Tuna Corn Casserole

No that isn't a dish full of broken tortilla chips. Actually, those are crushed taco shells. But hiding underneath is where you'll find a creamy delicious treasure I like to call a tuna corn casserole. I happened to be taking stock of what I had in the cupboards and shelves of the pantry and happened to see a couple cans of tuna left. What can I do with tuna that I haven't already done yet?

I don't think I made a casserole with them yet. If I did, it was something different. I can't remember. I had some ears of corn I had gotten from the farmer's market so I figured I'd add that into the mix as well. To top it off I'd make a lovely cheese sauce to mix into it. Yum! I oven roasted the corn and scrapped off the kernels. You can used the canned or frozen corn to save you time. Mixed it with the can of tuna and some chopped shallots.

For the cheese sauce, I used a combination of grated parmesan and some swiss. Cheesy deliciousness. Mixed it all together and topped it of with a layer of crushed taco shells.  Baked it in the oven for 20 minutes. The crushed taco shells got extra crispy while baking giving the dish a nice cunchy texture to the lovely creamy and cheesy sauce.  This is one casserole I'd make again and again.


Serves 2-3

Tuna Corn Casserole

1 6oz can tuna in oil
2-3 c corn kernals - fresh, canned or frozen
1 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp flour
3/4 c milk
1/2 grated parmesan
1/2 c swiss
salt
pepper
1 shallot chopped
Crushed tortilla chips


Preheat your oven to 350˚F

In a casserole, combine the corn, shallot, and tuna.

On medium to low heat. In a saucepan, melt the butter and add the flour. Combine together to make a roux. When the mixture turns into a douy mass.

Add the milk.  Stir occasionally until milk thickens. Then add the cheese and stir until melted.

Pour the cheese mixture, into the casserole and mix to coat everything. Top With half the crushed tortilla ships and baked for 20 min.

Remove from pven and let it sit for 2 min. Top with the rest of the tortilla chips.

Tuna Casserole with Roasted Eggplant

Don't be fooled by the look of this creamy glob of deliciousness. It may not have a pretty plating but the taste is worth it. I saw the original recipe on the back of a Campbell's Cream of Celery soup can and I had gotten a bunch of tuna from my last trip to Costco. I figured this was a good way to two use of those cans. Besides, tuna salad gets boring after a while. So here's my take on it. Rather than using curly egg noodles, I used small shell pasta.

Creamy, delicious, with some fresh herb-roasted veggies.



Tuna Casserole with Roasted Eggplant

2 5oz can tuna in oil.
1 small can Cream of Celery soup
2 medium eggplant (cubed)
1/2 medium onion (quartered and separated)
1/2 c milk or 1 small can of evaporated milk
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 large garlic cloves
1 Tbsp Dry Basil
1 Tbsp Dry Parsley (plus extra)
Salt
Pepper
2 c Pasta (of your choice. Rough estimate.) - I used small shells
1 c Panko Crumbs


Preheat oven to 450˚F

Toss the cubed eggplant and onions in a generous drizzle of olive oil with the dry basil, dry parsley, salt and pepper.

Place on a baking sheet or roasting pan along with one garlic clove at each end and put in the oven for 30-40 min.

While the eggplant is roasting, bring a stock pot full of water to a boil. Season the water liberally with salt and cook the pasta to al dente (roughly 10min). Then drain excess water.

Remove the oil, but not all from the tuna and shred the meat.

Once the pasta is done, place into a casserole and add in the cream of celery soup, milk and tuna. Mix thoroughly to combine.

When the eggplant and onion are done, add them into the pasta mixtures. Again mixing thoroughly to combine. Sprinkle the panko crumbs on top and some fresh or dry parsley.

Bake for 20min on a 400˚F oven.

Mushroom Casserole

Every writer's worst nightmare is having writer's block. I've felt my groove had been misplaced for quite a while. That's what happens when life kicks you in the behind. Luckily, I've recently gotten my groove back and have crazily been trying to hammer out the ideas I have in my head before it loses its luster. In my immense concentration in trying to get this get a script written, I lose track of time. Before I know it, it's dinner time. I scramble for an idea for a meal.

To add on to it, the inside of my fridge is a sad sight. It was yelling out at me to "feed it" with stuff. Poor fridge. How I neglect it sometimes. But I do reward it with luscious produce every week from the farmer's market. It all works out.

I took stock with what I had around the kitchen. Some ramen packets, sliced portabello mushrooms, a can of cream of mushroom soup. Poof...Pow...Dinner! (Just imagine that in those comic book graphics)

With a full stomach, I happily went back to my writing.


Mushroom Casserole

2 ramen packets (minus seasoning packets)
1 can cream of mushroom soup
2 large portabello mushroom caps (diced)
salt & pepper to season
1 Tbsp butter or margarine
1 Tbsp Olive Oil

Preheat oven 350˚F

Bring a large pot of water to a boil, season liberally with salt and place in the ramen noodles. Cook for 5-10 min and drain.

In a pan, heat the oil and butter together. Saute the mushroom until they are tender and slightly darker. Season with some salt and pepper. Add in the cream of mushroom soup and mix well for 2 min. Turn off the heat, then mix in the ramen noodles.

Place the mixture into a casserole and bake for 20-25 min. Sprinkle some dry parsley for garnish.

Poof...Pow...Dinner!