CREAMY TUNA CASSEROLE WITH CRUNCHY TOPPING

KIDULTS' FOOD, Easy-peasy

Updated  April 2018 

This is - basically - kids' food but great for a singleton or a parent exhausted by work who needs something comforting, quick but not horribly unhealthy.  Very easy to put together, it is a favourite of many families.

Tinned tuna is one of the tastiest and most popular budget healthy proteins.  Used wisely, a tin of tuna at £1.50 a pop can make pleasing dishes that will feed 4.  As an occasional treat, it's wonderful but try not to make it a habit -- over-fishing is a problem and too much tinned food is not good for the health.  

The recipe uses deliciously nutty wholemeal pasta; the texture is similar and kids won't even notice.  Wholemeal pasta is absorbed more slowly, preventing 'carb-doze'.  It also gets the digestive system moving, keeping the bowels regular and preventing the build-up of toxins that cause bad skin and lack of energy.  

The pasta can be made in advance but should not be kept in the fridge longer than 3 days, including the day the casserole has been cooked and served.  

The dish freezes well.  Reheat gently (steamed or boiled in a bag) with a bit of milk, extra seasoning and a few more crisps.

A word on some of the ingredients:   
Condensed mushroom soup was originally used in this recipe because honestly, there was nothing else like it.  But 67's home-made Mushroom Soup works very well and doesn't have preservatives or a metallic taste.   

As for the crisp topping - if it offends you, use breadcrumbs or don't bother with a topping at all.

Cost: min £3.00'ish
Feeds: 4-6 with sides

Ingred:

200-250 gm/7-8 oz dried wholemeal pasta
1 tin tuna, drained
generous mug of frozen peas
5-6 mushrooms, halved and chopped coarsely

1 recipe home-made Mushroom Soup or a tin of condensed mushroom soup (low-salt) 

1/3 -1/2 cup of milk

pepper & a little salt 
couple of pinches of dried thyme (opt)
40 gm bag of lightly salted and/or fat-reduced crisps (opt)

Method:

1. Pre-heat oven to 200C, 180 fan, gas 6.  
2. Grease an oven-proof glass baking dish, 9" x13" or line a metal dish with greaseproof paper.
3. Cook pasta according to packet instructions but if kids are eating this, 1-2 minutes more.  The pasta should have some give and not be  soft.  During the last few minutes of cooking, add frozen peas
4. Drain; add soup & milk.  
5. Add drained tuna, stirring to break up large chunks; then mushrooms.
6. Season with pepper, salt and thyme (opt but recommended for adults); stir and pour into baking dish
7. Bake in the middle of the oven 20-25 minutes or until brown and crisping at the edges 
8. Crush crisps in their packet, leaving some big pieces and some rubble.  Ten minutes before end of cooking time, cover the casserole with the crisps.
9. Serve with shredded lettuce lightly drizzled with balsamic vinegar and sliced tomatoes lightly sprayed with olive oil and lightly salted.

Tips:

• If cooking the pasta ahead, add a little oil after draining to keep the pasta from sticking. 
• replace half the peas with corn
• blanched broccoli can replace peas
• you canadd more lightly steamed green veg to the casserole or serve on the side for extra vitamins, minerals and antioxidants    

This recipe has been developed by B  Lee/ Bright Sun Enterprises.  It may not be reproduced, in any form, without the author's written permission.