Here's an after-school snack that older kids can make all by
themselves. Younger ones might need a bit of supervision and definitely
some help getting the cookie sheet in and out of the hot oven.
We've
used tuna in the vacuum-packed pouch so there's no sharp can lids to
worry about. But be careful when broiling the sandwiches. The heat will
be coming from the top of the oven so don't put the food (or your
hands) too close to the heating element.
{Makes 2 open-faced melts}
You'll need:
1 packet of tuna
2 tablespoons of mayonnaise
1/4 cup of finely chopped onions - optional
1/8 cup of finely chopped celery - optional
Salt and pepper
1 English muffin - cut in half
4 dill sprigs
2 slices of cheese - Swiss or Cheddar
Very little adult help
Equipment:
Measuring cups and spoons
A small bowl
A spoon
A cookie sheet
A flexible spatula for scraping
A rigid spatula for lifting
Aluminum foil
Oven mitts!!
A plate
Turn the broiler on - it can be in the stove's
oven or a toaster oven. This recipe can also be made in the microwave,
though the cheese won't brown.
Put the tuna, mayonnaise, onion and celery
in the bowl. Add a quick shake of salt and a couple grinds of pepper.
Mix well and you have a basic tuna salad.
Spread the tuna salad on the muffins. Don't
be stingy! One of these sandwiches should keep your tummy from growling
all the way to dinner.
Lay the dill sprigs on top of the tuna salad and cover each open-faced sandwich with a slice of cheese.
Cover the cookie sheet with foil and place the sandwiches on the foil.
(If you're using the microwave you'll just use a plate.)
Broil
for 2-3 minutes or until the cheese melts and gets a tiny touch of
brown on it. Watch it closely, because depending on the type of cheese,
you can go from yummy to disaster in the last 10 seconds.
Put your oven mitts on and carefully take
those puppies out from under the broiler. The cookie sheet will be
really hot so the best place to put it down is on the burners of the
stove. Don't put it down on the counter.
Give your tuna-melts a chance to cool a
little and enjoy. Next time you can experiment with adding a little
chopped dill pickle or tiny bits of carrot into the tuna salad for
extra zing and crunch.
