Alice's Tuna Casserole

Cooking and baking have always been a part of who I am. My mother and father had to work twelve-hour days to put food on the table. Having six kids was challenging and they did their best to make sure we were clothed, fed, and had a roof over our heads. The food wasn't glamorous but it sustained and nourished our bodies. My mother would often prepare a big one-pot dish before leaving for work, which would be waiting for us on the stovetop for dinner. Most of the time these dishes were very basic and accompanied by warmed rice made in a rice cooker.

Although our family certainly qualified for public assistance, the prideful part of my father seemed to always override the need for more food in our cupboards. Nevertheless, we managed, partly because of my resourceful grandmother who would occasionally bring us bags of groceries she received from the local food bank; bags of canned and boxed goods in white labels with black letters. These canned and boxed government-issued foods would become my pantry, which started my love affair with cooking and baking.

I had to be resourceful, creative, and flexible a philosophy that would apply to every aspect of my life including working in the kitchen. My mother was not home to teach me to cook, but watching cooking shows on PBS planted seeds in my heart. Although we never had any of the ingredients on hand to make anything I watched on television, I would experiment with what we did have on hand. I developed my first recipe at eight years old. I opened up a few cans of tuna, cooked some packaged pasta, stirred in some frozen peas, and mixed everything in a bath of shredded cheese, milk, mayonnaise, salt, and pepper. To top this casserole off, I crumbled Shredded Wheat cereal over a 9x13 baking dish and dinner was served. My siblings and I devoured my no recipe-recipe and soon I was known as the cook of the family.

I learned to bake from my neighbor, Alice (I was actually named after her). She was an elderly lady who never married and we considered her our American grandmother. Her yard was covered in fruit trees and a vegetable garden we looked forward to eating from every time we visited. Every year she would take us kids to the local strawberry, blueberry, and raspberry farms to pick fresh seasonal fruit. She then would bake the best pies and pastries in the world for us to enjoy. Her love of baking and teaching was passed on to me as if I were her granddaughter, for which I will always be indebted.

Today my three beautiful children Abbi (9), Mimi (7), and Eli (2) and I cook and bake together all the time. From the moment each of them was able to hold a spoon I've tried to teach them the basics of cooking and baking and encouraged them to discover their own way. They're developing their own creative flare with what they make. My husband Rob and I love watching them explore their potential in the kitchen, burnt cookies and all.

I'm an avid home cook and baker. The advice, recipes, and stories I'll be sharing with you are from everyday moments and experiences not from culinary training or professional expertise. I believe in being creative, resourceful, and flexible. This is the approach I will share with you here and on my personal food blog: Savory Sweet Life.

I'm thrilled to be a weekly food contributor as part of the PBS Parents team along with my partner, Aviva Goldfarb. I'm most looking forward to hearing your stories, recipes, tips, and ideas about the food you love and how you incorporate it into your daily routine. My hope is that we can become friends -- learning and growing from each other. I don't have all the answers but I'm more than happy to share with you what I do know. I also plan on reaching out to the PBS Parents Kitchen Explorers community for your ideas and perhaps even showcase them in one of my weekly posts. I invite you to become an active participant in our newly launched community. Together we will laugh, commiserate, and share family-friendly food our families will love and enjoy!

Reminiscent of my childhood, here is an updated version of my tuna noodle casserole recipe. I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do!