Remake of the Tuna Noodle Casserole

Saturday night I spent 45 minutes making Tony’s tuna noodle casserole. Since I was working so hard on his meal he wanted to make me something to return the favor. Picture below shows Tony’s tuna noodle casserole for his dinner…mine…Morning Star Farm corn dogs from the box.

Tuna Noodle Casserole

I modified the Skinny Tuna Noodle Casserole I made last month and added my own gourmet twist to this recipe. The last time I followed her recipe Tony liked it but it was also lacking some flavor. This recipe is no longer low in fat since I use Swiss cheese and Dutch goat cheese. Tony loves his cheese and even wanted more than what I added! I hate the smell of tuna. The goat cheese takes over the tuna smell and actually makes tuna casserole smell amazing. This recipe also has more onion than the original since Tony loves onions. Makes 6 servings.

Ingredients:
- 6 oz penne pasta
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1 large onion, minced
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 3 tbsp flour
- 1 3/4 cups fat free chicken broth
- 1 cup 1% milk or soy milk
- 1 oz sherry 1
- 10 oz sliced baby bella mushrooms
- 1 1/2 cups frozen petite peas (thawed)
- 2 (5 oz) cans tuna in water
- 1 ½ tsp onion salt
- 2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp ground pepper
- 1 tbs Garlic Garlic – from Tastefully Simple - add 3 more garlic cloves if you do not have this item.
- ¾ cup shredded reduced fat sharp cheddar
- 1 cup  shredded Dutch goat cheese
- 1 ½ cups shredded Swiss Cheese
- butter flavored cooking spray
- 2 slices of rye bread – toasted and ground into bread crumbs

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375°. Lightly spray 9 x 12 casserole with butter flavored cooking spray.

Cook noodles in salted water until al dente, or slightly undercooked by 2 minutes. Set aside. Melt the butter in a large deep skillet. Add onions and garlic cloves and cook on medium heat until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the flour and a pinch of salt and stir well, cooking an additional 2-3 minutes on medium-low heat.

Slowly whisk in the chicken broth until well combined, increasing heat to medium and whisking well for 30 seconds, then add the milk and bring to a boil. When boiling, add sherry, mushrooms and petite peas, adjust salt and pepper to taste and simmer on medium, mixing occasionally until it thickens (about 6-7 minutes). Add drained tuna, stirring another minute. Add in onion salt, Garlic Garlic, salt, and pepper.

Remove from heat and add reduced fat sharp cheddar, goat cheese, and 1 cup of the Swiss cheese and mix well until it melts. Add the noodles to the sauce and mix well until evenly coated. Pour into casserole and top with remaining Swiss cheese and breadcrumbs. If desired, top with more ground pepper and salt. Spray a little more cooking spray and top and bake for about 20 - 25 minutes.

Place under the broiler a few minutes to get the crumbs crisp (careful not to burn).