped
  • 4 slices light rye bread
  • 1/4 seedless cucumber (optional)

Instructions

  1. Drain water from tuna in can, place tuna chunks on a paper towel and pat away excess moisture. Place into a medium size bowl and break apart with a fork.

  2. Chop celery into 1/8" size pieces, and add to tuna with 1.5 tbsp mayo, lemon juice and salt to taste. Combine well.

  3. Place a wax paper sheet on counter top for each sandwich, and set out 2 slices of bread on each sheet. Cut slices in half and spread one side of each with the remaining mayo. Season bread slices with extra fresh ground pepper for extra kick if desired. Layer fresh parsley on half of the slices, and divide tuna mixture on top, patting tuna down to create a flat surface. Layer apple slices on top of tuna (or cucumber if preferred). Top with remaining slices and wrap each sandwich in its wax paper sheet.

Whole Wheat Cranberry Apple Scones

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Apples, cranberries and flour in a bowl

Ever purchase some specialty flour like cake or whole wheat, only to have it sit there for a year and never have any need for it again? Determined not to let that happen to my recently purchased whole wheat flour, I decided to try out this recipe for scones. While this scone is not the buttery, crisp on the outside, melt-in-your-mouth scone of my dreams, they were a great mid-day snack and would be a lovely addition to any brunch. Bonus: unlike their buttery brethren, these will actually leave you feeling good after you eat them.

scone broken apart showing juicy cranberries on a red rimmed china plate

Based somewhat on a recipe from Epicurious, I changed things up by using fresh apples and cranberries rather than dried. I also substituted fresh pressed apple cider for the frozen concentrate, and I didn’t have buttermilk so went with the traditional substitution of milk and vinegar (1/2 cup milk with 1/2 tbsp milk). I also didn’t want to add yet another type of flour to my pantry so used rolled oats instead of oat flour.

Upon following the recipe I found the dough was very sticky and the scones lost their shape in the oven. To minimize the loss of shape, I suggest chilling the shaped dough on the baking sheet in the fridge for 20 minutes before popping them into the oven.

If you don’t want to make 12 all at once, these also freeze quite well—place shaped scones onto a baking sheet and freeze in a single layer; remove from sheet and wrap in plastic or a ziplock freezer bag.

scone broken apart showing juicy cranberries on a red rimmed china plate
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Whole Wheat Cranberry Apple Scones

A healthy take on scones with whole grains and fresh fruit, a great snack or addition to brunch.

Course Breakfast
Cuisine American
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 40 minutes
Servings 12 scones

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
  • 1 cup rolled oats
  • 1/2 cup all purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter chilled, cut into cubes (1 stick of butter)
  • 1/2 cup fresh cranberries
  • 1/2 cup diced fresh apple
  • 1/2 cup buttermilk
  • 1/4 cup half and half cream for glaze
  • 1/4 cup fresh apple cider
  • 1 egg (large)
  • coarse sugar crystals

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 375°. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Prep work surface with plastic wrap to roll and shape dough onto.

  2. Combine first 8 ingredients in a large bowl, blend. Using a pastry cutter or 2 knives, cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add cranberries and apples and toss together.

  3. Whisk 1/2 cup buttermilk, cider and egg in a small bowl to combine. Add buttermilk, tossing until evenly moistened. Knead 2–3 turns in the bowl, then turn out onto the prepared plastic wrap, shaping into two 6" disks. Cut each disc into 6 wedges. Arrange scones onto baking sheet, spacing 1" apart. Place baking sheet in fridge for 20 minutes.

  4. Remove baking sheet from fridge, brush with half and half, and sprinkle with coarse sugar. Bake until puffed and golden, and a tester inserted into the centre comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Serve warm. 

Split Pea Soup with Smokey Ham

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colourful bowls of soup

I have a confession. I hate spring. At least, I hate spring in Toronto. Here we are, into April, positively dying for some warmth and sunshine but instead experience snow, rain and freezing winds. Meanwhile, citizens of Vancouver and New York are enjoying cherry blossoms while wearing light spring jackets, admiring retail windows full of short sleeves and strappy shoes that actually make sense for the time of year! Ok, it could be worse, at least it’s not quite as bad as Montreal in March! But I digress.

What our Toronto springs do allow is the ability to enjoy those hearty, wintery dishes just a little while longer before the barbecues are opened up for the season and gelato cravings begin to take hold. This Split Pea Soup is a classic—yellow peas and leeks, brightened with the brilliant addition of celery root. For me, to simmer split pea soup with anything other than a ham hock would be sacrilege. The meat on the bone and the smokey flavours a good ham hock imparts are worlds apart from a boneless ham you might pickup at a supermarket.

This recipe is based on one from Epicurious. I did make a few modifications to boost the flavours a bit, however. You’ll find my version below. Enjoy while dreaming of buds on trees, the smell of wet springtime earth and imagining the warm glow of sun on your face.

Celery Root, Carrots, Leeks, and a Ham Hock, with yellow peas in foreground

Rosemary and Thyme tied with kitchen twine

Pot with peas, leeks, herbs and ham hock

Pink and green bowls with soup topped with parsley, rye bread served on the side

 

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Split Pea Soup with Smokey Ham

Comforting soup flavoured with a smokey, salty ham hock, with celery root and carrots to brighten up the flavours. 

Course Main Course
Cuisine American
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 45 minutes
Servings 10

Ingredients

  • 2 cups dried yellow split peas picked over
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 6 leeks white & light green parts only, chopped coarsely
  • 8 cups water
  • 2 cups chicken stock
  • 1 smoked ham hock
  • 1 bunch fresh thyme
  • 3 sprigs rosemary
  • 1/2 pound celery root approx half of an average sized celery root
  • 4 large carrots
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon salt or to taste
  • 1 bunch fresh parsley finely chopped, for garnish

Instructions

  1. In a large bowl, soak peas overnight with enough cold water to cover by 2 inches, and drain.

  2. In a 7 quart heavy pot heat olive oil over medium heat, and add leeks. Cover and sweat leeks for 5 minutes until translucent. Avoid browning, they should still be white.

  3. Tie the thyme and rosemary sprigs together with kitchen twine.

  4. Add the sprigs to the pot, together with water, stock, ham hock, bay leaves and salt. Simmer, uncovered, for 45 minutes, skimming the foam from the top of the pot as it cooks. Once the peas are tender, remove the ham hock and reserve on a plate. Discard herb bundle and bay leaves. Using an immersion blender, puree the peas until smooth.

  5. Peel the celery root and cut into 1/4" dice. Add to pureed soup and simmer, stirring occasionally for 20 minutes. Peel and dice carrots into 1/4" dice, add to pot and simmer until tender, about 15 minutes.

  6. Remove meat from ham hock and discard skin and bones. Chop meat and add to soup. Give it a final taste check for salt and pepper. Serve sprinkled with fresh parsley and some freshly ground pepper.