tune | A Small Town Kitchen

Do you know a fishy guy named Charley…as in Charley the Tuna?

Well, he and I had a date last week.

He did not stay around long.

I think he dove right into my casserole.

Funny thing is, I never saw him the rest of the night….interesting…..

Have you ever just craved something? I am sure that you have. Last week, I was craving Tuna Noodle Casserole for some odd reason. I tried not to dwell on this fascination with a can of tuna, mixed in a creamy cheese sauce and baked into a noodle casserole…but I could not stop myself. I knew I had plenty of cans of tuna in the pantry from my bargain shopping, so what was I waiting for? I think I found pretty much the perfect recipe for tuna casserole, so that was not stopping me. I think I was worried that my kiddos and Company would not eat tuna. Boy, was I sure mistaken! They fished right in and got one taste of Charlie…oops..tuna and cleaned their plates. I made a double batch, and shared with Niener Wiener and Jeanie Beanie. (they loved Charlie too…)

I am sure you will too.

Anywho, if you start craving for a little deep sea cheesy, creamy and noodlely casserole, this recipe has the perfect combination.

Here is what you will need:

I had all the ingredients right in my cabinet the whole time. I made a double batch, but if you are making a single batch you will need half of what I am showing you in the picture.

I also wanted to add a buttery cracker topping. I bought this bargain brand of crackers that worked perfect for the topping. You will need a sleeve of these crackers and 4 tablespoons of butter.

Dice up the onion and put into a bowl.

Dice up some sweet red pepper and some celery. I diced the celery into smaller pieces than what is shown in the picture.

Throw…well not really throw, but put the diced celery and red pepper into the same bowl as the onions.

Now, boil and cook the noodles by following the directions on the package. Drain and put back into the pan.

Add the drained tuna to the cooked noodles. Next, add in the mayonnaise.

Add in the bowlful of chopped veggies and give the whole thing a big stir. Mix together thoroughly. Set aside until you make the sauce.

To make the sauce, get out a medium sauce pan. Pour in the cream of celery soup and the evaporated milk.

Stir the soup and milk together until smooth. Slowly heat the soup.

Add the shredded cheddar cheese to the soup. Continue to stir, and cook on low to medium heat, until the cheese is melted.

Pour the cheesy soup mixture over the noodles. Stir until the noodles are thoroughly coated with the soup.

Pour the noodles into a large casserole dish. (remember I am making a double batch, if you make one batch you will need a smaller casserole dish)

Now, to make the buttery cracker casserole topping. Take one sleeve of crackers and break them apart. I used a rolling pin. Add the cracker crumbs to 4 tablespoons of melted butter and stir. If you do not double this recipe, you will only need half a sleeve of crackers and 2 tablespoons of melted butter.

Sprinkle the cracker crumbs evenly over the top of the casserole. Bake in a preheated 425 degree oven for about 20 minutes.

Right out of the oven and all crispy brown on top. YUM.

Here is the recipe:

Tuna Noodle Casserole

Ingredients:

(this recipe is for one batch, the pictures shown are a double batch)

6 ounces of medium noodles

1 6 1/2 ounce of drained tuna

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1 cup chopped celery

1/3 cup chopped onions

1/3 cup chopped sweet red pepper (you could also use green peppers)

1 tsp salt

1/2 cup evaporated milk or regular milk works fine

1 can cream of celery soup

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

For Topping:

1/2 sleeve of buttery cracker rounds (similar to Ritz crackers)

2 tablespoons melted butter

Directions:

Cook noodles in boiling salt water till tender and drain. (follow the directions on the package if you are unsure of cooking time). When the noodles are cooked, drain the water off. Add the tuna, mayonnaise, vegetables and salt to the noodles. Stir together. In a sauce pan, blend soup and milk. Add cheese and heat and stir until the cheese melts. Add the cheese sauce to the noodle mixture. Stir until all the noodles are coated with the sauce. Spoon the noodles into a casserole dish. To make the cracker topping, crush the crackers with a rolling pin. Add the crushed crackers to the melted butter and stir together. Sprinkle the topping on top of the noodles. Bake in a preheated 425 degree oven for about 25 minutes.