TUNA ALERT!!

One of my customers asked me to bring in Spanish Bonito del Norte Tuna. So I went looking and was a bit surprised at the price...but she wasn't.

Let me warn you: DO NOT BUY THIS TUNA. It has been known to be seriously addictive. It is like no tuna you have ever tasted. I, of course, had to try it (it is, after all, my duty to know about these things...ah, the sacrifices I make for my customers...). The first thing I did was to use it to make the traditional Tuscan tuna/cannellini bean/fresh sage antipasto salad. The friends who were here that night raved.

This past weekend, finding another jar handily in my cupboard, and having all the makings after my farmers' market trip, I made a Salade Niçoise (you know, this is SPANISH tuna and I'm making French and Italian food with it. I think that means I'll have to have it one more time!) With some lightly steamed haricot verts, tomatoes and olives on a bed of baby greens, it was a great lunch for two. I used the last of the Creole remoulade sauce (from last Saturday) for the dressing and boy! Was it ever good!

So be warned, this is the best tuna you will have ever had. Line caught and packed by hand in extra virgin olive oil, it will make you swear off Starkist forever. And there's the problem: it costs $12 for a 10.6 ounce jar, net weight 7.5 ounces. Indulging a bonito habit could lead you down the road to financial ruin. And how sad, if we were to find you, some day, in a gutter, clutching an empty jar, with tuna crumbs on your face...