Salad Nicoise 2.0

Canned tuna along with cherry tomatoes and fresh summer herbs from my garden are put to delicious use in my latest version of a family favorite. 
Disclosure: I received free samples from Bumble Bee® Seafoods that are mentioned in this post. By posting this recipe I am entering a recipe contest sponsored by Bumble Bee Seafoods and am eligible to win prizes associated with the contest. I was not compensated for my time.

I’ve been preparing meals for my family for over 2 decades. That’s a lot of chopping, chilling, baking and blending. I admit, there were days when I found myself in a food rut. On those occassions, my  husband  suggested, canned tuna.

I always wanted to oblige. I love tuna fish. It’s convenient. It’s easy. It’s a high quality protein. It’s full of omega-3 fatty acids , associated with reducing risk of heart disease and stroke  and also important in children’s early cognitive development.   But as much as I know  about evidence of the longstanding benefits of seafood,  my enthusiasm would wane when I heard media claims of potential health risks from fish including mercury toxicity. Hmm, wouldn’t it be best to just be safe and avoid all fish?

No, that would be losing sight of the forest for the trees. For most of us, mercury toxicity from fish is not an issue.  But the risk is real for young children,   new moms and moms-to-be. These high risk groups also stand to lose the most by avoiding fish: Seafood consumption by new moms and moms-to-be  is at a all time low, with intake at one half serving per week. That’s four times less the  amount necessary  to reap the maximum IQ benefits for their children. You have to wonder, have  warnings  crowded out the message of benefits?

 If you’re in one of these  high risk  groups,  you can still take advantage of the benefits of seafood by  following  these recommendations, put forth by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and agreed to by researchers from Havard School of Public Health  :  eat up to two servings per week of a variety of fish (for example, salmon, light tuna, shrimp, mackerel, and up to 6 oz. per week of albacore tuna) and avoid only four species of fish—golden bass (also known as tilefish), king mackerel, shark and swordfish—larger, predatory fish that have higher levels of mercury.

 I hope this post has  allowed you to see the big picture; the benefits of seafood outweigh the risks. Enjoy more seafood with your loved ones,  with one of my all time family favorites. Although it’s evolved throughout the years, it’s  always prepared with Bumble Bee® Solid White Albacore in water, making it not only convenient, healthy and delicious, but also economical. So there, even better!

Make sure you check out the links at the bottom of this post for more delicious ways to enjoy Bumble Bee® tuna with breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks.