[Smilette31]

If I made my normal recipe for tuna casserole and stayed in a reasonable range for calorie portion with it ... I'd probably only get 2 bites of the casserole lol. I'm trying to substitute out some of the not so healthy portions of it for more healthier ( hopefully less calorie ) choices. The tuna is fine ... I use tuna packed in water not oil. Celery is fine. Onion is fine. Peas are fine ( I just switched to the no salt added or frozen peas instead of the regular canned peas. I switched the noodles to a whole wheat pasta noodle. The milk that I add into the mushroom soup I kept at 2 percent. A skim milk wouldnt work in my opinion. My problem is the mushroom soup. Regular mushroom soup in the can is horrible in sodium ... which I'm trying to watch along with the calories. I haven't been able to find a healthier alternative to the mushroom soup. Does anyone know of a brand that makes a low sodium cream of mushroom soup or SOMETHING better than the regular canned soup?

Or maybe even another suggestion all together to form the " sauce " in the tuna casserole.

ps - I know Weight Watchers and Lean Cuisine have tuna casserole BUT eating the frozen " healthy " meals is not an option. I don't find those meals to be very healthy in my opinion, I prefer to cook my own food.

[HaleyisLove]

They have fat free cream of mushroom soup and also I think campbells now makes 25% less sodium kind... maybe you could find a recipe online and make your own cream of mushroom soup?

[Rebound]

Yup, I use the 98% ff cream of whatever soups. Most grocery stores even have generic versions now.

What's your recipe? I'd love to try a different tuna casserole!

[Smilette31]

Originally Posted by Rebound

Yup, I use the 98% ff cream of whatever soups. Most grocery stores even have generic versions now.

What's your recipe? I'd love to try a different tuna casserole!

I'll give you the original recipe and then you can substitute what you'd like.

This makes an 11x14 glass casserole dish. ( I have to make it for my 86 year old neighbor, both grandmas and great grandma when I make this. haha )

One box of macaroni noodles
2 cans mushroom soup
1 to 1 1/2 cans of milk ( just use the mushroom soup cans )
salt/pepper
small onion
2 stalks of celery
one can peas
2 cans tuna packed in water



1. Boil macaroni noodles according to package. Even though this is a hot dish, I still usually rinse the noodles with cold water just to stop the cooking process.

2. Cut celery and onion into bite size pieces ( or however you like ... I finely chop my onion but keep the celery bite size pieces ). Saute celery and onion in a bit of olive oil til tender. I add a bit of minced garlic at the end so it doesn't burn.

3. In a big bowl, mix the cans of mushroom soup with 1 to 1 1/2 cups milk til its not too thick but not too thin either.

4. Add macaroni, drained tuna and peas and the celery/onion/garlic all into the mushroom soup mixture and mix together. You can add salt/pepper to taste. ( I prefer my tuna casserole creamy not dry so sometimes I add a bit more milk if it doesnt seem creamy enough. )

5. Dump into a ungreased casserole dish. Bake at 350 degrees about 30-40 minutes or until bubbling.

6. Crush saltine crackers or potato chips in a baggy. Sprinkle ontop of the casserole and bake another 5-10 minutes.

7. Let the casserole rest about 5 minutes or so ... then serve.


Optional: We love mushrooms so sometimes I'll add a can of sliced mushrooms into this as well ... to go along with the lil bits of mushroom in the mushroom soup. If you dont like mushrooms much then I would advise against this haha.

[mariamherrera]

I adore casseroles So I have started making mine with the 98% fat free cream of celery instead of the cream of mushroom or cream of chicken I used to use for my casseroles! the cream of celery has the lowest amount of sodium and calories I make a delishes tater tot casserole with it! a

[Smilette31]

Originally Posted by mariamherrera

I adore casseroles So I have started making mine with the 98% fat free cream of celery instead of the cream of mushroom or cream of chicken I used to use for my casseroles! the cream of celery has the lowest amount of sodium and calories I make a delishes tater tot casserole with it! a

oh mariam!! GOOD IDEA!! i put celery in my tuna cass. anyways so it wouldnt really affect the flavor much if I switched out the mushroom soup for the cream of celery one. then i can just toss in mushrooms. GOOD GOOD GOOD IDEA!!!!!!!!!

by the way, what is your recipe for the tater tot casserole? never heard of it???

[HeaterAS]

I'd love the recipe for low cal tater tot casserole as well! YUM!

