Not Your Ordinary Stuffed Shells Food

STUFFED SHELLS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta shells and cook for half the cooking time on the package; make sure not to overcook. Drain and rinse in cool water. Set aside.
• In a bowl, mix together the ricotta, Romano, parsley, basil, egg, some salt and pepper and half of the Parmesan. Stir until combined.
• To assemble, coat the bottom of a baking dish with some sauce. Fill each half-cooked shell with the cheese mixture and place face-down on the sauce. Repeat with the shells until the cheese mixture is gone. Top the shells with the remaining sauce. Sprinkle on the mozzarella and extra Parmesan.
• Bake until hot and bubbly, 25 minutes. Serve with crusty French bread.

MEAT LOVERS' PIZZA-STUFFED SHELLS

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook to al dente according to the package instructions. Drain the pasta and rinse under cold water; set aside.
• Meanwhile, combine the ricotta, Parmesan, parsley, egg, 1/2 cup of the mozzarella, a large pinch of salt and a few grinds of pepper in a large bowl. Fold to combine; set aside.
• Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
• Heat a 12-inch ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Add the bacon and cook, stirring occasionally, until crisp and brown, about 3 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon to a paper towel-lined plate and reserve.
• Add the sausage to the skillet and cook, breaking it up with a wooden spoon into large chunks, until brown, about 5 minutes. Remove half the sausage from the skillet with a slotted spoon to a plate and reserve.
• Add the ground beef and onion to the skillet and cook until the beef is brown and the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute more. Add the marinara sauce and season with 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper. Bring to a simmer, reduce the heat to low and continue to simmer while you stuff the shells.
• Divide the ricotta filling among the shells. Arrange the shells filling-side up in the skillet on top of the sauce. Top with the remaining mozzarella, the pepperoni and reserved sausage and bacon. Bake until the cheese is melted and the toppings are browned, 20 to 25 minutes. Sprinkle with Parmesan, oregano and red pepper flakes before serving.

NO-BOIL STUFFED SHELLS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Combine the garlic, egg, ricotta, Parmesan, 1/2 cup of the mozzarella, 2 tablespoons of the parsley, a large pinch of salt and a few grinds of pepper in a large bowl. Fold to combine. Transfer the mixture to a resealable plastic bag and snip a 1/4-inch hole in the corner.
• Spread 1/2 cup of the marinara sauce in the bottom of a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Pipe the ricotta mixture into the shells and arrange them opening-side up in the baking dish. Cover with the remaining sauce and 1 1/2 cups water.
• Cover the baking dish with foil and bake for 1 hour. Remove the foil, top with the remaining 1 1/2 cups mozzarella and bake until almost all the liquid has evaporated and the cheese is browned, about 10 minutes more. Let cool 10 minutes. Top with the remaining parsley before serving.

STUFFED SHELLS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
• Cook pasta al dente according to pasta package directions. Make sure not to over cook the pasta. Otherwise it will not be easy to fill and will fall apart. Drain and rinse with water so that pasta does not stick together.
• In large bowl, beat eggs lightly. Then add ricotta, mozzarella, spinach, butter, salt and pepper. Mix until well blended.
• Fill the shell pasta with the cheese mixture. Set aside.
• Put a thin layer of spaghetti sauce on the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish. The arrange filled shell pasta on top.
• Pour remaining spaghetti sauce on top. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese.
• Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes.
• NOTE: Consider foil lining your baking dish for easy clean up. When entertaining, assemble this dish but don't bake until just before serving. Can be made the night before.

NOT YOUR ORDINARY STUFFED SHELLS

Steps:

• Boil and drain pasta shells.
• Mix mashed potatoes, garlic salt, onion salt, dried minced onions and 4oz. of cheese.
• (You may use cold or heated mashed potatoes-I prefer heated).
• Using a small melon scoop, gourmet decorator or an Easy Accent decorator or even a small spoon, fill the shells with the potato mixture.
• Place stuffed shells in a greased 9x13 pan.
• Top shells with remaining cheese, green onions and potato topping, (I place 3 very small dabs of butter on top of the cheese before baking so they wont dry out).
• Bake at 350°F for 30-45 minutes or until ready.

STUFFED SHELLS

Steps:

• Sauce: Saute onions, pepper, and garlic in oil for 5 minutes.
• Add mushrooms and saute 5 minutes more.
• Stir in tomato puree, paste, water and spices.
• Cook and crumble sausage in a separate pan; drain off fat.
• Add to sauce and simmer about 3 hours; add more water if sauce gets too thick.
• Shortly before assemblage, cook shells according to directions; drain.
• Filling and Assembly: Combine all ingredients except Romano cheese; spoon into shells (If mixture is too thin, add more Parmesan).
• Spoon some sauce into bottom of a 9x13-inch pan.
• Lay stuffed shells in pan.
• Pour on additional sauce.
• Sprinkle with Romano.
• Bake at 325 degrees for 25-30 minutes.

STUFFED SHELLS

Steps:

• 1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Boil pasta shells 25 minutes. Drain and let cool. In a mixing bowl add the garlic, parsley, a little over half the container of ricotta and a little over half the bag of mozzarella. Mix well. In a large rectangle baking dish add a layer of sauce. Then begin to fill the shells and line them up. Do not over stuff or shells will fall apart when serving. Make sure the shell can close. Top with sauce so it completely covers the shells then sprinkle the rest of the mozzarella on top. Bake for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and let stand for 10 minutes before serving.