Now that we’ve realized how easy it is to add spinach to our meals, I think we’re working it onto our table at least once each day. The day these Spinach Tuna Melts were invented, Matt was the guy in charge of figuring out lunch.
We almost always have several cans of tuna on hand, our freezer held plenty of cheese, and I think it goes without saying that we had spinach in the fridge. Here’s what Matt came up with:
These were awesome. I lost track of how many he had to make, as these are one or two bite tuna melts – and I’m not sure if you’ve seen our boys eat lately, but let’s just say they eat a lot of bites at each meal. We went through a lot of spinach, and not one boy complained that there was no bread involved in this meal.
This meal is perfect for days you’re limited on time to cook, days you don’t have meat thawed, and days you want extra nourishment in the form of spinach. (Every day is the day you want extra nourishment in the form of spinach. Join the spinach-eating bandwagon.)
How to Make Spinach Tuna Melts
Open and drain a can of tuna. Use a fork to separate the tuna pieces, then place about a tablespoon on each leaf of spinach. Top with about a teaspoon of shredded cheddar cheese. Place prepared spinach/tuna/cheese on a baking sheet and broil in the oven for 1-2 minutes until the cheese is melted.
One 5-ounce can of tuna makes 6-8 Spinach Tuna Melts. If feeding teenage boys, open many cans of tuna and be prepared to make many pans of tuna melts.
So there you go! A super easy meal you can make that packs a big nutritional punch.
I have added spinach or chard to things like lasagna or Italian casseroles and you can’t even taste that it’s in there, but you have the added nutrition.
This looks good! I like spinach in my scrambled eggs or sauteed with a sliced clove of garlic and put on top of a baked sweet potato with butter and sea salt.
Wow! And the spinach doesn’t wilt? My hubby loves fresh spinach, but can’t stand it cooked, so this might be a winner for us!!
We love spinach – I hide it in lots of foods and my boys will even eat it in a wrap now because “Mom, I can’t even taste it!”. My favorite use is in pesto – half basil, half spinach!
I like spinach on a pizza also…..I like spinach anyway you fix it…..
I was doing a couple hand-fulls in smoothies with strawberries, lemon juice, 1/2 med. cucumber or banana (makes it creamy) and a little stevia or raw honey. But I read that too much raw greens like kale and spinach can bind to calcium, and I have to take calcium citrate/magnesium citrate for restless leg syndrome so that didn’t make sense to have it Every day that way. I still do it sometimes.
Mostly now I saute those 2 hand-fulls in a little butter with a little red onion – it wilts down to almost nothing, maybe a scant 1/4 cup, and make a sort of pannini like at panera bread, with chicken or turkey, safflower mayo and basil, and some kind of cheese, garlic powder and butter on outside of bread. Grill till cheese melts. (Sometimes I put a small hot cast iron pan or tea kettle on top to weigh it down like the restaurant ones.) :)
I’ve started adding it to my soups. Just bunch some together real tight and thinly slice. Hubby thinks it seasoning! You can mince it up and put it in anything if you call it seasoning…
So simple yet ingenious.