I used to think tuna casserole
had to have cream of mushroom soup in it. Then I discovered that
Campbell's Cream of Mushroom soup has MSG and autolyzed yeast extract
(another form of MSG!) in it, which is
not something I want to feed my family! With this knowledge in hand, I started to make my tuna casseroles with
Imagine Organic Creamy Portabello Mushroom Soup, but it is so expensive, I didn't want to use it often. Then, I came across a recipe that didn't use any soup as a base, instead used a base of sour cream and milk. Since I buy sour cream in bulk (5 lb container for about $5) from a restaurant supply store, this was a far more acceptable option. The original recipe had a bunch of stuff I didn't like in it, so of course I tinkered with it, but here is the end result.
Creamy Tuna Casserole
12 oz uncooked pasta of your choice
10-12 oz canned tuna, drained
2 cups frozen peas
1 onion, diced
1 1/2 cups sour cream
3/4 cup milk
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup dry Italian bread crumbs
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 tbsp butter, melted
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Cook pasta according to package directions. Combine pasta, tuna, peas, onion, sour cream, milk, salt and pepper in a 2 quart casserole dish. Combine bread crumbs, cheese, and butter and sprinkle over the tuna mixture. Bake uncovered 35 to 40 minutes or until hot and bubbly.
I thought it was funny that I used seashell pasta in the casserole the day I took this picture (ya know, because tuna is also from the sea). My family didn't agree. *sigh* I guess I'll keep my day job. Oh, wait, I don't have a day job!
ReplyDeletei like peppers, pimientos, and celery in mine too.
ReplyDeleteMSG makes my heart pound out of my chest and I even saw a cardiologist before we worked out what it was.
ReplyDeleteI love this recipe idea, being a vegetarian I would swap the tuna for Quorn or extra veggies and the parmesan for a strong cheddar maybe?
But Yum! My tummy is grumbling away hungrily!