Creamed Corn & Tuna Spirals

Creamed corn always feels warm and homey – we've stripped ours of the traditionally fatty butter and cream, favouring small curd cottage cheese instead. Combined with chunky tuna and whole grain pasta, it's a heaping bowl of nostalgia!

Photo: Edward Pond

By Lisa Howard

Serves: 4
Hands-on time: 20 minutes
Total time: 20 minutes

INGREDIENTS:

• 8 oz whole-wheat spiral pasta
• 1 ear corn, husked
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup 2% small-curd cottage cheese
• 1 red bell pepper, minced
• 2 6.4-oz pouches cooked tuna in water
• 1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/4 tsp sea salt
• Fresh parsley for garnish, optional

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add spirals and cook according to package directions. Drain well and transfer spirals to a large bowl.
2. Meanwhile, prepare creamed corn: Grate corn using a box grater, catching kernels and milky liquid in grater. Scoop corn and liquid into a medium non-stick skillet. Add garlic and place on medium heat. Stir in 1/4 cup water. Once corn starts to steam slightly, continue cooking for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until garlic softens. Remove from heat and stir in cottage cheese.
3. To bowl with spirals, add pepper, tuna, oil, salt and corn mixture. Toss well to combine. If desired, garnish with parsley just before serving.

Nutrients per 1-cup serving: Calories: 430, Total Fat: 7 g, Sat. Fat: 1 g, Carbs: 54 g, Fiber: 6 g, Sugars: 6 g, Protein: 35 g, Sodium: 290 mg, Cholesterol: 30 mg

Nutritional Bonus: Hearing that breads and grains are rich in niacin is no surprise, but tuna is also an exceptionally rich source of the B vitamin – in fact, a mere 3 ounces contains 56% of your daily niacin need. Add the whole-grain pasta, and each serving of this recipe offers you 65% of your daily dose of the digestion-enhancing vitamin.

CREAMY CORN:
Grating corn when it’s raw is the best way to release the milky liquid hiding just beneath the kernels. If you come across a summer sale on corn, buy a dozen ears, grate their creamy kernels and gently simmer them for about 10 minutes to create an easy and fresh cream of corn soup
.