So, now I am on a casserole kick. Between the slow cooker and casseroles, my sanity is being saved. If I had to spend an hour making dinner every night when I have the time to make the dinner…
We would never eat!
I have no time… says the woman who spent many hours over the last two weeks making sure that those gluten free, dairy free, vegan chocolate mint brownies were perfect.
We all have our priorities people. Mine happen to be chocolate mint brownies I can eat.
Dinner? I could take it or leave it. Sorry, but that is the truth.
Don’t get me wrong. There are many types of dinner I really like, but when it comes down to actual dinner time and things that need to get done… I could really do a bowl of cereal and call it a night.
And now that I can’t have so many types of foods due to allergies, I have no problem with ordering pizza for the boys and just having a… well… bowl of cereal.
I would much rather partake in the pizza. But I would even much more rather not feel like $#!t, if you know what I mean.
But brownies, on the other hand… I am not giving those up. I will fight to have me some chocolate decadence that I can eat without feeling miserable. Well, except for the guilt of having eating 8 different attempts at brownies. Within two weeks. Did I mention my pants were tight?
So, anyway, long story even longer. I am loving the slow cooker and casserole options that I have been coming up with.
The other day, I kept thinking about tuna noodle casserole. But I didn’t want it to be a tuna noodle casserole. Know what I mean?
I looked up different recipes and took ideas that I liked and left ideas that I didn’t.
Then I figured out how to do those ideas allergy friendly.
The tuna turned into sausage. Cream sauce turned into coconut milk sauce. And lots of herbs were added.
I skipped the potato chips on top because I didn’t want to add that extra fat and oil.
OK, I can’t really type that with a straight face. Who the heck am I kidding? I skipped the potato chips because every time I bought a bag to use, I ate them before I could get the casserole in the pan and sprinkle them on top.
Seriously!?
I thought chocolate was my downfall. Looks like it is really potatoes fried in oil and dunked in salt. Sheesh!
Oh, and my original version of this recipe I used andouille sausage in the noodle casserole. But LM thought it was too spicy. So the pictures show sweet Italian sausage. I think andouille tastes better, so I am keeping the noodle casserole recipe that way.
Feel free to add a little mozzarella if you don’t have a dairy issue. But it tastes great without it, too.
Hope you are having a great weekend. LM is in our hometown butterfly parade. It welcomes the butterflies back to Pacific Grove. Last year he was dressed as a monarch butterfly. He looked great and was on the front page of the news website for the area.
This year, he is a moon jelly. Ummm. Weird.
- 1 lb. Gluten Free Fusilli Noodles (you can use regular gluten noodles if you so desire)
- 2 tbs. Avocado Oil (or other oil of your choosing)
- 3 tbs. Cornstarch
- 1 - 14 oz. can Coconut Milk
- 4 Andouille Sausages (cooked and chopped)
- 1 cup Zucchini (shredded)
- ½ lb. Frozen Peas (thawed)
- 2 tbs. Fresh Parsley
- 2 tsp. Dried Thyme
- 2 tbs. Dried Oregano
- Preheat oven to 350F degrees.
- Cook noodles according to directions on package. Run cold water over them after draining to stop cooking.
- In the meantime, heat avocado oil over medium heat in a medium sauce pan. Add cornstarch to make a paste.
- Add coconut milk and mix with wire whisk. Cook over medium heat until it thickens. Add parsley, thyme and oregano. Turn off heat.
- In a separate bowl, add cooked noodles, sausage, zucchini, peas and sauce. Mix well.
- With cooking spray, lightly spray a 9 x 13 inch casserole dish and add mixture.
- Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes until hot.
Linking this to Gluten-Free Wednesdays (GFW), the weekly blog carnival that Shirley of gfe gluten-free easily, Linda of The Gluten-Free Homemaker and Lynn of Lynn’s Kitchen Adventures host.
This noodle and sausage casserole looks totally delicious. Definitely perfect for a great weeknight meal.. I must recreate the recipe!
Thanks, Thalia! It’s a great comfort food. And it you don’t have to be dairy free, which I am guessing you don’t, throw some cheese in to make it the ultimate comfort food. 😉
~Tia
***Love it! I made it tonight, and our mouths are watering….thank you for the very clear instructions. I’m a gluten free dairy free everything free, basically, and this coconut cream sauce is fabulous. Yum! ***