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| Special Sardine Salad, see below |
Three whopping years ago, I attempted to like sardines. I psyched myself up and tried them and even concluded, “I would give sardines a second date.” I must apologize to sardines because I didn’t revisit them. I felt I had faced a food fear and frankly fear and eating aren’t two things I enjoy at the same time. I have total respect for sardines, their impressive omega 3 content, low mercury and B vitamin offerings. Maybe the initial timing wasn’t right. More recently, I got together with some friends to cook and one of the recipes was a sardine salad. It wasn’t just a run of the mill green salad with sardines but baby arugula with orange and fennel, other delicious additions and sardines. We were in good hands with chef and author Myra Kornfield who I have known and worshipped for years.
We all loved the special sardine salad but joked that we didn’t whip out the mandolin for our weekday lunches. Was there a way to enjoy sardines simply? Myra digested the challenge and then scurried around the kitchen. “Have you tried sardines mashed with avocado?” My fear was instantly extinguished, replaced with curiosity. “You can also do this with mackerel.” My food phobias were getting crossed off the list at rapid speed. Myra combined the sardines with avocado, juice from ½ lemon and some good quality salt. It wasn’t just fine; it was delicious.
Sardine Mash
1 tin of Vital Choice Sardines, no need to use oil that remains in can
½ ripe avocado, cubed
juice from ½ lemon
few pinches Himalayan or Celtic salt
Combine all ingredients in a small bowl, mash with a fork. Eat as is or over greens.
I ordered both sardines and mackerel from Vital Choice. Full disclosure, when I made my own “mash” I wimped out and used only ½ tin with ½ avocado. Once I ate them in my own home, without sardine support and still liked them, ding dong sardine-o-phobia is gone.
Have you tried sardines or mackerel? How do you prepare them? Any foods you want to like because of nutritional value but don’t?
