Aug 31, 2010

The Skinny Tuna Melt




Classic comfort diner food, just got a make-over... the low fat tuna melt. Adding veggies to your tuna, replacing the full fat cheese and mayonnaise with light mayo and cheese and serving it opened faced makes this classic sandwich lower in fat and Weight Watcher friendly. Use your favorite whole grain bread and serve with a salad or a cup of soup on the side.



The Skinny Tuna Melt
Gina's Weight Watcher Recipes 
Servings: 2 • Serving Size: 1 opened face sandwich Old Points: 4 pts Points+: 6 pts
Calories: 231.1 Fat: 6.3 g Protein: 28.6 g Carb: 14.7 g Fiber: 3.5 g    
  • 1 can tuna (in water) drained
  • 1/4 cup carrots, shredded
  • 1/4 cup diced celery
  • 1 tbsp red onion,minced
  • 1 tbsp light mayonnaise
  • 1 tsp red wine vinegar
  • salt and pepper
  • 2 slices whole grain bread (I used Weight Watchers)
  • 2 slices Kraft 2% cheese singles
  • 2 slices tomato
  • I Can't Believe It's Not Butter Spray
Combine tuna, celery, carrots, onion, mayonnaise, vinegar, salt and pepper.

Heat a large skillet over low heat. Spray butter spray on skillet (about 10 sprays), and place two slices of bread on top. Top bread with cheese, then tuna salad and tomato. Cook on low heat until cheese melts and bread gets toasty. Serve immediately.
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41 comments:

  1. this looks DELICIOUS... I love that whenever I make a recipe healthier I always like it better than the original... the healthy swaps are just as flavorful, or MORE so!

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  2. I go in and out of tuna phases but I do love a good tuna melt. Sometimes I like to add curry to mine (it's just good, trust me) but next time I'm going to give this a try - especially with the red wine vinegar!

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  3. I've never tried it with curry! I like the sound of that!

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  4. amazing! tuna is def a fave of mine!

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  5. YUM! And so much healthier than the traditional one!

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  6. YUM! All those ingredients....must be SO tastey!
    FIToriBLOG.com

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  7. Its says its 2 servings, but how much tuna do you put on 2 slices?

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  8. I make a similar version but use english muffins and add lemon zest. Also I let the cheese melt over the tomato.

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  9. Yum! I will have to make this for my family. We love tuna melts, especially in the colder months with a cup of hot soup.

    Now I'm hungry...

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  10. I've been craving tuna sandwiches for weeks now! Nice to know ways to lighten it up.

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  11. Hi Gina,

    My husband and I love your recipes. We go on your site a few times a week to look up diffent dinner ideas. However sometimes it would be easier to just have a cookbook. Do you think you will make a cookbook?

    Thanks-
    Katie

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  12. Hi Katie, funny, I get asked that via email almost every day! It is my dream to have a cookbook someday. I could easily make an inexpensive one myself, but my hopes are to have a beautifully printed book with photos, and until I know exactly how to go about getting one published, I'm going to stick with the blog for now. I am thinking of creating an e-book, which is easier to do myself, not sure if you would be interested in that.

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  13. A "spike" (pincho/montadito) really tasty and easy to perform.

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  14. How can you not love a tuna melt!? Have you tried making the tuna with fresh salsa and spreading the bread with avocado? Delish!

    http://eatlittleeatbig.blogspot.com/

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  15. This is perfect. My fiance loves tuna fish sandwiches, but he always fills it with a bunch of nasty (i.e. mayo, hot sauce, olives, pickle resish, more hot sauce, the list continues . . . ). Maybe he'd go for this healthy version (if I add hot sauce of course)

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  16. Hi Gina. I saw this post and thought .... um I have to have that! So I made it for lunch and I LOVE IT. I didn't have the vinegar, so i added cranberry juice instead. It was AMAZING!!! Thanks for all of your hard work on this blog. Yum yum Yum.

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  17. I am allergic to fish - can I make this with chicken or turkey breast? Otherwise it looks fabulous!

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  18. @Merut- lol, I'm sure this would be good with some hot sauce too!

    @bouchizzle- you're welcome!

    Yes, shredded chicken would work fine in place if tuna!

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  20. Not a tuna fan, but I love your picture!

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  21. I wonder if it would be good with greek yogurt instead of mayo. Cut a few more calories. Plus I just love greek yogurt :)

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  22. Very nice version of a tuna melt.

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  23. Loooove the idea of this!!

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  24. Made this using some leftover chicken i had. It was very yum! :)

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  25. Gina,

    Do you know how many points just the tuna salad is? The points value of the bread and cheese I use varies, and I would like to be able to add that in separately.

    Thanks!

    Swati

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  26. Can you tell me what brand of light mayonaise you use? Thanks

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  27. Sure, Hellman's is my favorite!

    Swati- The bread was 1 pt 2 slices and the cheese was 1 point each I believe.

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  28. I made one of these for lunch on an Arnold's sandwich thin, and I can't stop thinking about how simple and delicious it was. I've been craving tuna but unsure how to make a healthy tuna salad -- i.e., not globbed full of mayonnaise -- and a little bit of fat free mayo and the splash of red wine vinegar (which I never would have thought of!) did the trick perfectly. On a sandwich thin, it was filling and delicious. Thanks!

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  29. You're welcome Julie! My mom always made it that way so this was a no brainer for me.

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  30. I made this for dinner tonight and it was delicious!!! My boyfriend, who is not on WW loved it also so I will definitely be making it again. Thanks for the great recipe.

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  31. These were good, not as mayo-heavy as I am used to, for obvious reasons. These are great to bring to work, I put the tuna between two slices of toasted bread, added a slice of lowfat cheese and when it was lunch time, I microwaved for about a minute. Really tasty.

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  32. Just made this and it was delicious! Even my boyfriend loved it and i have never seen him eat tuna in my life!

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  33. I am totally in love with the tuna melts. I've made them probably three times in the last two weeks. And my toddler's love them, too. A total bonus!!!

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  34. This was a GREAT lunch!!! I love how your recipes are easy enough for us college students to make but soooo DELISH!!!! LOVE it and I LOVE you GINA!!!! :D Thanks for helping me learn to cook while in college!!! haha!!! >.<

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  35. This was wonderful! Quick & Easy and I'm watching my almost 2-year-old eat his right now! 2nd recipe today I've made from your site!

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  36. Over 2 years ago, I lost 70 pounds through changes in my diet and exercise. After having my son 1 year ago, I gained 50 pounds. Tuna was a key player in my weight loss and thanks to THIS recipe, I'm ready to go hard and lose the weight again! I've been put off by tuna, sick of the same'ol same 'ol. I tried this (substituting lime for the vinegar b/c we don't normally buy red wine vinegar)and it was AMAZING! Thank you so much for all you do!

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  37. I need to get more fish in to my weekly menu. This look fabulous. I'm trying it today!

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  38. Love this recipe! You share always a healthy and tasty food to make at home. I would like to try this on my coming weekend.
    Thanks for sharing.

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  39. Wow, that looks delicious! I'm sure glad I picked up a new cheese shredder today!

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  40. Just finished eating this for lunch. It was delicious! Thanks Gina! I love every recipe I have tried from your site. It's my go to site for any ingredient I am trying to use.

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  41. I'm surprised you suggest using Kraft singles and I Can't Believe It's Not Butter Spray because they are highly processed foods. Great recipe otherwise! Going to use real cheddar and butter.

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