During the long recesses of last night, I was thinking about the sandwich fillers we have been exploring lately. We have done a chicken and sun dried tomato one, a lovely, deep flavoured beefy one, and a creamy cheesy one. What we haven’t done is a fishy one.
You can of course, enjoy a tin of sardines in tomato sauce on toast. Or you can stretch out that 1 tin to make 6, yes 6, portions!
What do I need to make these sardine recipes?
Drained and rinsed baked beans, mixed with sardines in tomato sauce.
So today, I set about putting that right. The first thing I tried was mashing up some sardines in tomato sauce and mixing it with value soft cheese. It was absolutely delicious, but rather too runny to put in a sandwich, would be fab with pasta or a jkt potato tho!
Second try was using some beans with it. I used the other half of the sardines, drained and rinsed some baked beans and mixed them in. Hmm, not quite right, a bit too dry this time. So a little splodge of soft cheese, and et voila, a fishy sandwich filling, packed full of protein, super easy to make and will freeze beautifully, in or out of the sandwich wrapping.
So to make both the sandwich filling and the toast topper
- Half a tin of sardines in tomato sauce
- 50g of drained value baked beans
- 20g value soft cheese
- Makes 4 sandwiches, or 2 sandwiches and 2 sardine paste on toast
The beans I used were Lidl Campolargo ones and yielded 218g of drained beans, so I am assuming about a quarter of a tin
How do I make sardine paste?
Divide the tin of sardines in half and put each half in a separate bowl. Mash them up, bones and all, they will add valuable calcium.
Open the beans and drain them in a sieve over a third bowl. Keep the sauce and use it in something else, I usually add any beans in an opened tin sitting in the fridge to the soup or casserole, so you can do the same with this.
Run the drained beans under the tap for a bit and drain off the water well. Now measure out 50g of them and tip them into the mashed up sardine bowl. Mash the beans up with the sardines. Or leave them whole if you want them that way, up to you.
Add 20g of value soft cheese and mix well. All done. This will give you enough sandwich filler for at least 4 sandwiches, maybe 5.
You can use it for packed lunches, or on toast for breakfast, or a quick toasty tea for the kids. Or with a a little pile of crudités, carrot and celery sticks for instance, and maybe a value pitta, toasted if at home, sliced up if not.
How to make a simple pasta sauce
Now, with the other half of the sardines, make a rapid and simple pasta sauce
- Half a tin of sardines in tomato sauce
- 50g value soft cheese
- 160g value pasta
- Makes enough to dress 2 portions pasta generously
- Simply mix the sardines and soft cheese together while the pasta is boiling.
- Mash it up, or not, just as you like.
- Drain the pasta well and mix through the sauce.
- Serve immediately.
If you have any, a few little bits of lemon zest would work well in either of these recipes. I have had this little lemon zester gadget for many years, it is really handy and I can zest off just a few strips very easily with it.
What else can I use in these recipes
- You can add some sliced cherry tomatoes to the pasta,
- or some whole or chopped up olives,
- serve it with salady bits,
- roast some fennel/carrots/onions to go with it,
- make a simple salsa from diced cucumber and tomatoes or fennel,
- serve it with some peas or dark leafy veg. Anything you like
Ingredients
Sandwich Filler and Toast Topper
- 60 g sardines in tomato sauce Asda 55p/120g, 28p (half a tin)
- 50 g baked beans value brand, drained, 42p/tin, 21p
- 20 g cream cheese value brand soft cheese, Asda £1.48/200g, 37p
- 4 slices wholemeal bread - for sandwiches 2 each for a sandwich lunch, 3.4p per slice
- 4 slices wholemeal bread - for toast 2 each for toasty breakfast, 3.4p per slice
Pasta Sauce
- 60 g sardines in tomato sauce Asda 55p/120g, 28p (half a tin)
- 50 g cream cheese value brand, Asda £1.48/200g, 37p
- 160 g pasta value brand, Asda 75p/500g, 24p
Instructions
Sandwich Filler
- Divide the tin of sardines in half and put each half in a separate bowl.60 g sardines in tomato sauce
- Mash them up, bones and all, they will add valuable calcium.
