Fill 'Em Up - Cheesy Tuna Pasta Bake

I've had a request for more recipes on here from a food-loving friend. Now, I love cooking and baking but I don't love writing down my 'in my head' recipes. I do link to the ones I use from recipes books that are published online by the author (you see, I'm both lazy and respecting of copyright), but I find remembering and writing out ingredients and methods quite difficult. I think it is because when I cook I often don't weigh or measure or time, I just do it. So trying to tell someone else what I used and what I did so that they can possibly recreate it leaves me feeling responsible for their next meal in case it all goes horribly wrong as they try to recreate my kitchen bumblings.

Fill 'Em Up is how it goes in our house - they are boys and they need feeding. Boy Food Friday is a weekly indulgence that can't be repeated every day due to budget, time and waistline constraints. Fill 'Em Up is what we eat on a school night, a work night, a no-time-to-cook night and it's usually simple and fuss free. So, this is what we had for tea/dinner/supper last night.....Cheesy Tuna Pasta Bake.

Personally I'm not sure I can think of anything worse than cheese and tuna combined. I'm not always very keen on tinned tuna. Call it one of my idiosyncrasies if you like. Sometimes I will eat it and other times I won't. It's probably another foible from boarding school. I do love cheese though. But the thought of cheese with tuna. No thank you. But I know the amazing sons love it, so I whipped this up either side of piano and trumpet lessons for tea. There's leftovers for tonight too - that I do like. And despite my doubts it was actually very tasty and the gorgeous husband enjoyed it too. It's not fine dining, it's not haute cuisine, but it is filling and cheap and simple to make.

What You Will Need:

• butter
• plain flour
• milk
• cheese - lots, grated or cut up into small chunks
• tinned tuna
• pasta shapes
• sweetcorn
• tortilla crisps - crushed

What You Do:

1. Make a basic cheese sauce by melting the butter in a large sauce pan over a low heat.
2. Add the flour to make a thick paste.
3. Then slowly add the milk, whisking and stirring all the time until all the milk is added and it just starts to gently bubble.
4. Stir in the cheese until it is melted and season with salt and pepper.
5. Stir in the sweetcorn and the tinned tuna. Just add as much as you like.
6. Cook and drain your pasta and rinse in cold water.
7. Add your pasta to your cheesy sauce and put into an ovenproof dish.
8. Sprinkle with the crushed tortilla crisps and a bit of cheese.
9. Put in to the oven at about 180C (fan) for about 30 minutes or until bubbling.
10. Serve to hungry boys and listen to the silence as they tuck in.