tuna and beans

June is almost here! That means the end of school, and the start of summer. For some reason, I haven't really been able to grasp the idea of it yet- maybe because the weather keeps being so lousy, or the fact that my neighborhood grocery store has yet to stock up on peaches (which remind me oh so much of what seems to be the never-arriving pie season). To top it off, I'm still getting as much, if not more work from my teachers than I had earlier this year. In spite of these, what I consider, devastations, my spirit has yet to be downtrodden. I've already placed my order for my first ever subscription of Cook's Illustrated magazine, and the new issue should be coming in time for the warm weather! Oh, the anticipation!

And how could I forget? I visited my grandmother last weekend and -gasp!- I received my very own Le Creuset pot! She decided she didn't use it as much as I would- though I've only used it once in the past two weeks. It was quite an important decision, though, deciding what meal to "christen" it with (I resolved that any use of a Le Creuset deserved such consideration, even though it had technically been "christened" before. I saw no reason to recognize this).

As I'm still waiting for the seasonal fruits and veggies to be available, I have to rely on the classics. My dad has been making this tuna and beans dish for years- it's incredibly simple, but full of flavor- plus, it can be made year-round. First, I chopped about 2 medium cloves of garlic, and sauteed them in a small/medium saucepot just for a minute. Then, I added a 15oz can of chopped tomatoes (you could use about 2 large, fresh tomatoes instead), and a can of chickpeas, and let this simmer for about 10 minutes. Then, a can of good tuna in olive oil goes in (I used Genova- you want to drain some of the oil, but not a lot), and it cooks with the beans just until hot. Voila, it's ready! You can always add some salt, pepper, or (fresh) basil if desired.