Cheesy Tuna Zoodle Casserole (Keto)

Meal prepping has become part of my Keto journey and casseroles make it a bit easier. I've never been a fan of any type of fish, especially the stinky ones, but protein has become key to my diet for body composition reasons and tuna is chock full of it.  The only time I can remember ever liking tuna is when my mom would make us tuna tetrazzini when I was a kid.  I don't know if it was Tuna Helper or if she had her own recipe; I'll have to ask her sometime.  Either way, it was a special part of my childhood and brings back memories of less responsibilities and more freedom.  Winter is Coming here in Missouri, so comfort foods are a must.  So are less responsibilities and more freedom but I've got about another 8 years before my youngest is ready to fly the coop.  I'll take it where I can get it, I suppose. 

I put together this Cheesy Tuna Zoodle Casserole tonight and it looks and smells amazing.  It tastes almost exactly as I remember mom's tetrazzini.  It was a little time consuming, I'll admit.  There is a bit of prep involved so make sure your schedule is clear for the evening or a lazy Sunday and make sure you have some good cooking music.  :)

I was experimenting at first, so I didn't capture all the photos for this that I wanted to.  Boo.  Anywho, I started with draining the cans of tuna which proved to be a daunting task, if you'll believe that.  I have one of those stupid safety can openers that leaves the rim on the lid so you don't cut your arm off.  That makes for a difficult time draining, just so you know.  Stupid safety.  

I spiralized my zucchini into "zoodles" with an awesome little contraption I bought at Bed Bath and Beyond.  The Spiralizer gets put to good use in my house these days.  I even brought it on our trip to Virginia to visit my mother-in-law this summer.  Zucchini has a lot of water in it, so I suggest salting it with some Kosher salt, letting it sit for about 5 minutes in a colander, and then putting it in a kitchen towel and squeezing the ever living dead out of it.  Makes for a better consistency in your casserole.

I sauted the celery and onion in a Tbs of Extra Virgin Olive Oil until soft and translucent.

Then I mixed the drained tuna, alfredo, mayo and zoodles in a mixing bowl and chopped the spinach.

Next, I added my sauted celery and onions to the mix.

I used olive oil cooking spray on a 9x13 baking pan and spread the whole mixture out evenly.  I have to admit, it did not look very appetizing at this point.

I sprinkled the spinach (greeeeeensss) on top and then the cheese.  Cheese makes everything better.

 And then popped it in the oven at 375° F for 20 minutes.  Once the timer went off, I turned the broiler on high and let it go for another 4 minutes to brown the cheese.

It came out gorgeous!

Sitting here writing this at 11:00 at night, I realized after all this (I made another casserole before this) I had forgotten to eat dinner!  Ah, the perils of being fat adapted.  Forgetting to eat.  So I got me a plate and enjoyed the fruits (well, mostly vegetables) of my labor!

Hopefully you all enjoy this as much as I did!

Bon Appetit!

Ingredients

3-4 oz cans, tuna in water -drained

2 cups, zucchini "zoodles"
2 oz, celery-diced
2 oz, diced white onion-diced
1/2 c, four cheese alfredo sauce (I shop at Aldi)
2 tbsp, mayo

1 oz, baby spinach-chopped

1 cup, shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 350° F.

Drain tuna and place in a medium mixing bowl.  Spiralize zucchini, salt and squeeze as much moisture out as you can in a kitchen towel or cheesecloth.  Add alfredo, mayo and zucchini noodles to the tuna and mix well.  Salt and pepper to taste.  Saute celery and onions in 1 Tbs extra virgin olive oil and add to the tuna mixture.  Spread evenly in a greased 9x13 baking pan.  Cover with spinach and cheese and bake for 20 minutes.  Makes 6 servings.