Recipe: Lemon Pasta Salad with Tuna and Broccoli

LEMONS APPEAL, ZEST AND ALL
By Dana Jacobi for the
American Institute for Cancer Research

We rarely eat a lemon or use the entire fruit in pies, chutneys, or salt-pickled as they are for North African dishes. Yet we use lemons all the time, often several times a day, to enliven both savory and sweet dishes, sauces, dressings and beverages. Mostly, we use the juice, and occasionally the aromatic, yellow outer layer of skin called the zest.

A lemon is a lemon to Americans, since the two commercially grown varieties, Lisbon and Eureka, are almost indistinguishable. Dark yellow Meyer lemons, in season from November to March, are now becoming more available, as well. A cross between a lemon and an orange, their abundant juice is sweet enough to drink straight. It makes a killer lemonade.

Fresh-squeezed lemon juice has a bright, sweet-tart taste. I highly recommend using it rather than bottled juice. To extract the most juice, microwave a lemon for 30 seconds, then roll it on the counter top, pressing down firmly. Using a reamer, a good-size lemon yields as much as four tablespoons of juice.

Lemon peel has two layers, the top layer of golden zest, rich in the health-protective phytochemical called limonen and a spongy underlayer of white, bitter-tasting pith. I favor two methods for removing the first and avoiding the second. If possible, get a rasp. Chefs discovered that this wood-working tool zips zest off neatly, yields more and cleans up more easily than a grater or zester. Alternatively, use a vegetable peeler or sharp, thin paring knife to cut the zest away in strips. If any white clings to the underside, pin the peel on a flat surface, using your thumb at one end. Holding a paring knife so its blade is almost horizontal, gently slide the blade between the zest and pith, starting at the thumb-end and moving slowly down the strip. It doesn't matter if the strip tears, as you will probably be chopping it up anyway.
Served warm, this pasta salad uses both lemon zest and juice, plus an appealing combination of regular and whole-wheat pasta.

Lemon Pasta Salad with Tuna and Broccoli

3 ounces semolina fusilli pasta or other type of spiral pasta
3 ounces whole-wheat fusilli pasta or other type of spiral pasta
6 oz. (1 can) water-packed white tuna, drained
3 plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped
2 cups cooked broccoli florets
1 Tbsp. capers, drained
2 tsp. grated lemon zest
1 tsp. dried basil
1 garlic clove, minced
Juice of 1/2 lemon
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and place pasta in a bowl. Add tuna, tomato, broccoli, capers, lemon zest, and basil. Using fork, mix until the tuna is well broken up.

In a small bowl, whisk together garlic, lemon juice and salt. Whisk in the oil. Season to taste with pepper. Pour the dressing over the pasta and toss to coat the salad.
Makes 4 main-dish servings, or 8 as a side dish.

Per main-dish serving: 290 calories, 9 g. total fat (1 g. saturated fat), 37 g. carbohydrate, 17 g. protein, 4 g. dietary fiber, 241 mg. sodium.