Emeril's Kicked-Up Tuna Melt

Description: Looking for an interesting tuna melt, I wandered into the Food Network where I found this little gem of Emeril’s which I slightly adapted to suit my ‘buds. Even my tuna-averse husband loved them! I omit the tomatoes for personal preference, but have left them in the recipe. Please note that while I’m leaving the recipe yield and ingredient quantities the same as the original, I actually got twice as many open-faced sandwiches!

Ingredients:

• 4 (6 ounce) cans solid white tuna packed in water, drained
• 1/3 cup kalamata olive, pitted and minced (You can use other brine-cured black olives)
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise, plus
• 1 tablespoon mayonnaise, plus more
• mayonnaise, for spreading
• 1/4 cup finely chopped scallion
• 1 tablespoon capers, drained and minced
• 1 tablespoon fresh ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 4 slices rustic white bread or 4 slices other dense white bread
• 8 slices tomatoes
• 4 ounces emmenthaler cheese, thinly sliced

Steps:

1. Preheat the broiler and position the oven rack about 6 inches from the broiler.
2. Combine the tuna, olives, mayonnaise, red onion, capers, black pepper, lemon juice, and salt in a medium bowl. Stir until well mixed.
3. Arrange the bread slices on a work surface. Lightly spread each slice of bread with additional mayonnaise and top with 2 tomato slices each. Divide the tuna salad evenly among the 4 bread slices over the tomatoes. Top the tuna salad with slices of cheese.
4. Place sandwiches on a sheet tray and place under broiler. Cook until cheese is golden and bubbly, about 3-4 minutes.