Cheesy Stuffed Pasta Food

CLASSIC STUFFED SHELLS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Coat a 9"x13" baking pan with cooking spray.
• Spread 1 1/2 cups of the marinara sauce in an even layer in the bottom of the pan.
• Place the ricotta cheese, 1 1/2 cups of mozzarella cheese, Italian seasoning, egg, salt, pepper and parmesan cheese in a bowl. Stir to combine.
• Fill each shell with the ricotta mixture and place in the baking dish.
• Spoon the remaining marinara sauce over the shells, then sprinkle the other 1 1/2 cups of cheese over the top.
• Cover the dish with foil. Bake for 20 minutes. Uncover the pan, then bake for an additional 10 minutes or until cheese is melted and starting to brown.
• Sprinkle with parsley, then serve.

STUFFED SHELLS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425°F.
• Place the spinach in a steamer basket and set over a pot with 1-inch of water. Bring the water to a simmer, cover, and let steam for 1 minute, until the spinach is wilted. Transfer to a strainer and squeeze out the excess water and chop the spinach.
• In a large pot of salted boiling water, cook the pasta shells for 10 minutes, until al dente. Drain and drizzle with a little olive oil to keep them from sticking together.
• In a medium bowl, combine the spinach with the ricotta, pecorino, garlic, oregano, lemon zest, red pepper flakes, salt, and several grinds of pepper.
• Spread the marinara in the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish. Stuff each shell with the filling and place in the dish. Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Serve with more marinara on the side.

HOMEMADE STUFFED PASTA

Steps:

• Make the dough: Pulse the flour and a big pinch of salt in a food processor a few times. Beat the whole eggs, egg yolk and olive oil in a measuring cup and slowly pour into the food processor with the machine running; process until the dough forms a ball. (If the dough is too sticky, pulse in more flour, 1 tablespoon at a time.) Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead a few times to form a smooth ball. Wrap in plastic wrap and let rest 30 minutes.
• Make the filling: Stir together the ricotta, Parmesan and Pecorino in a bowl. Transfer to a piping bag or resealable plastic bag and snip a corner.
• Cut the dough into 4 equal pieces. Wrap 3 of the pieces individually in plastic wrap and refrigerate. Lightly flour the remaining piece of dough and feed through the widest setting on a pasta maker, then fold in half and feed it through again. Move to the next setting and feed the dough through, lightly flouring as needed; repeat until you reach the third-to-last setting. (You should be able to see your hand through the dough.)
• Lay out the sheet of dough on a lightly floured surface. Trim each end so the sheet is about 2 feet long. Halve the dough lengthwise and cut into about 2 1/2-inch squares. Pipe about 1 teaspoon filling on the center of each square. Run a damp finger along the edge of half of the square, then fold over to make a triangle, pinching the edges to seal. Set the triangle on a floured surface. Repeat with the remaining squares. Take one triangle and, with the fold at the bottom, moisten one of the bottom corners and wrap both bottom corners around your pointer finger like a ring, pinching the corners together to seal; transfer to a floured baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining triangles, then cover the baking sheet lightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate. Repeat the process with the remaining 3 pieces of dough and filling. Refrigerate the pasta, covered, until ready to cook.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook until al dente, 4 to 5 minutes. Reserve 1 cup cooking water, then drain the pasta and toss with your sauce, adding the reserved cooking water as needed to loosen.

CHEESY BEEF-STUFFED PASTA SHELLS

Steps:

• Prepare macaroni shells according to package directions; drain and set aside.
• Cook ground beef, onion, and garlic in a large skillet until beef is browned.
• Drain excess fat.
• Stir in next 6 ingredients.
• Set aside.
• Combine spaghetti sauce and wine.
• Spoon one-fourth of sauce into a lightly greased oblong baking pan; set aside remaining sauce.
• Stuff macaroni shells with beef mixture, and place in baking dish.
• Spoon remaining sauce over shells.
• Sprinkle Parmesan cheese over shells.
• Bake, uncovered, at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.