White Bean Tuna Salad & Goat Cheese Cherry Bruschetta

It’s a miracle. I made it home in one piece and on the right date. Air travel is always a gamble. I didn’t help anything by showing up at the wrong airport. DC has too many airports! It could happen to anyone, probably. The breakdown/stressball that I became during the mad dash from Dulles to Reagan was fun for everyone…especially that toll booth man I screamed at. That was unnecessary.

I just had to get home. It’d been over 5 months! It felt amazing waking up in my own bed - minus the small stress hangover – and going for a nice long run to get my engines back to neutral.

Mom and I had a celebratory lunch at Meriwethers in my favorite Portland neighborhood. Super cute outdoor patio and their produce is grown on their own 5 acre farm nearby.



We split the nectarine, tomato, ricotta and prosciutto salad.

And the most delectable Reuben sandwich ever. I couldn’t even speak when the waiter asked us “how everything was tasting”. Is it just me, or do other people get rendered speechless when eating amazing food? The homemade Russian dressing with little pickles was on point.

There was shopping, napping, dog walking and other productive activities like that, before we started on dinner. My mom’s cherry and goat cheese bruschetta (originally a Whole Foods recipe) is brilliant. And a million times more fun to make when you have a cherry pitter.



This could become a really daunting appetizer without a cherry pitter.

Sisters hard at work.

Goat Cheese & Cherry Bruschetta

6 crusty bread slices,toasted
4 ounces goat cheese
2 cups cherries, pitted and quartered
2 tablespoons fresh orange juice
handful fresh mint, chopped

Mix cherries, orange juice and mint together and let sit for 5-10 minutes. Spread goat cheese on toasted bread, then top with cherry mixture.

Purrty rainbow tomatoes to go into Giada’s White Bean Tuna Salad.

White Bean Tuna Salad

2 6 ounce cans white meat tuna, packed in water
2 15 ounce cans cannelini white beans, drained and rinsed
1/3 cup small capers
6 tablespoons red wine vinegar
Sea salt and fresh ground black pepper
1/2 medium red onion, diced
1 1/2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
6 fresh basil leaves, julienned
2 cups arugula
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Add first five ingredients to a large bowl. Toss together and let flavors marry while you chop the vegetables. Add onion, tomatoes and basil to mixture and toss to combine. Mix lemon juice and olive oil, then dress the arugula. Plate tuna salad over a bed of the arugula salad. 

Lots of yummy recipes and restaurants to come!

PS. Why is it that the most amazing food is found on the west coast? Maybe it's the weather.