Guest Post: Tuna Loaf by Juls of Juls’ Kitchen

The Spain in Iowa Summer Blogger Series. A series to highlight people and their passion for food, culture and life. These are some of the people that continually inspire me in my own blog and life. My hope is that they will inspire you as well.

To start us off I am beyond myself to have Giulia Scarpaleggia of Juls’ Kitchen here on my own blog.

Jul’s is Italian and blogs from Italy in both Italian and English.  (Lucky Us!)  She has a vibrant love for her culture, food and family.  (Can you see why I love this woman 😉  She recently finished her first cookbook appropriately titled, “My Grandma’s Recipes.” (As soon as I figure out how we can order her book in the States, I’ll let you know!)  Her photography is impeccable and her smile… addicting.  My hopes is to one day meet Jul’s in the Tuscan countryside of Italy where she teaches her cooking classes.  How magnificent does that sound?!

Here is Jul’s sharing a Tuna Loaf recipe. You can find her on her blog at Juls’ Kitchen in English or get to know her on her facebook fan page.

Diana is one of the first international foodbloggers I got to know: every time we have worked together, being it a guest post or just chats over food themes, I was impressed with her kindness and the sunny character that shines through her words.  Besides this, I love her attention to the local food movement and to the urban organic gardens. I wanted to write a special guest post for Diana, so I looked back in my memories to find a special summer recipe.

Now it happens years before, but I had my first holidays alone with my friends when I was 19, with Simona, Federica and Margherita, we stayed at Simona’s grandmother in Bibione. We lived the sea life that we used to make with our families when we were little children, despite it being our first holiday as grown up girls.

We used to wake up early, go to the beach, come back home for lunch stopping by at the market to buy some food, spend the afternoon in a fresh place reading a book, then back to the beach, then off to dinner, a walk in Bibione for an ice cream and some music in the street.  It was a wonderful holiday: I remember perfectly the huge red berry ice cream we had for dinner the first night in Bibione, the sun burn behind my knees because of the first scorching sun after the high school final exam, our shifts to wash the dishes and the tuna loaf.  My cousin Margherita and I made the tuna loaf following a step by step recipe during a phone call with my mum. From that moment on, for me, the tuna loaf is one of the recipes of my summers, and before the summer ends I want to share it with you!

You will notice that there is no salt in the ingredient list: this is because the tuna and the Parmesan cheese are already very flavourful, so you don’t need to add extra salt.

TUNA LOAF

Ingredients for 4 people: 250 g of brined tuna – 2 organic eggs – 2 tablespoons of grated Parmesan cheese – 2 tablespoons of breadcrumbs

Directions

1. Drain the tuna from the cans and process it partially, not so much to obtain a cream.
2. In a large bowl, mix the tuna with the eggs, the grated Parmesan cheese and the breadcrumbs.
3. Shape the tuna loaf with your hands to make a kind of thick sausage, then close it in a towel or a cheesecloth, assuring the end with a kitchen string.
4. Cook it in boiling unsalted water for about 20 minutes.
5. Remove it from the water and let it cool completely before cutting the tuna loaf into slices.

How to serve it? The easiest way is to make a citronette, which is nothing but a cool way to call an emulsion of extra virgin olive oil, salt and lemon, whipped with a fork until the sauce becomes creamy, smooth and thick. A light mayonnaise, stirred with a dollop of plain yogurt, or a tablespoon of organic mustard are just as good. Last year I discovered by chance how good the tuna loaf is when served with a dressing made of a mashed ripe avocado, a pinch of salt and a squeeze of lime. The colour contrast is good for your eyes, the taste is good for your heart!