Overnite Tuna (Or Chicken) Casserole - Lite

When I was a young working mother some 30 years ago now, this was a fairly regular option for dinner. It was easy for me to put together before bed and whoever arrived home first would pop it into the oven. That gave me an uninterruped hour to take care of after work chores and start the kids on their homework. I tried due diligence on this one to see if it was posted in 'Zaar, but none just like this that I could find. The original recipe called for fresh onion, but today we prefer the dehydrated version. I've also added the optional seasonings in recent years and it's still one of our favorites.

• Ready In: 1 hr 15 mins
• Serves: 8

Ingredients

• 2  cups 1% low-fat milk
• 2 (10 1/2ounce) cans  campbells  98% fat-free cream of mushroom soup
• 8  ounces elbow macaroni (uncooked)
• 8  ounces water chestnuts, drained and chopped
• 3 -4  teaspoons  dehydrated onion (depending on your taste preference)
• 1 1⁄2 cups  grated cheddar cheese
• 4  hard-boiled eggs, sliced
• 1⁄4 teaspoon salt
• 12  ounces tuna, drained of any liquid (or 1 1/2 to 2 cups cooked chicken)
• 1⁄2 teaspoon parsley (optional)
• 2  teaspoons dried chives (optional)
• 1⁄2 teaspoon  Old Bay Seasoning (optional)

Directions

1. Empty soup into large mixing bowl.
2. Whisk or stir in milk until well blended.
3. Stir in uncooked macaroni, water chestnuts, onions and cheddar cheese.
4. Add eggs, salt, tuna, parsley and chives and stir just until blended.
5. Pour into lightly greased 2 quart casserole dish.
6. Sprinkle top of casserole with Old Bay Seasoning.
7. Cover tightly and refrigerate overnight.
8. NEXT DAY:
9. Preheat oven to 350.
10. Bake uncovered 40 minutes.
11. Increase oven temperature to 375 for 10 minutes to "finish" the casserole.
12. Allow the dish to rest 10 minutes and casserole will thicken nicely for serving.