Tuna Noodle Casserole

Last spring, when my friend Sarah was enjoying her maternity leave, I spent many an afternoon at her home while her oldest and my youngest played...I also lavished the opportunity to snuggle with a precious, new baby!! Our lunches often consisted of left overs from our dinners. On one occasion, Sarah reheated this awesome tuna casserole. It was unlike any tuna casserole I had ever tasted and I asked her to share the recipe with me.

It's taken me several months to fix this for my family but it was such a huge hit with everyone, that I'm sure it's going to be on our dinner table often. Marty and I LOVED the "grown-up" flavor that the roasted red pepper added to this dish and the kids raved about the abundance of noodles and the bread crumb topping. The original recipe is prepared in an 8x8 dish, but I doubled it and baked in a 13x9. I was planning (and hoping) that this would be a success for dinner and needed plenty of leftovers for lunches and our buffet-style leftover night. :-) If you like tuna casserole, you'll LOVE this version of the favoured dish!

From the heart of my kitchen to yours, may your experience be fun and the food always flavorful. Enjoy!

Tuna Noodle Casserole

8 ounces uncooked linguine
1 cup frozen broccoli florets
1 package (1.8 oz) leek soup mix
1 1/2 cups milk
Dash pepper
1 can (5 oz) albacore tuna, drained
2 tablespoons chopped drained roasted red bell peppers
1 tablespoon butter or margarine, melted
1/4 cup plain bread crumbs

Heat oven to 350°F. Spray 8-inch square (2-quart) glass baking dish with cooking spray. Cook and drain linguine as directed on package, adding broccoli for last 2 minutes of cook time.
Meanwhile, in 1-quart saucepan, mix soup mix and milk. Heat to boiling over medium heat, stirring constantly. Stir in pepper. Add linguine, broccoli, tuna and roasted peppers to soup mixture; stir gently to mix well. Spoon into baking dish. In small bowl, mix butter and bread crumbs; sprinkle over linguine mixture. Bake uncovered 20 to 25 minutes or until top is golden brown.

Source: Delectable Dining