Tuna Fish Casserole

Last summer when I visited my friend in Toronto, I suggested that I can make a quick lunch for her as she was pregnant at the time. So I looked up on Epicurious and found a super easy recipe for a casserole dish. It has a white sauce, crispy on the top with cheese and breadcrumbs. This recipe can be used with any leftover vegetables, meat or fish. This is great for parties as you can reheat in microwave and the topping will still be crispy!

Recipe makes 6-8 servings:

1 tbsp olive oil

1 medium onion, finely chopped
10 white mushrooms (sliced)

1/4 cup Sherry or white wine
1/4 cup all-purpose flour

4 tbsp unsalted butter (1/4 of a stick)
2 1/2 cups whole milk
2 tsp fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon salt
1 can tuna in olive oil, drained
4 cups of pasta (Fusilli or Penne or Egg noodle)
1 1/2 cups coarse fresh bread crumbs (from 3 slices firm white sandwich bread)
1 cup coarsely grated Cheddar (1 cup)

Instructions:

1) Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 190C/375°F. Use olive oil to grease the bottom of a baking dish.
2) Cook onion in olive oil with a pinch of salt in a skillet over low heat, stirring occasionally, until softened and light brown. Increase heat to moderately high and add mushrooms, then sauté (5 mins) until the liquid mushrooms give off is evaporated.

3) Add wine and boil, stirring occasionally, until evaporated. Remove from heat.
4) Melt 1/4 stick butter in a non-stick saucepan over low heat and slowly whisk in flour, until flour and butter becomes dough-like.

5) Add milk while whisking and simmer sauce on low heat, whisking occasionally. Whisk until it looks like a creamy white sauce. Add a little water if the sauce is too thick. Should yield about 1 cup of white sauce.

6) Stir in mushroom mixture, lemon juice, and salt. Flake tuna into sauce and stir gently. Season sauce with salt and pepper.
7) Cook pasta in a pot of boiling salted water until al dente. Drain pasta in a colander and return to pot. Add sauce and stir gently to combine. Transfer mixture to baking dish, spreading evenly.
8) Toss together bread crumbs and cheese in a bowl. Drizzle with olive oil and toss again, then sprinkle evenly over casserole. Bake until topping is crisp and sauce is bubbling, 20 to 30 minutes.