Wanna Green Bean: Tuna Casserole

7 April 2008

Tuna Casserole

The other night my roommate had a hankering for tuna casserole. I couldn’t bring myself to make a cream of whatever soup monstrosity, especially since we’re trying to eat less processed food.

I surfed the internet, and consulted casserole recipe books and came up with this tasty, mild flavored, creamy, cheesy, and sort of healthy recipe.

Ingredients:
12-16 oz of dried pasta (penne, farfarelle, macaroni, whatever you have)
2 tbsp butter
1 tbsp olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
3 tbsp flour
2 cups chicken broth
1 cup heavy cream
1 tsp dried parsley
1/2 tsp dried sage
1 cup chopped carrots
1 cup peas
1 cup green beans
(or 3 cups total of mixed vegetables chopped into small pieces)
2 6-oz cans of tuna, drained
2 cups cheddar cheese
1 cup breadcrumbs

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Cook the pasta according to the directions on the box.

Cook the carrots slightly to soften them. Also cook the peas and/or the green beans if needed. They will cook a little bit, but if they are frozen or fresh, warm them up a little. (This is a good recipe for leftover vegetables.)

Melt the butter in the olive oil on low.

Cook the chopped onion in the butter/olive oil mix until soft and translucent.

Add the flour to the cooked onions and stir quickly. Stir the mixture until the flour has been coated and forms a paste on the onions.

Add 1/2 a cup of the chicken broth and stir thoroughly. It should be thick with no lumps but the onions. Slowly add the rest of the chicken broth, and the cup of cream, about 1/2 a cup at a time, stirring after each addition until combined.

When all the liquid has been added slowly add 1 cup of cheese, about 1/4 of a cup at a time. Stir the mixture until all of the cheese is melted before adding more.

Add a few spices like parsely and sage if you want to.

In a really big bowl, place the cooked pasta, vegetables, and tuna.

Pour the cream sauce over the whole thing and mix well.

Pour everything into an oven safe casserole dish. Mix together the remaining 1 cup of cheese and breadcrumbs, and sprinkle evelnly over the entire dish.