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Lighter Tuna Noodle Casserole

FishCasseroleDiner-Style

Time: 40 minutes

Yield: 8 servings

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About

Lighter Tuna Noodle Casserole knows you just made your New Year's resolution to eat a little healthier, and it wants to help you out. It knows that the hardest part of any diet is giving up the foods you love, but what if you didn't have to give them up? What if... Lighter Tuna Noodle Casserole proclaims you could have healthy food and tasty food at the same time? Well, here it is to provide just that — a casserole that uses chickpea pasta for extra protein and light tuna to reduce the fat content. This might just be the year you keep your resolution!

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Ingredients

  • 1 (8-ounce) package chickpea pasta
  • 2 tablespoons butter, plus more, to taste, for greasing the baking dish
  • 1 yellow onion, diced
  • 8 stalks celery, diced
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1/3 cup whole-wheat flour or gluten-free 1-to-1 flour
  • 2 cups vegetable broth
  • 1 cup whole milk
  • 2 cups frozen peas
  • 12 ounces sharp cheddar, shredded, divided
  • 2 (5-7-ounce) cans chunk light tuna, drained
  • 1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs
  • 2 tablespoons crispy-fried onions
  • olive oil cooking spray, to taste

Directions

Step 1 -In a large pot of salted, boiling water, add the chickpea pasta and cook it to al dente, according to the package directions.

Step 2 -Drain the chickpea pasta and set it aside.

Step 3 -Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Step 4 -Using the extra butter, grease a 9x13-inch baking dish.

Step 5 -In a large pan over medium-high heat, melt 2 tablespoons of the remaining butter.

Step 6 -Add the onions, the celery, the garlic, the salt, and the black pepper to the melted butter and cook, while stirring, until the vegetables are tender, about 5-7 minutes.

Step 7 -Add the flour to the onion mixture and cook, while stirring constantly, until the raw flour smell disappears, about 1 minute.

Step 8 -Slowly add the vegetable broth and the milk to the onion mixture, while whisking constantly, until both are completely incorporated.

Step 9 -Bring the broth mixture to a simmer.

Step 10 -Add the frozen peas to the broth mixture and stir to combine.

Step 11 -Allow the broth mixture to simmer until thickened, about 1-2 minutes.

Step 12 -Add 1 cup of the cheddar cheese to the broth mixture and stir to combine until the cheese is melted.

Step 13 -Add the tuna and the cooked chickpea pasta to the cheese sauce mixture and stir to combine.

Step 14 -Pour the tuna mixture into the prepared baking dish and spread it out evenly.

Step 15 -Top the tuna mixture with the remaining cheddar cheese, the breadcrumbs, and the crispy-fried onions, in that order.

Step 16 -Spray the top of the casserole with the olive oil cooking spray.

Step 17 -Bake until the tuna mixture is bubbly and the top is golden-brown, about 15-20 minutes.

Step 18 -Serve.

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