What’s that one meal that brings you back to your childhood? For me, it’s tuna casserole. When I was little, my absolute favorite dinner was my best friend Jordan’s mom’s tuna casserole. I made sure I was at Jordan’s house every time her mom made it because I loved it so much. With the crushed potato chips on top, it was the perfect amount of saltiness. Although it isn’t something I would eat now as regularly as I liked to back then, sometimes I crave comfort food. So I searched for a “skinny” version and, not surprisingly, I found one on Skinnytaste.
This dish includes noodles, tuna, mushrooms and peas, but you could use any vegetables you may like. I added in broccoli. You can refer to the link above for the full recipe, which I closely followed, with only one change. I didn’t have cheddar cheese on hand and certainly didn’t feel the need to go to Publix for one item. So I used part-skim mozzarella instead. I like mozzarella more than cheddar anyway, especially with the other ingredients in the casserole. It was really good, light and creamy with a good amount of crisp on top from the breadcrumbs. Although my old favorite was topped with potato chips, I wanted to stick to the “skinny” theme of the dish so I used the whole wheat bread crumbs like the recipe suggests. The combination of mushrooms, peas, and broccoli complemented the tuna nicely. Since it is a one-pot dish, I didn’t serve any sides with it. I’m one of those people who feels like dinner is incomplete without a side dish, so it was a little strange for me not to have a second dish on the table. But everything you need for a good meal was in this one dish. You’ve got your protein from the tuna and cheese, carbs from the pasta, and a good variety of vegetables. Casseroles are a great dish to bring to potluck style dinners. If you aren’t a fan of tuna, use a different protein such as chicken or turkey.
I consider the nights I cook dinner to be somewhat of a special occasion, so I always make sure Bubby and I have a good glass of wine to pair with our meal. Menage a Trois makes a delicious red blend of Merlot, Zinfandel and Cabernet Sauvignon, so when I found their white blend I had to try it. It’s a blend of Chardonnay, Moscato (one of my favorites) and Chenin Blanc. It was delicious! Moscato is a super sweet wine, Chardonnay is a little bit drier and I’ve never had Chenin Blanc alone so I’m not sure what it tastes like, but the three flavors together make a great wine to go with our feel-good dinner.