- Open the beans and drain them in a sieve over a third bowl. Keep the
sauce and use it in something else, I usually add any beans in an opened
tin sitting in the fridge to the soup or casserole, so you can do the
same with this.50 g baked beans - Run the drained beans under the tap for a bit and drain off the water well.
- Now measure out 50g of them and tip them into the mashed up sardine bowl. Mash the beans up with the sardines. Or leave them whole if you want them that way, up to you.
- Add the value soft cheese and mix well. All done. This will give you enough sandwich filler for at least 4 sandwiches, maybe 5.20 g cream cheese
- Toast 4 slices of bread and use half the sardine mix4 slices wholemeal bread - for sandwiches
- Use the remaining 4 slices of bread to make 2 sandwiches, with the remaining sardine mix.4 slices wholemeal bread - for toast
Pasta Sauce
- Simply mix the sardines and soft cheese together while the pasta is boiling. Mash it up, or not, just as you like.60 g sardines in tomato sauce, 50 g cream cheese
- Drain the pasta well and mix through the sauce.160 g pasta
- Serve immediately.
Equipment Needed
Notes
Got a great recipe? How about submitting it to appear on Thrifty Lesley!
Ooh, yuk. I’ve managed to avoid colds since COVID restrictions. A nice side benefit
Going to give this a go , sounds quite nice .
Get well soon Lesley you have my sympathies- I’m day 4 into heavy cold/ flu type thing too .
Patt, my mum used to rub Vicks on my chest when I was ill as a child!
I ‘think’ I read that Vicks Vapour Rub, on soles of feet overnight was great for easing coughing! Worth a try if you have some.
Just opening a can of sardines to try this, late I know, I thought it was about 7 ish. Never mind.
Ginny – sounds like a delicious option!
Yummy! I’m allergic to cheese, so I added a tablespoon of tomato paste and a bit of mustard. Made a filling dinner over baking powder biscuits 🙂
Just found your website. Love all the recipes, really innovative and healthy. Keep up the goid work.
ooh yum, that toasty topping sounds good
It does go an incredibly long way, doesn’t it? Inspired by this, I have also tried sardines and cream cheese thickened with dry bread crumbs to make a toast topping.
The mackerel version is very good as well.
We really enjoyed the onion tart – very tasty.
Looking forward to your next plan.
I haven’t tried it, but I would expect it all to freeze very well. Never thought of the tomato scones, yum, sounds good!
Feel more on the road to recovery now. Still hacking away, and another night with not much sleep, but can feel the healing going on. Seems to go on forever doesn’t it. There’s a lot of it about as someone said once
you have my sympathies – I am just beginning to feel slightly better but still have the achey limbs and foggy head – but I will try the recipes maybe tomorrow – still haven’t got much appetite yet.
What a fantastic idea, many thanks. Just wondering if it will freeze – I don’t see why not. I’ll give it a go, anyway. The spread might go nicely with your tomato scones!
J x
Having gone to bed at 9, exhausted after 2 nights with barely any sleep due to coughing, and got up again, after coughing every 2 or 3 minutes for an hour, I have a dish with an onion in it.
But it is an ordinary onion, one with brown outer skin and white inner. Is that the right type?
Receipts sound yummy will give a try. The onion method for a cough does work but it has to be a WHITE onion. Don’t know why but brown onions do not work. Hope you feel well soon.
Janene, really? Wow, never heard of that. Anything is worth a go, I shall do it tonight!
I tried a bit on toast, then had the pasta for tea with a bowl of salady bits. It was lush
Hope you’re feeling better soon Lesley.
Try a chopped up onion beside the bed at night. It’s supposed to help with the cough.
That sounds quite lovely. I do have tins of sardines in tomato sauce at home, so shall have a go on making the pasta meal.
Thanks, wonder if it’s the same thing? Seems to be sweeping the board here
Get well soon, Lesley, sorry to read that you are so unwell!
I have DH here in a similar state, high fever and night sweats, not fun at all.
All the best,
Caterina