Best Salmon Melts!

My family loves tuna melts. They are a classic American sandwich that makes a great, quick lunch. My first tuna melt was at a diner in my neighborhood that is an institution. I always get it on rye bread, and put the pickle slices inside. I am always slightly surprised that I like it so much because it has mayonnaise and American cheese; the two foods I may hate most. Nevertheless, I love it and I like to make a healthier, lighter version at home. I find greek yogurt is a great alternative to mayo, and lightens up the salad. I used canned skinless, boneless Wild Alaskan salmon, because it has less mercury than tuna. The secret ingredient in these melts is Old Bay seasoning, which is a famous seasoning from Maryland used on seafood. It has celery salt and paprika in it. It is the source of salt and flavor in the salmon salad. If you can’t find it, make sure to add salt to the salad! I serve it with lettuce to put on top, and I also like to eat it with ketchup, hot sauce, and pickles if we have them!

Makes 4 open faced melts

Ingredients

4 slices of bread (I usually use whole wheat sandwich bread or whole wheat sourdough)

4 slices of cheddar cheese

2 6 oz cans of skinless, boneless salmon, drained (I use the one from Costco)

1/2 cup finely chopped celery

1/2 cup finely chopped red onion

3 tbsp greek yogurt

2 tbsp mayonnaise

1 tsp Old Bay seasoning

Directions

Toast bread slices on one side until lightly browned

In a large bowl, add salmon and break apart into small pieces. Add in mayo, yogurt, and old bay until fully mixed through and there are no clumps of salmon.

Fold in celery and onion.

On the toasted sides of the bread, equally distribute the tuna mixture. When I make this, I have some leftover that I just eat with crackers. You don’t want to have too much moisture on the bread. Top with a slice of cheese. Toast until cheese is fully melted and bubbling.

Enjoy!