The Bomb's Healthy Halloween Sandwich

Belonging to this community has made me more aware of how many people are interested in eating healthier diets, and changing their purchasing habits by recycling to make our world a healthier place to live. When I was raising my children I made an effort to cook healthy meals for them. It is amazing how well my efforts paid off. In this tutorial I will be sharing some interesting facts I have learned about tuna and how to make a healthy sandwich that is " The bomb for Halloween! " This instructable was inspired by the  "Healthy School lunch and the Halloween contests. 

Recently my daughter signed up to purchase groceries at Amazon. She was price comparing and did a three hour search on the tuna Amazon offered. She called me to share the information she learned. I will be writing a detailed instructables sharing the links she found, the figures she came up with, and more detailed information about it in a different instructable.
I wanted to share all the information in this instructable but I could not find the brand I wanted so I decided to wait and publish more information after I can show the comparison. 
 

She emailed me this:
 

I spent three hours today researching TUNA of all things.  Found out some really interesting stuff and wanted to let you know about it.

#1.  Most canned tuna has all kinds of fillers in it, thus you get less meat and more junk.
#2.  Mercury content in the meat is a big issue and we here in the U.S. get the worst/highest mercury content in the world.  It's really bad.
#3.  Bumblebee, Starkist, and Chicken of the Sea are the top 3 companies that provide like 80% of our tuna in the U.S.
#4.  Bumblebee and Chicken of the Sea is pretty much a product of mush as far as quality.  Starkist is the best of the three, but still has junk fillers.
#5.  Those three use nets that harm all the 'cute' sea creatures we love like dolphins and stuff, but the big thing is they are part of big corporatism...
 

And this:

I looked at other alternatives and discovered a brand I believe to be the best.

WILD PLANET brand catches their tuna one at a time.  They DO NOT PACK THE TUNA IN WATER or ANYTHING ELSE other than the FISH in the can!  No fillers, just tuna.  Because of this, you get about 300% more Omega 3's compared to other canned tuna which we severely lack in our diets.  They have one of the best mercury ratings in the nation and the fish is U.S.A. fish which is better to buy locally.

Roger pays about $0.32 per oz at our local grocery store for Starkist white albacore (which is more expensive than Bumblebee & Chicken of the Sea brands).
Wild Planet white albacore is approx $0.42 per oz and we aren't paying for water or filler.
(They tell you NOT to drain the can because the 'juice' is from the fish i.e. the oil.)

And this:

Ok, so the bottom line is this:  Amazon Schedule & Save is definitely worth trying.
Wild Planet albacore tuna appears to be the best for you and a better buy than the scraps  you get from everyone else.

I love it when supporting ethical and sustainable companies makes economic sense as well :)

Got the Wild Planet tuna.  Won't ever willingly go back to the other stuff!  All that is in the can is nice big chunks of tuna steak.  Even though the tuna is packed in its own juices, there isn't much "juice" to speak of - you definitely get more tuna in the can than the other brands.  It tastes fresher too!

Roger, the ultimate tuna lover said he never wants to eat that other stuff again.  He said more tuna in the can or not, he definitely TASTES the difference...

Anyway, just thought I would share.   It is certainly worth the 3+ hours I spent researching and finally taking the risk to order.

I found some information about how to choose the right tuna that supports her statement:

http://www.eatingwell.com/blogs/healthy_cooking_blog/3_tips_for_buying_the_healthiest_canned_tuna_and_salmon_and_the_best_t

This is a great way to use up those small pieces of vegetables that are in the refrigerator.
 

2 Slices dark bread
1/2 Slice or less of lighter brown bread not shown
1 Small can tuna.
Mayonnaise as desired 
1 /4 Cup diced lettuce  Dark green lettuce has the most food value but spinach and kale have more.
1 /4 cup Diced Pickle  saving enough for garnish
A small section of Red bell pepper or I used a Sliced carrot for beak, eye brows, and tail
1/4 Cup diced Onion
1/4 Cup diced Celery
1/4 cup diced parsley and a small sprig for garnish Parsley is very very high in vitamin C.
Salt
Pepper corns for pupils
I used cheese for the eyeballs white bread would work, or a turnip. 
Olives optional for garnish
 

I was going to use the tomato for the eye brows but it did not work very well so I used carrots instead.

Basic kitchen tools and: 

1 Small round cookie cutter of what ever you want to use.
1 Tree cutter if you like the look of it, or just cut a strip to make the tail section from bread.
1 Tiny lid from food coloring to make eyes and the circle at the forehead was used.

Lettuce
Onion
Pickle save some strips for garnish
Parsley save a spring for garnish
Celery
Tomato optional
 

 

Cut the carrots and cheese or white bread or turnip as shown for the tail, beak, eyes, and the circle in the center of the forehead. Save a few carrots for garnish.

I did not get the proportions of the lower section of the face quite right so you might take a look at the picture I followed here: http://angrybirds.wikia.com/wiki/Black_Bird
 

Slice the dark bread into 2 thin slices.

Cut two circles from the dark bread for the face.
Cut approximately 1/4 circle from the lighter bread for the lower part of the face.
Cut out the tail.
 

Drain the water off the tuna.
Pour the tuna into a bowl.
Add all the diced ingredients.
Mix well.
Add mayonnaise.
Season to taste.

Here is some health information about mayonnaise that might interest you! http://www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/fsrl/pubs/Handouts/mayo.pdf

Assemble the sandwich and face features as shown.
You will notice 2 different ways that I assembled the bread. 
I liked the face where I cut off the dark brown bread so the lighter brown bread was on the top of the sandwich instead of tucked in the sandwich. 

I hope this information has been interesting and the sandwich inspiring.  I would love to see your " Bomb sandwich" so feel free to post pictures in the comment section if you would like to share. Additional reading here: http://www.apha.org/about/news/pressreleases/2010/nphwrelease.htm

In closing I would like to thank our instructables company, sponsors, authors, readers, and members; for making this community a great success! Many hours and hard work has been put into making this place the best DIY on the Internet. I hope your day shines and thanks for stopping by!

Sunshiine