Being a cashier came with a bunch of perks: I flexed my mental math muscles every day;I drank all the coffee I wanted for free (which is the equivalent of living in heaven for college students); andI got discounted food from the food court. It was sweet. One of my favorite things to eat was the chicken tetrazzini. Carbs, cheese, meat all in one dish—how can you say “no” to that? It was definitely one of my guilty pleasures though. I never dared to make chicken tetrazzini at home because I knew how much calories into that dish! Until now . . . I created a lighter version of the dish by substituting pasta with tofu shirataki noodles. You may recall that I made a Vietnamese Tofu Shirataki Salad with Chicken several months ago, and I want to show you how you can use it to lighten up your casseroles, too! Each serving of tofu shirataki is 10 calories and 3 grams of carbs, which means we can go to town with the cheese in this chicken tetrazzini without the guilt! I’ve made three batches of this dish in the last week, and the hubs and I clean them out every single time!
MASTER LISA’S MISTAKES (AKA COOKING NOTES)
The way I create the creamy base is very different from the traditional way of cooking chicken tetrazzini. Usually, you melt some butter and mix in flour create a roux. I didn’t want to use butter here, as we’re getting plenty of fat from the cheese. Instead, I boiled milk and added flour to the milk. Be careful when boiling milk—I burned some while testing the recipe! Remember to boil it in medium heat and stir occasionally as it is boiling.I tried versions of this dish with and without wine, and I prefer wine in the casserole. However, it is not essential. If you don’t want to use wine, just use a total of 3/4 cup of water.I added almonds because I found it added a nice natural crunch to the dish. Feel free to use bread crumbs instead.
If you make this recipe, be sure to tag me on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter and use #hnbeats! Thank you House Foods for sponsoring this post!
