Tuna Salad Sans Mayo

Here are a couple things to know about me: one, I hate condiments. Yes, this means nearly every condiment. I don't like mayo or mustard or tartar sauce or fry sauce or special sauce. I am ok with ketchup and pesto, though I hardly think pesto is a condiment. What do I put on my sandwiches? Nothing besides meat, cheese, lettuce, and a slice of tomato. What do I dip calamari in? Admittedly, I was flummoxed when someone asked me this last week. Sometimes I dip my fried squid in sauce (a potential loop hole, yes!) but I don't eat too much of that fried stuff anyway. So to me it is a moot point.

I also don't really like lunch. If I could, I would happily go from breakfast to afternoon snack to dinner. When I do eat lunch it is often "brunchy" in nature -- toast with cheese, toast with peanut butter, scrambled eggs with toast... Basically if I can arrange for toast to be on my lunch plate all is well. If I can't, things get more complicated.

But I am trying to be better about not only eating lunch but eating a REAL lunch so I am not hungry mid-afternoon or deeply cranky and unsatisfied at 4PM. This is why I was intrigued by a recipe in Bon Appetit for tuna salad that used plain yogurt instead of mayo.

I whipped up my own version of the recipe for lunch today and thought it was delightful. So good, in fact, I just might have lunch again tomorrow. And maybe even the day after that.

Tuna Salad (HOLD THE MAYO!)
1/4 cup plain non fat yogurt
2 teaspoons whole grain dijon mustard (you could up this amount if you like mustard. I don't -- remember?)
1 (6 ounce) can tuna packed in water, drained.
1 shallot, chopped fine
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
salt and pepper
Bread and fixins' of your choice. I stuffed mine into a whole wheat tj's pita with a bunch of lettuce and found it deeply satisfying.

Mix yogurt, mustard, tuna, shallot, and cilantro well. Add salt and pepper. Chill for at least thirty minutes. Enjoy!