Green Bean White Bean Tuna Salad

This delicious salad recipe is a wonderful combination of flavours and is nutrient rich with healthy fats, fiber, protein, vitamins and minerals. It makes enough to share with someone you love for a filling lunch or a light dinner. Since you only add a small amount of the salad greens to toss with the dressing initially and serve it on a bed of greens, the salad keeps for yummy leftovers to enjoy the next day.  

Prep time: 20 Minutes / Cook Time: 25 Minutes / Number of Servings: 2 

Ingredients:

• Dressing: 

  • 1 Green Onion - chopped white and 3 inches of green part

  • 2 cloves Garlic - minced

  • 3 Tablespoon White Wine Vinegar

  • Pinch of Sea Salt

  • 1 cup fresh Basil leaves or 1½ Tablespoons dried Basil

  • ½ teaspoon dried Tarragon 

  • 6 Tablespoons Extra-Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO)

  • 2 Tablespoons fresh Lemon Juice (1/2 a lemon juiced)

  • ½ teaspoon freshly ground Black Pepper

• Salad:

  • 1½ cups Green Beans, trimmed (cut the stem part off)

  • 1 can 19oz./ 540 ml White Kidney Beans – drained and rinsed 

  • 1 (170g) can Tuna (oil or water packed – your preference), drained and flaked into pieces

  • 3 cups Salad Greens – Baby Spinach (in photo) Romaine, Boston Bib or Spring Mix – washed and dried

  • ½ cup fresh Parsley leaves – chopped  

  • Sea Salt and additional Black Pepper to taste

How it’s Made:

• Combine green onion, garlic, vinegar, and salt in a deep bowl suitable to use a hand held immersion blender in. Let sit 5–10 minutes.

• Add the basil, tarragon, EVOO, lemon juice and pepper to the green onion mixture and blend until smooth.

• Cook the trimmed green beans in a pot of boiling salted water for 8-10 minutes until tender. Drain and then run under cold water.

• In a salad bowl, add the green beans, white kidney beans and the dressing and toss to coat. 

• Add the tuna and gently toss to combine. 

• Add a small handful of salad greens just before serving and toss gently to coat. 

• To serve, put more greens on the plate and top with the dressed salad mixture. 

• Sprinkle some parsley on top.

• Season with salt and pepper to your taste.   

Enjoy!

Tips:

• Trim the green beans and cook them the night before to put this salad together quickly for lunch the next day. 

• I juice a few lemons and keep the juice in the fridge in a jar – it’s so convenient to grab to add to a dish calling for fresh lemon juice (like this salad!) or to a glass of water for refreshing rehydration. 

• Instead of the white beans, use another bean or medley of beans of your choice. 

• You can substitute fresh or thawed frozen peas for the green beans – there is no need to cook them so it speeds up the prep. let them thaw for 10 minutes before adding to the salad.