Baked Tuna and Cheese Sandwiches

Thanks to 4-H

I don’t know the source of many of Grandma’s recipes, but I do know where this one came from--me. Rather, it came from a 4-H foods class I took the summer I was nine. This recipe was in the course cookbook, and we were given the assignment to make these sandwiches for our families. Grandma wasn’t living with us at the time, but she must have had them with us. And she must have really liked them because here is the recipe, recopied in her handwriting. 

I recognized it immediately as the one from my class, but it had been a long time since I’d had it, not since I made it for my college roommates, and they thought warm tuna was weird.  

Warm Tuna Anyone?

Just for kicks, I Googled baked Tuna and Cheese Sandwiches to see if anyone out there was making this recipe or if everyone else agreed with my roommates. I found several versions of a Tuna Melt that seemed quite similar, except that this recipe also contains hard-boiled eggs. It's sort of a cross between a Tuna Melt and an egg salad sandwich--a warm one. Is that weird? 

How to Make Baked Tuna and Cheese Sandwiches

As you can imagine from a recipe designed for budding cooks, this one is as simple as it gets. The hardest thing is boiling the eggs, but that task is made even easier by using a pressure cooker, like an InstantPot. I follow the 5-5-5 method used by Spice Cravings and others. Add a cup of water, cook the eggs on high pressure for 5 minutes,  and let them naturally release for 5 minutes. 

 You then plunge them into ice-cold water for 5 minutes. They come out perfectly cooked every time and are easy to peel. 

I used this tool to quickly chop the eggs and celery. I then added most of the rest of the ingredients to a bowl, all except for the onions because onions and I aren’t on friendly terms. I also used sweet pickle relish instead of chopped sweet pickles because that’s what I had on hand. 

As directed, I stirred these ingredients together, spread the mixture on six buns, and covered them in foil. 

They went into a 250-degree oven for 30 minutes, but I think you could also bake them for a shorter time at a higher temperature. 

The Verdict

The sandwiches came out toasty and tasted just as I remembered. Along with the tuna and eggs, you'll find a nice bit of crunch from the celery, some tang from the pickles, and lots of rich, melty cheese. You could always add or subtract ingredients according to your taste, but this sandwich might not be for you if you can’t get past warm tuna. If you can, you'll find it hearty and filling--a great meal for a cold winter’s night. And it’s so easy to make, even a nine-year-old can do it.

Click the link below the recipe card to download and print it out.