Tuna Noodle Skillet

A few months ago, my brother and I were talking and we mentioned how when we were growing up the one dish we did not like was Tuna Casserole.  The textures and flavors were not very appealing to us.  So as I was looking up new recipes to try, I stumbled across this Tuna Noodle Skillet, which seemed similar to Tuna Casserole, and figured I had to try it to see if my tastes had changed!  It reminded me of The Next Food Network’s Star contestant Emily. Her concept was taking old school dishes and putting a new twist on them.  She always used the term “retro rad”.   To my surprise, I really liked this dish and will definitely be making my brother try it the next time he comes home.

I changed up the recipe a little bit from the original by reducing the serving size as well as using some different ingredients.

Ingredients:

·         5.5 oz. Ronzoni Smart Taste Spaghetti

·         2 teaspoons olive oil

·         1 medium onion, chopped

·         1 cup mushrooms, sliced

·         ¼ cup flour

·         8 oz. (1 ½ cans) chunk light tuna in water, drained

·         1 cup skim milk

·         2/3 cup light cream

·         ½ cup shredded parmesan

·         3 tablespoons 2% mozzarella cheese

·         ½ cup vegetable broth

·         2/3 cup frozen peas, defrosted

·         5 basil leaves, chopped

·         Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1.       Boil pasta in a large pot until al dente. 

2.       While the pasta is cooking, heat the olive oil over medium high heat.   Add onions and cook until just softened, about 3 minutes. 

3.       Add mushrooms to the onions and cook until lightly browned, about 3 minutes.

4.       Add flour over the vegetables and mix.

5.       Pour the vegetable broth into the veggie mix and cook until the broth is absorbed, about 2 minutes.

6.       Add in milk, cream, peas, and tuna and simmer until the sauce begins to thicken, about 7-10 minutes.  Season with salt and pepper. 

7.       Remove from heat and stir in spaghetti, parmesan cheese, mozzarella cheese, and basil.

Nutritional Information (serves 4):  312 calories, 14.9g fat, 46g carbohydrates, 7g fiber, 6.8g sugar, 26.7g protein

Weight Watchers points per serving (about 1 and 1/3 cup):  10 points plus