Creamy Tuna Casserole

Creamy Tuna Casserole! Yesterday, my hubby and I were craving comfort food! We started talking about different recipes that we love and we consider comfort food.

Gradually our minds wandered to a tuna casserole that we both ate when we were little. After skipping down memory lane, we decided that we needed to make Tuna casserole not your everyday Tuna casserole but Creamy Tuna Casserole!

I love it when my hubby has time to cook with me! There’s a lot of laughing, talking, and a great way to create delicious meals! I can’t wait for you to try this Creamy Tuna Casserole! It’s full of flavors that the whole family will love. Easy to make!

Creamy Tuna Casserole

Ingredients

6 Tablespoons Butter
1 Large Yellow Onion, Finely Chopped
4 stalks Celery, Chopped
3 to 4 cloves Garlic, Minced
1/3 cup All-purpose Flour
3/4 cup Milk
2 cups Half-and-half
1/4 cup Grated Parmesan
1 teaspoon Dry Mustard
Salt And Black Pepper, to taste
1-1/2 cup Frozen Peas
12 ounces, Pasta Noodles
1/3 cup Sour Cream
1 Cup Mozzarella Cheese
2 Tablespoons Chopped Fresh Chives, Plus A Bit More For Garnish
2 cans Tuna, Drained, Broken Into 1/2-inch Chunks
2 cups Coarsely Crushed Potato Chips

Directions

Preheat oven to 375°F. Lightly butter the insides of a large baking dish and set aside.

Heat butter in a large heavy saucepan over a medium to medium-high heat. Add onion and celery and cook until just softened about 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in garlic and cook for 1 minute more. Sprinkle flour over the top and stir lightly for 1 minute. Slowly add milk and half-and-half, and then simmer until mixture is lightly bubbling and thickened, stirring occasionally for about 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in Parmesan and dry mustard, and then season to taste with salt and pepper. Remove saucepan from heat and stir in peas.

While sauce is cooking in the saucepan, cook noodles in a large pot of boiling salted water until just al dente. Drain noodles, reserving 1/2 cup of noodle cooking liquid. Transfer noodles to a very large mixing bowl. Pour warm sauce over noodles. Then add sour cream, Mozzarella, and chives, and fold to blend. Add reserved noodle cooking liquid a bit at a time until the mixture is creamy and moistened to your liking. Fold in tuna, taking care to leave some chunks intact.

Transfer mixture to prepared baking dish. Sprinkle with crushed potato chips. Tent dish loosely with foil and bake for 20 to 30 minutes, or until hot throughout. Remove foil and bake uncovered for another 5 to 10 minutes, or until the top is golden brown and the filling bubbles. Remove from oven, sprinkle with a bit more fresh chopped chives, and serve immediately.