Cheesy "Chicken" Noodle Casserole You Can't Not Love

As a lover of vegetarian comfort food, it was crucial for me to turn the tuna noodle casserole I loved as a kid into a delicious, veggie-friendly dish. For this recipe, I replace the fish with fake chicken, but in the past I've used chickpeas with pretty decent results.

It may be almost summer (not exactly casserole season), but when I get a craving for this, I can't help but indulge it. Good thing it's so tasty (there's cheese and potato chips on top, for god's sake, how could it not be?) because I'll be eating it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner until it's gone!

Cheesy "Chicken" Noodle Casserole

1 bag egg noodles

1 can (10 3/4 oz) condensed cream of mushroom soup

1/3 cup low fat milk

1/2 bag (about 8 oz) frozen peas

1 can (5 oz) sliced water chestnuts (I like to chop them up into even smaller pieces but you can leave them as-is if you want)

1 cup potato chips

1 cup shredded cheese (I used a mix of cheddar and Whole Foods Parmesan blend, but you can use whatever you have around)

4 Quorn Naked Cutlets, defrosted

2 tbs. olive oil 

Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Prepare noodles according to bag directions and set aside. In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat and cook Quorn cutlets until lightly browned. While they are still in the pan, cut the cutlets into bite-sized chunks and season with salt and pepper to taste. Turn off heat and set aside.

In a large casserole dish, add milk, soup, and noodles. Mix to combine thoroughly, then add water chestnuts, peas, and about 1/4 of the cheese. Mix until the ingredients are evenly distributed. Put in the oven and set a timer for 25 minutes.

While the casserole bakes, place potato chips in a plastic baggy and crush them up using whatever heavy object you have laying around. You don't want to pound them into oblivion, but you don't want any big, jagged pieces either.

When 25 minutes are up, sprinkle a layer of shredded cheese on the casserole, followed by the crushed chips, then the rest of the cheese. Continue cooking for an additional 10 minutes or until heated through.

The leftovers will keep for a few days, but I like to sprinkle some more cheese on each portion before heating in the microwave.