Tuna and Leek Pasta Bake from The Simming Foodie Easy Meals Every Day
“This meal is so quick and easy to throw together. It’s great comfort food, full of flavour and goodness. Sometimes I use wholemeal pasta – or even a mix of white and wholemeal – and you can use whatever pasta shapes you fancy.” Pip Payne, author of The Slimming Foodie Easy Meals Every Day
Serves 4
300g penne pasta spray oil
3 spring onions, sliced, plus more to serve
2 large leeks, trimmed, cleaned and sliced
1 chicken stock pot or stock cube
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon mustard powder
100g (3½oz) reduced-fat cream cheese
2 x 145g (5¼oz) cans tuna in spring water, drained
120g (4½oz) mature Cheddar cheese, grated
1 head of broccoli, cut into florets
Salt and pepper
Snipped chives or chopped parsley leaves, to serve
Preheat the oven to 220°C/200°C fan (425°F), Gas Mark 7.
Put the pasta on to boil in a large pan of water and cook according to the packet instructions. You need to make sure you have plenty of water in the pan, as you will use some of the pasta water to make up the sauce.
Spray a sauté pan or a flameproof shallow casserole dish with oil and place over a medium-low heat. Fry the spring onions and leeks gently while the pasta cooks.
When the pasta is nearly cooked, make up the chicken stock pot in a jug using a couple of ladles of the pasta water (about 200ml/7fl oz). Drain the pasta.
Pour the hot chicken stock into the leeks, then stir in the oregano and mustard powder. Add the pasta to the pan, then the cream cheese, stirring this into the hot pasta and allowing it to melt. Add the tuna and half the grated cheese, season with salt and pepper and mix everything together.
Transfer into an ovenproof dish (if your current pan or dish is not ovenproof) and scatter the broccoli over the top. Cover with the remaining grated cheese and spray with a little spray oil.
Bake for 15 minutes, until the cheese on top is melted and golden. Serve scattered with the spring onions, chives or parsley.