[mariamherrera]

recipe for tater tot casserole

-one package (4 oz) of ground turkey breast meat- 140 cals
-one can of 98% fat free cream of celery soup - 120 cals
-about half a bag (50 tater tots) of extra crispy ore ida tater tot's -680 cals (make sure and get the extra crispy ones because for some reason the calories are lower on them then the regular)
-one cup of water
-seasonings of your choice
- 2 servings of reduced fat shredded cheddar/ mexican cheese i use weight watchers cheese for 80 cals per serving so 160 cals total

You can also add in veggies of your choice. I usually will add in some frozen sweet peas and or corn or green beans with carrots. some people like to cook it into the casserole but I will usually put it on the side and then mix it together.. i don't know why i don't always just put it into the casserole to begin with..lol


start by browning the ground turkey breast on stove top or skillet, flavor with seasonings of your choice I personally use garlic powder, onion powder, a little seasoning salt, fresh ground pepper, and mrs. dash. when i make it just for my hubby i add cayenne pepper, paprika, chipotle seasoning and red crushed pepper flakes. And I use reduced fat pepper jack cheese instead of cheddar or mexican cheese as he likes it spicy

after meat is cooked add the whole can of cream of celery soup stir it in to the meat and then add a can of water mix it all together.

in a baking dish I use the little square cake pans that would make 4 equal pieces. I spray a little non stick cooking spray.. take half of the tater tots (25 pieces) and just put them in bottom of pan (there wont be enough to line them up all pretty so don't try..lol)

then pour meat,soup, water mixture over top of the tater tots sprinkle two servings of reduced fat shredded cheese over the meat mixture

then take the rest of the tater tots and sprinkle them on the top.. lightly spray the top of the tater tots with cooking spray and bake in the oven at 400 for 25 mins. (depends on your oven)

total cals for whole casserole should be 1100 this will make 4 equal servings only 275 per serving and THEY are huge and filling servings! I usually eat one serving and then save my other one for lunch the next day!

[mariamherrera]

I also have an amazing cheesy chicken broccoli rice casserole recipe i made up too! DIVINE I tell YOU!

[Smilette31]

maria you're the best! that sounds delicious!! and please share the other recipe too!

[mariamherrera]

Maria's cheesy chicken broccoli rice casserole

-two chicken breasts (4oz each)-280 cals

-one boil a bag of brown rice from success( or what ever brown rice you use I just have the calorie count for the brand i use- 300 cals ( I have also made this into a pasta dish using whole wheat penne noodles)bot hare good but i like the rice the best!

-one can Campbells 98%fat free cream of celery soup-120 cals

-2 tablespoons light or fat free sour cream I use light It tastes better to me but the fat free is a little less in calories-70 cals

-2 tablespoons of light cream cheese-60 cals

-2 servings usually about 1/2 cup depending on brand of fat free or reduced fat shredded cheese I use weight watchers and get 80 cals for 1/3 of a cup so -160 cals total

-one bag birds eye lightly sauced broccoli with cheese (you can use fresh but the frozen steamable ones are just easier for me ) -140 total for whole bag

I start by baking or grilling my chicken in the oven season how ever you like.. I use a little garlic salt, onion powder, seasoning salt and fresh ground pepper

while chicken is baking in oven start boiling the rice. I like to boil my rice a little longer the nit says on the package too because i cant stand hard rice or noodles for that matter

while rice is boiling take about 3/4s of the can of cream of celery soup and about 1/2 can of water and start cooking that on stove top add in the 2 tblspoons of cream cheese and the sour cream in also stir in one serving of the shredded cheese leave the other serving for later.

once soup is all combined set aside along with the rice once it's fully cooked. take the chicken out once fully cooked and slice it is into chunks ( you could also get those pre made servings of grilled chicken strips that you just heat in the micro)

in a small square baking pan that can be divided into 4 equal servings put the rice in then pour some of the sauce over it.. if you like your casseroles extra creamy pour the whole thing over if not just add in small increments stir and blend it all together my husband doesn't like things too "saucy" so I don't' dump the whole thing on it i save a little and just add more on my servings then I mix in the chicken chunks and the whole bag of broccoli stir it all together the n on the top I sprinkle one more serving of the fat free cheese then i put a little fresh ground pepper over the top of the whole thing back in the oven at 400 for about 13-15 mins ( just to melt cheese basically)

divide into 4 equal servings and enjoy!1130 cals for the WHOLE casserole and about 283 cals per serving!