Once again, adding green onions blasts dish to the stars!

My fresh green onions have done it again. Remembering my Bistro Chicken Salad and how pulling a handful of green shoots from the soil and chopping them up for this dish brought enough zing to blast me to the stars, I just had to add them to a recent entree of Tuna Cakes with Creole Mayonnaise. Utter delight!

The Tuna Cakes recipe from Southern Living’s recent “No-Fuss Dinners” article appealed to me simply because of its title. Who doesn’t respond to a headline advertising easy meals that “take the pressure off weeknights”? Especially on days when I go sit with Grandmunchkin in the afternoons to help out his mommy, getting a quick meal on the table after I arrive home late is always a challenge. I also loved the idea of stirring up the zesty “Creole Mayonnaise”—regular fat-free mayo spiced up with Creole seasoning and lemon juice—as a topping. I always welcome suggestions about how to enhance a prosaic can of tuna fish.

After all that, however, the mixture still looked a little bland to me. That’s when I remembered our green onion rows that proudly wave in the March wind. I stepped to our backyard garden plot and pulled one that looked especially hardy. A thorough rinse, a few chops on the cutting board, a good stir into the tuna mixture, and this evening meal just took on new dimensions.

A word about the prosaic can(s) of tuna fish, however. The recipe below (originated from Southern Living, as I mentioned) calls for 2 extra-large cans of tuna or 5 of the small ones. I had only 2 small cans on hand, so I stirred it up with those 2 but stuck with the portions in the regular recipe. Even with this adaptation, the amount made 8 servings of nice-sized, flavorful patties—ample for a couple of good meals for me and Hubby.

Tuna Cakes with Creole Mayonnaise

2 (12-ounce) cans solid white tuna in spring water, drained well (5 5-ounce cans solid white

tuna in spring water, drained well may be substituted)

1 1/4 cups Italian breadcrumbs (I used two large slices of whole-wheat bread, pulsed them in a blender, and added 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning to make my crumbs instead of buying already-packaged ones)

2 large eggs, lightly beaten (or 1/2 cup egg substitute)

2 teaspoons lemon zest

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

1 cup fat-free mayonnaise, divided

1 1/4 teaspoons Creole seasoning, divided (I use the salt-free variety)

1 cup chopped fresh green onions

1/4 cup olive oil

1 teaspoon lemon juice

Drain and rinse tuna. Place tuna and breadcrumbs in a large bowl; stir in eggs, lemon zest, mustard, 1/3 cup mayonnaise, and 1 teaspoon Creole seasoning. Shape mixture into 8 (3-inch) patties. Cook 4 patties in 2 tablespoons hot oil in a large, nonstick skillet over medium-high heat 2 to 3 minutes on each side or until golden; drain on paper towels. Repeat with remaining tuna cakes and oil. Combine lemon juice and remaining 2/3 cup mayonnaise and 1/4 teaspoon Creole seasoning. Serve with hot tuna cakes. Makes 8 servings.