I crave comfort food during this long, cold, wet winter. This week, I opted for tuna casserole: an updated version of your mom’s classic, but just as satisfying and delicious as you remember. This recipe will leave you with plenty of leftovers, so halve the quantities if you’re not expecting company or don’t have a very hungry significant other.

As always, you can make substitutions to suit your preferences: throw in some mushrooms, use mozzarella in lieu of cheddar, swap in peas for broccoli (a combination would be nice!) or replace the orecchiette with elbows or shells. You could also use canned salmon instead of tuna – just make sure whatever you use is sustainably caught!

Happy Friday – enjoy.

Ingredients:
1 pound whole wheat orecchiette
1 quart cream of broccoli soup
3 cans of tuna
1 pound frozen broccoli florets
1 teaspoon garlic powder (optional)
1 teaspoon red chili flakes
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice (from half a lemon)
2 teaspoons sea salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 cup shredded cheddar
1 tablespoon butter, melted
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

2. While the oven is heating, bring a large pot of salted water to boil, then cook the pasta to al dente. Drain and drizzle with olive oil.

3. In a large bowl, combine the pasta, tuna, cheese, broccoli, garlic powder, chili flakes, lemon juice and salt and pepper. Adjust seasonings to taste.

4. Spread mixture into a large glass pan, then toss together the melted butter, bread crumbs and Parmesan. Spread the breadcrumb mixture on top of the casserole.

5. Cover the casserole loosely with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes, then remove foil and bake for another 10 minutes until the top is golden brown.