Broccoli Tuna Pasta Salad

Little noodles with crisp tender broccoli, tuna, celery, carrot, fresh fennel fronds (or dill) and a Greek yogurt based dressing makes a fast, fresh and fabulous summer salad that the whole family will LOVE! (Adapted from Tastes Better From Scratch)

Sisters are Awesome

I have my sister to thank for this recipe … we all descended upon her one day. Her husband had invited us to visit (well, some of us … okay to be honest, he invited my mom and dad) and he forgot to tell her he had extended the invitation … and then we ALL decided to go (all 9 of us, including my other sister, her kids and her husband). We texted her the morning we intended to visit her and she was not so pleasantly surprised. Ooops! Sorry, sis. To make it easier on her, we brought food along with us–assorted brats and sausages, fresh watermelon, pineapple and cherries. We figured all she would need to do is toss the brats on the grill and we would be ready for lunch!

But that’s not quite her style. My sis whipped up a tuna pasta salad to help feed the crowd and had it all ready and stored away in the fridge before we arrived. After she had tossed the meaty things on the grill, she pulled her yummy salad out of the fridge as we gathered all the things we’d brought and found appropriate serving vessels. My sister pulled out her paper plates and voila! Lunch was served.

Sure we all ate the sausages and fruit, but we all DEVOURED this salad. Even me. I am NOT a pasta salad fan, you guys, but I really really love THIS salad! Of course I had to ask her her secret. She said she didn’t have any peas, so she used broccoli instead, but I had to bug her a bit to get her to send me the recipe.

Garden Goodies

I grew broccoli in my garden this year … and I had a head that was quite ready to pick! And I have fresh FENNEL in my garden this year … did you know you can snip off some of the green frilly tops (they’re called fennel fronds) and use them to season your recipes? I just discovered the magic of fennel fronds last year when my sister gifted me a big bunch from her garden and I totally fell in love with them. I think fennel fronds both look and taste a little like dill, but they lean towards anise with a more intense and marvelous flavor. I’ve used fennel fronds on salmon and shrimp, to flavor a creamy-licious salad dressing and even in pesto! So to me, having both these garden goodies meant it was time for broccoli tuna FENNEL pasta salad! But if you don’t have fennel, feel free to use fresh dill.

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Aside from broccoli and fennel, I also planted 5 different kinds of tomatoes, kale, sage, basil, parsley, lavender, several different kinds of peppers (both sweet and hot), zucchini and eggplant, plus I grew some lettuces (from seed) on my patio in a big plastic tub. Aside from the broccoli, I’ve been munching regularly on the kale, picking herbs whenever I want, and I’ve had two good-sized zucchini I’ve harvested so far. I have flowers galore too, in pots all around my house and they are so so pretty this year. I just love watching my little plant babies grow!

The Joy and Simplicity of Tuna

We adore tuna at my house and we make it often because it’s quick, it’s affordable (even if you buy the good stuff) and it’s good for you. Usually we stir together some tuna, mayo and mustard and eat it on crackers or homemade sourdough bread. Personally, I frequently make Triscuit tuna melts, especially when I have fresh garden tomatoes.

Tuna is one of the fatty fishes (alongside salmon, swordfish, sardines and halibut) that the experts recommend eating for lowering your cholesterol. In addition to its heart health, tuna is a great source of vitamin B12, good for your eyes and may also help prevent cancer and can even help you lose weight! Using high-fiber chickpea pasta in this dish helps you boost up the cholesterol busting power too.

Putting tuna in a pasta salad wasn’t on the top of my list of favorite uses for tuna, but really, this dish is everything I love about tuna, in summer salad form. I wonder if my sister used extra tuna in hers because it was even meatier than mine, but then again, I DID add a couple things to the salad (like carrots and eggs), so perhaps that tuned down the tuna flavor a bit. You can definitely skip the carrots and eggs if you prefer. This tuna pasta salad is great to have on hand for a quick, easy, cool meal on hot days when you don’t feel like cooking. Serve with some crunchy sweet watermelon for a great light meal … or throw something on the grill and serve this salad as a side. Either way, I’m sure you’re going to love this broccoli tuna pasta salad.

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