This pasta bake contains several great ingredients. Tuna, which is packed with protein and omega-3 fatty acids is also pretty low in fat. The addition of sweetcorn, tomatoes and spinach also provides 3 portions of fruit and veg. There are also several things that make this recipe a little lighter than your usual pasta bake: • A moderate amount of high-carb pasta (but not so little that you'll feel cheated). For an even healthier option, you could swap standard pasta for whole-grain, brown pasta which is lower in calories and higher in fibre. • The use of fat-free cottage cheese, which has around 5x less cholesterol than hard cheeses such as cheddar, nearly double the protein and is virtually fat-free.

Healthy Tuna Pasta Bake Recipe

Plates of Healthy Tuna Pasta Bake with Salad

September 9, 2021September 9, 2021 caroline

Jump to Recipe·Print Recipe

*This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclaimer here. While we may use affiliate links, we would never allow this to influence product listings or recommendations.

This healthy tuna pasta bake is the perfect sin-free meal. Pasta baked in a tomato, basil and garlic sauce packed with spinach, sweetcorn and mushrooms. The bake is topped off with low-fat cottage cheese to keep it light yet tasty. Not only that but as an extra bonus, everything is baked in just one dish meaning less washing up!

Ingredients

For a full list of ingredients with weights and measurements, jump to the printable recipe card.

Pasta – you can use any type you like, but flatter varieties, like spaghetti, will result in a flatter looking result. Also, make sure you don’t buy quick-cook pasta or you will end up with a very soggy, limp dish.
Tinned chopped tomatoes
Oregano – or an Italian herb mix will also work well
Garlic, finely chopped or crushed
Tinned sweetcorn – you can alternatively use thawed frozen corn
Baby spinach leaves
Tinned tuna – use tuna in water or brine to keep the dish light
Fresh basil leaves
Fat-free cottage cheese

Equipment:

Oven-safe baking tray – for 2 portions (the default recipe) aim for one around 1l / 1 quart in capacity – check out this set of 4 to cover all your baking needs (the second smallest one is the perfect size for this dish)

How to make it

For a more detailed list of instructions with recipe tips jump to the printable recipe card.

Preheat the oven to 200C/400F
Add the pasta to a baking dish and pour over the chopped tomatoes. Mix in the oregano and garlic.
Place in the oven for 10 minutes covered with foil.
Stir the sweetcorn, spinach, tuna and basil and then top with blobs of the cottage cheese. Place back in the oven, uncovered, for 20 minutes.

Variations

Mushrooms can be added for some extra variety – add at the same time as you add the chopped tomatoes to the dish. Slice very thinly or they won’t cook quickly enough.
Courgette, cut into small cubes or green beans sliced into small pieces. Again, add before the dish first goes into the oven.
Mascarpone can be used instead of cottage cheese – although it will be higher in fat and calories.

Can I make it in advance?

Leftovers can be kept, covered, in the fridge for up to 3 days and reheated in the oven. It’s also totally delicious cold, so it’s great for packing into a lunchbox for the next day.

Freezing is not recommended as the texture of the cottage cheese won’t hold up.

If you want to prepare the dish in advance then you can mix the tomato, water, garlic, oregano and mushrooms in a container and then mix the tuna, sweetcorn and spinach in another so you have everything ready to throw together when you make it. However, don’t mix the pasta with the tomato in advance as it will make the pasta turn out mushy. Also, don’t prepare the basil in advance as it will start to brown.

Healthy Tuna Pasta Bake in a Baking Dish

What can I serve it with?

While this pasta bake is more than enough to serve on its own, you can add some side dishes to add variety or make a more substantial meal. A simple crisp salad or crusty bread works well. Or you could try one of the following as an extra healthy addition:

How healthy is it?

This pasta bake contains several great ingredients. Tuna, which is packed with protein and omega-3 fatty acids is also pretty low in fat. The addition of sweetcorn, tomatoes and spinach also provides 3 portions of fruit and veg.

There are also several things that make this recipe a little lighter than your usual pasta bake:

A moderate amount of high-carb pasta (but not so little that you’ll feel cheated). For an even healthier option, you could swap standard pasta for whole-grain, brown pasta which is lower in calories and higher in fibre.
The use of fat-free cottage cheese, which has around 5x less cholesterol than hard cheeses such as cheddar, nearly double the protein and is virtually fat-free.

The recipe contains just 370 calories for one full portion and only 2.5g of fat. However, it does have quite a high amount of carbs (50g) so isn’t ideal for anyone following a low-carb diet. But I’m sure if you were you wouldn’t be looking for pasta bake recipes!

Looking for more great healthy fish recipes? Try:

Products that work well for this recipe: