This healthy gluten free tuna noodle casserole is a lightened up, low carb version of the classic comfort food dish.
My mother wasn’t always enthusiastic about cooking dinner. It was no fault of hers- I was admittedly a picky polly and only ate chicken nuggets and fries, so I can only imagine how thrilled she would be to pass that job off to the pros (aka. Swiss Chalet). One dish I do remember my mom making us was Tuna Noodle Casserole topped with a bag full of salty potato chips.
As the weather gets cooler, I tend to start reminiscing about my childhood eats and I was inspired to make a healthy gluten free tuna noodle casserole to pay homage to my gluten free sister. I’m not gluten free myself, but I do like to eat light and sometimes a ton of carby pasta weighs me down. Not here! This casserole is made with spaghetti squash giving it a delicate sweetness that I really love.
How to Make Healthy Gluten Free Tuna Noodle Casserole
It starts with the spaghetti squash as my noodles. I usually bake mine off until they’re easily scraped into “noodles” but you can also just pop it into the microwave as well.
Then comes the sauce of my healthy Gluten Free Tuna Noodle Casserole. Instead of a ton of cream or a super fatty roux, I make min with rice flour, milk and stock plus a good amount of fresh herbs. And if you haven’t gotten your veggie fix from the squash, try adding in some mushrooms, broccoli and peas.
You can’t forget the tuna of course! I actually love recipes that use canned tuna because it’s an easy and light way to get your protein fix.
But now let’s talk about what really matters in this healthy Gluten Free Tuna Noodle Casserole. The crown. The cherry on top. The chips! And not just any chips, I used my go-to TERRA chips. They’re made from a delicious blend of exotic vegetable and potato chips that are high in fibre, low in sodium but super BIG on flavour. In this recipe I used the Original variety (with taro, sweet potatoes, batata, parsnips, yucca and beets), but they also come in Sweets & Beets and Blue chips! Talk about a tasty way to get in a serving of veg!
To help you have fun with TERRA Chips and create your own delicious dishes, I’m giving away a Terra Prize Pack + $100 VISA card to one lucky reader! To enter you can do any of the following (the more you do, the better chance you have to win!)
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Have you tried making this healthy Gluten Free Tuna Noodle Casserole? What other delicious recipes can you come up with using TERRA chips? Leave me a comment below with your favourite goodies and check out their facebook page for more crunchy fun!
Gluten Free Tuna Noodle Casserole | Healthy, Low Carb Casserole
Ingredients
- 1 medium spaghetti squash
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 onion finely minced
- 1 stalk celery diced
- 1 carrot finely diced
- 1/4 cup rice flour
- 1 1/2 cups reduced sodium vegetable stock
- 1 1/2 cup 1 or 2% milk
- 1 Tbsp fresh thyme leaves minced
- 2 tbsp fresh parsley leaves chopped
- 1 cup cremini mushrooms thinly sliced
- 1 cup broccoli cut into small florets
- 1 cup frozen peas
- 2 cans albacore tuna packed in water drained well
- 1 cup sharp cheddar cheese finely shredded
- 1 cup Original Terra chips crushed
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 400 F. Lightly grease a 9x13” casserole dish and line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.
- Cut your squash in half, place cut side down onto the baking sheet and bake for 45 minutes- 1 hour, or until the squash flesh shreds easily with a fork. Allow to cool and reduce the heat to 375 F.
- Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, celery and carrot and sauté until the onion becomes translucent and the carrot softens, about 7 minutes.
- Stir in the flour and cook on medium heat for 2-3 minutes until it fully coats the vegetables.
- Whisk in the stock and milk, and bring the mixture to a simmer. Cook for 5 minutes until the mixture begins to thicken, then add in the thyme, parsley, mushrooms, broccoli, peas, tuna and squash. Stir until fully mixed then transfer to the casserole dish.
- Top with the cheese and bake for 10 minutes. Remove the casserole and top with the chips and bake for an additional 10 minutes or until the casserole has thickened. Enjoy!
Nutrition
Updated on October 23rd, 2020
Abbey Sharp is a Registered Dietitian (RD), regulated by the Ontario College of Dietitians. She is a mom, YouTuber, Blogger, award winning cookbook author, media coach specializing in food and nutrition influencers, and a frequent contributor to national publications like Healthline and on national broadcast TV shows.
Paul Brown says
What a delicious meal we had tonight. I added the broccoli and red pepper flakes,. It was just wonderful and enjoyed by my husband as well. Thanks for sharing such a great recipe.
Kelly Hubbard says
Mmmm! This skillet chicken looks so good and easy to make. I love the sweet and savory flavors of Moroccan food, perfect when I need a quick dinner. Cute video too! 🙂
Joseph Donahue says
I cooked your pancakes with my son just this morning! He spilled the almond milk all over the counter and dropped about 4 eggs, but it still worked and he was having fun with me rather than just plopped in front of the tv while I was alone in the kitchen.
Harold Burton says
GREAT list. Bookmarked so I can remember to come back when I need to make basics. Thank you!
Sara says
YUM! Want
gina says
I think Terra Chips would make a delicious crispy topping to a creamy mac and cheese dish!
And sweet potato terra ships For a nice texture contrast crumpled on top of a roasted baked sweet potato! mmmm!
Abbey Sharp says
yes!! enjoy!
julie says
i honestly love eating them plain!
Abbey Sharp says
so delicious
Abbey Sharp says
yum!
Victoria Ess says
I’d make lasagna!
Terry Stevens says
I would make my mexican chicken casserole with the chips.
Tara @ a daily dose of fit says
I dont love tuna but those chips are my evErything!
Rachel says
I would COARSELY grind The chips and use them as a breading for chicken stripes.
Elizabeth Schneider says
Yum that casserole looks so good! I love spaghetti squash. Besides just eating the chips straight out of the bag, I would coat mashed potato pancakes (made with greek yogurt and chives) in a layer of crushed Terra chips then bake them in the oven until extra crispy on the outside.
Ilka says
That’s on awesome topping idea! Great new spin on this famous recipe!
Mikki says
Wow. what an awesome take on an old recipe. I haven’t had tuna casserole in a long but this inspires me to try it again.
Nataly Carbonell says
I’d like to make some mac n cheese topped with crumbled chips!