"Tuna" Noodle Casserole

I have never claimed to be a great cook.  Not even a good cook.  Sure, I can follow a recipe, but a gourmet chef I am not.  Since I became a vegetarian (again) almost three years ago, and now following an 80% vegan diet, I have been cooking a lot more.  Mostly because I have to make sure my diet is balanced for myself and for my kiddos.

When I do cook I always cook from scratch and follow a recipe.  Tonight was a different story all together.  Because I haven't been grocery shopping in over a week I had to improvise from the ingredients in my pantry and my refrigerator.

When I was eating meat, one of my favorite comfort food dishes was tuna-noodle casserole.  I know, not gourmet by any stretch of the imagination, but delicious nonetheless.  I found some egg noodles, a can of cream of mushroom soup, French's fried onions, an unopened container of tofu, a half a block of sharp cheddar, vegetable broth and some frozen peas and I improvised.  Obviously not vegan, but a delicious vegetarian version of one of my favorite comfort foods!

"Tuna" Noodle Casserole

Ingredients:

1/2 bag (16oz.) egg noodles

1 package Nasoya Firm tofu, cut into small pieces

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 c. frozen peas

1 c. shredded cheddar cheese (divided)

1/2 c. French's fried onions

1/4 - 1/2 c. vegetable broth

1/2 tsp. salt

1 tbsp. canola oil

1-2 tbsp. Mrs. Dash original seasoning

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 F.
2. Cook egg noodles as directed (al dente) on package.  Add frozen peas when there are two minutes left.  Drain and place in 2 qt. casserole dish.
3. While the noodles are cooking, saute tofu in oil over medium heat adding 1/2 tsp. salt and 1 to 2 tbsp. Mrs. Dash (or to taste).  Cook until lightly browned, 5-8 minutes.  Reserve 1/2 of the tofu to use in another dish.  (You can use all of it, but it seemed like too much tofu to me.)
4. Place tofu in casserole with egg noodles and peas.  Add soup, broth, and 1/2 cup of cheddar cheese.  Stir until blended together.
5. Top with the rest of the cheddar cheese and the French's fried onions.
6. Bake at 350 F for 30 minutes, until hot and bubbly and cheese on top starts to brown.

The kids and I enjoyed this very much.  Cameron and Olivia ate everything on their plate.  Olivia even ate the peas, which is unheard of!  I didn't take any photos because I really had no faith in my creation.  I should give myself a little more credit :)