Tuna Noodle Hot Dish

Prepared and recorded January 14, 2010. An improv lunch.

8 oz package elbow macaroni

1 can cream of mushroom soup (Campbell's™ of course)
about 1/2 can of milk
1 5 oz can chunk light tuna with pack water (see RANT)
2 T dried minced onion
1 small can mushrooms with pack water
2 roasted piquillo peppers, sliced and diced (see RAVE)
1 t Frank's RedHot Original Hot Sauce™ (omit for kids and Minnesotans)
SS & FGP
grated parmesan cheese

Preheat toaster oven to 325 ºF.

Boil noodles for about 12 minutes in two quarts of well-salted water, until just tender. Drain well. In the same saucepan over medium heat, combine all the other ingredients except the cheese. Mix well, stir in the cooked noodles, and heat through. Transfer to an 8X8 inch metal baking pan. Sprinkle on a generous layer of parmesan. Bake 30 minutes uncovered. Let stand about 15 minutes at room temperature before serving. 
Serves 3 to 4.
RAVE
Thanks, Trader Joe, for cheap piquillos, and to Jose Andres (PBS chef and restaurant owner) for enthusing about them, and for picturing the hard-working and fun-loving Spaniards that raise, pick, and pack them in Navarra.
RANT
This is the "cheap" kind; more flavor than the albacore, but less Hg. Note the new "Scru-U" size (was 6 oz for decades); Chicken of the Sea is acceptable; Charlie the Tuna brand is autolyzed glop. Sorry Charlie.

Onion-Tomato-Cucumber Salad

Onion-Tomato-Cucumber Salad

Inspired by the small salad served in tomato season at Bullock's, Durham's beloved "meat + three" restaurant. Marinade adapted March, 2008 from a recipe on cooks.com

Marinade:

2 oz vegetable oil (To double: 1/2 c)
1 oz apple cider vinegar (1/4 c)
1 t salt (2 t)
1/2 t ground black pepper (1 t)
1 t sugar (2 t)
1/2 t dry minced parsley (1 t)
1/4 t mayonnaise (1/2 t)
1/4 t Dijon mustard (1/2 t)

Vegetables:

1/2 large cucumber, peeled, cut into 1-inch wedges
1 large ripe tomato, cut into large cube
1/2 large sweet onion, blossom cut through poles

Combine the marinade ingredients, except for the oil, in a Good Seasons bottle; cover and shake well. Let stand 10 minutes; add oil and shake vigorously. [The mustard and mayonnaise help stabilize the suspension.] Combine vegetables in a serving bowl. Pour marinade over vegetables, combine, and refrigerate 2 hours before serving, turning occasionally. Keeps well in refrigerator for a day or two.