Healthier Creamy Tuna Pasta Bake
A healthier creamy tuna pasta bake that's packed with loads of vegetables and a delicious nutritious white bean sauce. This healthy tuna casserole is a perfect family friendly pasta dish that works for kids and adults.
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Servings: 6 serves
Calories: 481kcal
Equipment
- Blender or food processor
- Large baking dish
- Saucepan
Ingredients
- 4 cups pasta measured uncooked. I usually use gluten free chickpea pasta, or brown rice pasta, in a penne or spiral shape.
- 350-400 grams tinned tuna in olive oil
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil for greasing the dish
Vegetables:
- 3/4 cup peas frozen
- 3/4 cup corn kernels canned or frozen
- 2 cups frozen vegetables such as sliced green beans, broccoli florets, sliced carrots
- 1 large handful baby spinach
- 2 spring onions
Pasta bake sauce and topping:
- 1 can cannellini beans (400g)
- 400 mL milk of choice this is just a tiny bit over 1.5 cups. I usually use unsweetened almond milk, or lactose free cows milk.
- 2 tbsp cornflour
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 2 tbsp dijon mustard (*some mustards are stronger than others, adjust to taste!)
- 1 and 1/2 cups grated cheddar cheese
- salt and pepper to season
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180C. Grease a large deep baking dish with a little extra virgin olive oil.
- Cook the pasta according to packet instructions, and set aside. Finely chop the spring onions and set aside as well.
- Drain and rinse the cannellini beans. Place in a blender or food processor with the milk, garlic powder, onion powder, cornflour, mustard and a very generous pinch of salt and pepper. Blend until smooth.
- Place cooked pasta, all of the vegetables, tuna and spring onion in the baking dish. Make sure the tuna is flaked through rather than being in really large chunks. Pour over the milk mixture and add in half of the cheese. Stir everything together and then arrange evenly in the baking dish.
- Sprinkle over the remaining cheese and bake for 30 to 40 minutes or until the cheese is fully melted and the top of the pasta bake is turning crispy and golden.
Notes
Nutrition Facts: calculated using regular durum wheat pasta and almond milk. Changing pasta and/or milk will affect the nutrition calculation (sorry, I am constrained by the data available in the calculator and it's not always perfectly accurate!). The Facts are for one serve = 1/6 of the total dish.
This is meant to be a flexible recipe, use up whatever veggies you have on hand to make this pasta bake! I love this with the traditional combination of peas and corn, plus a bit of broccoli and/or green beans.
What kind of pasta? Small pasta shapes like spiral, penne, elbow or bow pasta work nicely in pasta bakes. I really love making this with chickpea pasta to further boost the protein, fibre and nutritional benefit! If you haven't yet tried chickpea pasta, give it a go in this recipe!
What kind of milk? Any kind so long as it's unsweetened - I recommend dairy milk, unsweetened soy milk or unsweetened almond milk. Do NOT use sweetened milk of any kind.
Leftovers: Store leftovers of this tuna pasta bake in an air-tight container for up to 3 days in the refrigerator. To reheat, warm in the oven until heated through or microwave it.
Have you made this recipe?I love seeing your creations! Take a photo and then tag me @nourish.everyday on Instagram!
Nutrition
Calories: 481kcal (24%) | Carbohydrates: 60g (20%) | Protein: 35g (70%) | Fat: 12g (18%) | Saturated Fat: 6g (38%) | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 46mg (15%) | Sodium: 597mg (26%) | Potassium: 511mg (15%) | Fiber: 9g (38%) | Sugar: 3g (3%) | Vitamin A: 4057IU (81%) | Vitamin C: 16mg (19%) | Calcium: 376mg (38%) | Iron: 4mg (22%)