Tuna Cornbread Cakes

I am looking for more ways to get good healthful fish into our diet. My guys love salmon, just plain grilled, but I naturally prefer white fish so I've had to acquire a taste for salmon. I've enjoyed my friend Jamie's recipe for an orange-maple glaze, but my favorite way to prepare salmon is definitely to add so much garlic that it covers up the salmon flavor (added bonus: it uses canned salmon, which is way cheaper).

Then there's tuna. I enjoy tuna noodle casserole, but not enough to have it every week or even once a month (I don't even cook most of our favorites that often). Quite a while back, I found this recipe in a magazine and finally got around to trying it yesterday. It was a hit! Well, Elijah wasn't a huge fan, but I think that's because a) he thought it was a hamburger—one of his favorite foods, and 2) the lemon aioli was a strong, surprising flavor (the look on his face was hilarious). Still, he ate three or four bites, so I think he'll come around.

The recipe turned out to be quite time-consuming for me yesterday: first, I had misread the recipe, and ended up having to make cornbread from scratch before I could do anything else; second, I didn't have Old Bay seasoning so I had to google a recipe and make my own. That plus the other new recipe I was trying with the rainbow chard I found at the farmers' market on Saturday meant my kitchen looked like a bomb went off. Now that these things are done (I froze the extra cornbread) next time it will be a cinch to put together. If you make the cornbread ahead (or use a box mix) and buy Old Bay, it'll come together quickly and easily.

Without further ado...Tuna Cornbread Cakes with Lemon Aioli. We're definitely having this again.

Tuna Cornbread Cakes
(adapted from Southern Living)

cornbread, prepared (I use this recipe)
2 T mayonnaise
3 green onions, thinly sliced
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
2 T chopped fresh parsley (I omitted)
1 t. Old Bay seasoning (I used this imitation)
1/2 – 1 t. garlic powder
a little lemon pepper
splash of Worcestershire sauce
2 cans chunk light tuna
3 T butter
3 T olive oil
Lemon Aioli (see below)

Stir together mayonnaise, onions and seasonings. Crumble two cups' worth of cornbread. Fold cornbread crumbs and tuna into mayo mixture until blended well. Shape into eight patties.

Melt butter and oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Brown tuna patties 2-3 minutes on each side or until golden; drain on paper towels. Serve with Lemon Aioli.

Lemon Aioli:
6 T mayonnaise
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 t. grated lemon rind
1 1/2 t. fresh lemon juice
pinch of salt

What are your favorite salmon or tuna recipes?