Best Tuna Sandwich Cake Recipe (2025): A Tribute to My Sister’s Savory Legacy

Some recipes feed the body. Others feed the soul.

This dish does both.

My sister had a way of making food that felt like a hug. Her tuna filling; creamy, zesty, crunchy, and packed with flavor, was her signature. She’d bring it to family events, spooned into a bowl with crackers or served as finger sandwiches. It was always the first thing gone!!!

After she passed away from cancer earlier this year, I found myself making that tuna mix just to feel close to her. I remember making a large batch and serving it at her memorial. My dad was disappointed there were no leftovers of the tuna mix for him to gobble down afterward, so I promised I would make more for his upcoming birthday… and then it dawned on me!

I decided to transform the recipe, turning her beloved tuna filling into a Scandinavian-style sandwich cake, known as smörgåstårta. Layering the creamy tuna mixture between soft slices of bread, then “frosted” the whole cake with a smooth cream cheese spread and decorating it with fresh herbs and vegetables; just like she might have done.

This new version kept all the flavors she loved but turned them into something special, something festive, and something that could be shared and celebrated at family gatherings. It brought such joy and delight to my dad when I presented it to him for his birthday that it has now become a lasting tribute to her joy in cooking, her love of celebration, and her beautiful spirit.

This is more than a recipe. It’s a memory you can taste.

Best Tuna Sandwich Cake Recipe (2025): A Tribute to My Sister’s Savory Legacy

Author: Sasha's Guide Courses: Lunch, Snack

Print Recipe

Prep Time 1 hr Total Time 3 hrs Servings: 8 Best Season: Suitable throughout the year

Ingredients

Servings

Tuna filling

• 850g Tuna (canned in olive oil)
• 230g Capers in Vinegar (jar)
• 1 Red onion (finely diced)
• 0.5 cup Crushed Peanuts
• 0.75 cup Japanese Mayonnaise (Kewpie)
• Balsamic Vinegar (To taste)

Cake assemblage

• 1 Loaf of sliced bread
• 1 cup Cream Cheese (Allow to reach room temperature before using.)
• 0.5 cup Mayonnaise
• Dill (For garnish)
• Cucumber (For garnish)
• Water cress (For garnish)
• Pomegranate (For garnish)

Instructions

1. Strain the tuna and in a medium bowl, mix all the tuna filling ingredients until combined well.

   

1. Lay and stack all the bread slices to resemble the bread cake layers. Cut around the edges to make a round cake shape. You can leave them as is and make a square cake, but prefer it rounded. 

   

1. Add the tuna mix in between all the bread layers and end with the top lay being bread.

   

1. Whip the cream cheese and mayonnaise together to create the frosting.

   

1. Coat the sandwich cake with the frosting.

   

1. Decorate with garnishes you have on hand. On this occasion I used dill, water cress, pomegranate and qukes.

   

1. Allow to set in the fridge for an hour or 2 for the flavours to meld and cake to set before serving.

   Cut and serve chilled; bah bah!! 

   

Keywords: Tuna cake sandwich, Tuna sandwich, smörgåstårta