Tuna and Courgette (zucchini) Pasta Bake

 This is one of my 10 minute specials!!  You could either have it as a sauce with pasta, or put it together one evening ready to pop into the oven on the following evening.  To be honest, it’s worth making double the quantity and popping one in the freezer.

For two of us I used :

One large courgette (zucchini)

1 x 160g tin of tuna (in spring water by preference)

1 x 450g tin of chopped Italian tomatoes

1 small bunch of parsley

Seasoning to taste

1tsp garlic olive oil

200g of cooked pasta.  Actually, you could use fresh, as it will cook in the sauce.

Prepare the courgette by cutting slices away from the core (which can be discarded).  Cut the slices into strips, and then into smaller pieces, roughly the same size as a piece of penne.

Saute the courgette in the garlic oil for a few minutes, seasoning with a little black pepper as it cooks.  *Add the tinned tomatoes and then the drained can of tuna.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.  Bring to a simmer and then turn out the heat.

Add the tuna sauce to the pasta, and then add the chopped parsley.  Turn into an ovenproof dish and sprinkle with grated cheese.

Bake in a hot oven for appx 20 to 25 minutes.  I cooked mine at 200            ^oC (400 ^oF / gas mark 6) for 25 minutes.

* If you are preparing ahead of cooking the following day, allow the courgette to cool before adding the tinned tomatoes and drained tuna.  After draining the cooked pasta, rinse with cold water and combine with the sauce only when the pasta is cold.

From cold you will need to increase the cooking time to 30 to 35 minutes, until piping hot in the middle.