Tuna Casserole with Orzo Eggplant & Feta || Gracefult Kitchen

Warning: Trying to access array offset on value of type null in /home/u589834942/domains/gracefultkitchen.com/public_html/recipe-details.php on line 74

Tuna Casserole with Orzo Eggplant & Feta

Fish

Tuna casserole is a timeless comfort-food recipe; this one incorporates eggplant, artichoke hearts, oregano, olives and feta cheese for a Greek-inspired flair.

Ingredients

⅓ cup dried whole-wheat orzo pasta
1 medium eggplant, ends trimmed, cut into 1-inch-thick slices
1 large red sweet pepper, stemmed, quartered, and seeded
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 ½ teaspoons finely shredded lemon peel
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 clove garlic, minced
4 tablespoons snipped fresh oregano
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
½ cup Panko breadcrumbs
3 (5 ounce) cans very low sodium tuna (water pack), undrained, large pieces broken up
1 9-ounce package frozen artichoke hearts, thawed and quartered if needed
½ cup ripe olives, halved
¼ cup crumbled feta cheese (1 ounce)
1 lemon, cut into 6 wedges

Description

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Coat a 1 1/2-quart au gratin dish with cooking spray; set aside. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
Line a 15x10x1-inch baking pan with foil. Lightly coat both sides of each eggplant slice with cooking spray. Place coated eggplant slices in the prepared baking pan. Add sweet pepper quarters to pan with eggplant slices. Roast, uncovered, for 15 to 20 minutes or until eggplant begins to brown and peppers are just tender. Remove from oven; let cool. Cut eggplant and pepper pieces into 3/4-inch cubes. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F.
For lemon dressing, in a small bowl whisk together olive oil, 1 teaspoon of the lemon peel, the lemon juice and garlic. Whisk in 3 tablespoons of the oregano, the salt and black pepper; set aside. In another small bowl combine panko, the remaining 1 tablespoon oregano and the remaining 1/2 teaspoon lemon peel; set aside.
In a large bowl combine cooked orzo, eggplant, sweet pepper, tuna, artichoke hearts, olives and feta cheese. Stir in the lemon dressing. Spoon mixture into the prepared baking dish. Cover with foil. Bake in the 350 degrees F oven for 35 to 40 minutes or until heated through. Sprinkle panko mixture over top. Bake, uncovered, for 5 to 8 minutes more or until panko mixture is golden brown. Serve with lemon wedges.