This recipe for Mediterranean Tuna Casserole is NOT your grandma’s tuna casserole recipe! Feta cheese and artichoke hearts shake up this classic supper.
Why this recipe works
Okay, so this is definitely NOT your grandmother’s tuna casserole. Yes, there is tuna, and yes, there are noodles.
But there are also artichoke hearts and there is also feta cheese, and there is absolutely no cream-of-anything soup. I should start by saying, no disrespect to the grandmothers out there…my favorite recipe on this entire blog is my own grandma’s recipe for molasses cookies.
And I have certainly been known to make my share of those (I’m looking at you, Chicken Enchilada Soup)!. But I do love this lightened-up version of one of my favorite classic suppers.
It’s light and flavorful with the perfect mixture of cheese and artichoke and just the right amount of pasta.
I’m calling it a Mediterranean version because of the feta and artichokes, but you can also call it scrumptious…let’s make it!
Ingredients you need to make this recipe
Ingredient Notes and Substitutions
- Tuna: We recommend tuna packed in olive oil because it has SO much more flavor, but if you want to use the water packed variety you absolutely can.
- Pasta: Pick any short pasta you like (we used campanelle)…ziti, penne, bow-ties or even elbows will work.
- Artichoke Hearts: Look for these in the frozen foods section of your grocery store, and thaw them out before you start cooking.
Here’s how you make this recipe
STEP 1: Preheat oven to 400 degrees and spray a medium sized casserole dish with cooking spray.
STEP 2: Cook some short pasta according to package directions, drain and set aside.
STEP 3: While the pasta is cooking, put some olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium high heat. Add a little flour and stir for one minute. Slowly pour in some milk, stirring until everything is nice and smooth and simmering.
STEP 4: Turn off the heat and add the cooked pasta, some canned tuna, artichoke hearts, some crumbled feta cheese and a few chopped scallions to the pot. Add a pinch each of salt and pepper, and stir.
STEP 5: Pour this glorious concoction into your prepared casserole and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Bake it up until everything is golden and bubbling, about 20 minutes.
Recipe FAQs
Technically yes, but we have found that those take over in terms of flavor, so our recommendation is to use the plain frozen kind. The one thing we definitely don’t recommend are canned artichoke hearts…they just have a wonky canned flavor.
It can! Just bring it to room temperature before baking, or bake it for an extra ten to fifteen minutes.
Feta cheese (which is a lovely tangy goat cheese) is usually in the “fancy cheese” section of your supermarket. Go for the block of feta rather than the already crumbled kind – it is so much more tender. And if you have leftover feta cheese, try it in this recipe for creamy carrot feta soup, or pasta with shrimp and feta cheese sauce!
Pop it in the comments below and I promise to answer pronto!
Want to round out your meal?
Casseroles are wonderful in that you get your whole meal in one pot, but that doesn’t stop us from adding on a treat here and there! We love baking up this super easy sheet pan focaccia bread to have on the side.
And if you have room for dessert, banana brownies are always scrumptious!
So if you (like me) are always up for shaking things up, at least in the tuna casserole department, give this one a try!
Other tuna recipes we love
Could you leave us a review?
If you try this recipe, we would love to hear how it came out for you! I’d be super grateful if you could leave a star rating (you pick how many stars! 🌟 ) and your thoughts in the Comments section. Your thoughts and advice will help both us and your fellow readers. 🥰
PrintMediterranean Tuna Casserole
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5 from 2 reviews
This recipe for Mediterranean Tuna Casserole is NOT your grandma’s tuna casserole recipe! Feta cheese and artichoke hearts shake up this classic supper.
- Author: Kate Morgan Jackson
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Stovetop and Oven
- Cuisine: Mediterranean
Ingredients
- 8 ounces campanelle or other short pasta
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- Salt and pepper
- 1/4 cup flour
- 2 1/2 cups milk
- 12 ounces tuna in olive oil, drained
- 7 ounces frozen artichoke hearts, thawed and cut in half length-wise
- 3 scallions, sliced
- 4 ounces feta cheese
- 1/4 cup grated Parmesan
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees and spray a medium sized casserole dish with cooking spray.
- Cook pasta according to package directions and drain.
- Put oil in a medium saucepan over medium high heat. Add flour and stir for one minute. Slowly pour in milk, stirring until smooth and simmering.
- Turn off the heat and add cooked pasta, tuna, artichoke hearts, feta cheese and scallions to the pot. Add a pinch each of salt and pepper, and stir.
- Pour into casserole and sprinkle with Parmesan. Bake until golden and bubbling, about 20 minutes.
Equipment We Used to Make This Recipe
Notes
Tuna: We recommend tuna packed in oil because it is so flavorful, but you can use the water packed version if you prefer.
Artichoke Hearts: We recommend the frozen kind that you can find in your grocery store’s frozen veggie section…thaw them out first
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Fred Kaspick says
Couldn’t locate frozen artichokes so bought fresh and cut up smaller (1st time preparing an artichoke) otherwise as called for in recipe. Loved it! ALL the individual flavors were identifiable and delicious. The somewhat crunchy fresh artichokes worked well and now will try again on a salad or two. When we find frozen artichokes we’ll prepare this again to compare. Thx!
Kate Morgan Jackson says
Hi Fred and thank you for this! I do love a fresh artichoke, and I am so impressed that you took a chance on those for this recipe. Now I will need to try it this way. :)
MK says
Yum!
Kate Morgan Jackson says
I’ll have to make it for you! xoxo!
Theresa Murphy says
You had me at feta and artichoke hearts! And with Lent coming up next month, this is a great recipe to put in the “Friday File” for a nice change from ordinary tuna casserole.
Kate says
Friday File – now there’s an idea I need to start! :)
Leesie says
Perfect pasta those campanelle! To me it lends an elegance. I use it for my pumpkin-sage sauce. :-) Looking forward to trying this recipe out.
Kate says
I love campanelle – so many cute nooks and crannies!