Recently I mentioned what I call “recipe renovation” – changing my own favorite recipes to be Whole30 compliant. A family favorite, this one was a real challenge due to pasta AND 2 components of dairy, BUT I finally conquered Skillet Tuna Noodle Casserole!
This dish probably ranks in the top 10 of my family’s faves, and they always smile when I make it. Unfortunately, the dairy and pasta in it mean I can’t have it when I’m on the Whole30. Now that peas are included on the Whole30 (see the update here), I went to work on replacing the other non-compliant items so I can have this ANY time.
Extra thanks to the gals at therealfoodrds.com for suggesting an appropriate dairy-free substitute for the cheese and sauce (from their recipe here). I used coconut milk instead of almond because it’s what I’m more familiar with. And since I focus on fast, I used the microwave method to cook my spaghetti squash.
“Healthier” Skillet Tuna Noodle Casserole
- 1-½ c boiling water
- ½ c cashews
- 1 medium spaghetti squash
- 2-½ Tbsp clarified butter
- 1 Tbsp nutritional yeast
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- ½ Tbsp lemon juice
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp pepper
- ¼ tsp onion powder (or to taste)
- 1 tsp poultry seasoning
- ½ c coconut milk
- 1 5-oz can tuna (drained and flaked)
- 1 4-oz can sliced mushrooms (drained)
- ¾ c frozen peas, cooked
- ½ c chicken broth (or more to adjust overall thickness)
Pour boiling water over cashews in small bowl. Cover and let set for 30 minutes to soften.
Wash and fork-puncture squash on all sides (9 or 10 punctures spread out all around is good). Lay on triple paper towels in microwave and cook on high 5 minutes. Turn it upside down and microwave on high 5 more minutes. Leave door of microwave open 5 minutes to cool a bit.
Carefully remove squash from microwave. Cut off both ends and split down the middle. Be prepared as this will release a lot of steam and liquid. Scrape out squash seeds and their threads (they’re a little darker than the “noodles”).
Then scrape out “noodles” with a fork. (You could even do this at another time and keep the “noodles” in the fridge to make assembling the dish faster at meal time!)
Once cashews are done softening, add them to a bullet type blender (in one of the larger cups) with other ingredients from nutritional yeast through coconut milk. Blend until thoroughly mixed and cashews are completely pulverized.
Putting it all together
Melt butter in large skillet over medium high heat. Add the “noodles” little by little and stir while keeping them in separate clumps. The key to adding spaghetti squash to a recipe like this one is pulling it apart in smaller clumps so you can stir those in evenly with the other ingredients.
Cook and stir about 5 minutes till noodles are heated through and maybe lightly “toasted.” Add tuna, mushrooms, and peas and stir until well mixed. Spoon in the sauce (it will be thick) and stir again. Add chicken broth, stirring and cooking until all is heated through. Add more broth if needed to thin the sauce to your liking and get everything fully combined.
An old favorite made faster AND healthier!
Looking at the finished picture, this might not be the prettiest dish, BUT it more than makes up for that by being a true comfort food I can STILL have on the Whole30! What could be better than that?
Have a comfort food you’d like to have “healthified?” Drop that recipe link in the comments below and I’ll give it a shot!
Want more recipe renovations? Try these
