Quick And Easy Unstuffed Pasta Shells Reduced Fat Food

ITALIAN UNSTUFFED SHELLS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Bring a medium pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook until al dente according to the package directions. Drain and set aside.
• Add the tomatoes to a large bowl and use your hands to crush them into chunky pieces; set aside.
• In a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat, add the oil. Add the sausage and brown in large chunks until no pink remains, 5 to 8 minutes. Set aside on a paper towel-lined plate. Wipe out the fat from the skillet, leaving about 1 tablespoon behind. Add about a third of the tomatoes to the skillet and stir to pick up any remaining browned bits. Set aside.
• In another large bowl, add the spinach, ricotta, Parmesan, shredded mozzarella, egg, garlic, nutmeg and 1 teaspoon each salt and pepper. Mix to combine. Add the cooked pasta and sausage and gently mix.
• Add the pasta and sausage mixture to the skillet. Top with the remaining tomatoes and then the sliced mozzarella. Bake, uncovered, until heated through and the cheese is bubbling, 20 to 25 minutes. Garnish with torn basil before serving.

QUICK AND EASY UNSTUFFED PASTA SHELLS (REDUCED FAT)

Steps:

• Boil pasta according to packet instructions. Mine usually takes about 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile heat the oil in a pan and then fry the onions for about 3 minutes until they are just starting to soften.
• Add the ground beef and brown for about another 3 minutes until just about all of the pink is gone.
• Add the mushrooms and continue to cook until the beef has totally browned.
• Add the soup, garlic powder, basil, black pepper and parsley and stir to coat the meat mixture.
• Add the skim milk and cook over a low heat for about 3 minutes, stirring when needed, until the mixture has started to bubble and bit and thicken up.
• Stir in the peas and just heat through.
• By now the pasta should have finished cooking. Drain it and stir the cooked pasta and mix in with the sauce until all of the pasta is coated.
• Add in the shredded cheese and stir through until the cheese has melted.
• Serve.

SPICY UNSTUFFED PASTA SHELLS WITH ROASTED GARLIC AND CHèVRE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375°F.
• Fill a large pot with 4 quarts water and add the salt. Bring to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook for 8 minutes; it will be underdone. Reserve ¾ cup of the liquid and drain the pasta.
• Meanwhile, in a large ovenproof skillet, combine the marinara, roasted garlic, 1 ounce of the chèvre, and the red pepper flakes. Cook over medium heat, stirring often, until the cheese is fully incorporated, about 2 minutes.
• Add the pasta to the skillet along with the reserved cooking liquid. Cook over medium heat, stirring to combine, about 2 minutes. Dollop the remaining 3 ounces chèvre all over.
• Bake for 15 minutes. Turn on the broiler and cook until the cheese is brown and bubbly, about 2 more minutes.
• Top with the parsley and more red pepper flakes. Serve warm.

SIMPLE STUFFED SHELLS (WITH NO MEAT OPTION)

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 F and grease a 9x13" casserole; if you have not already done so, prepare pasta shells according to package directions and also brown your sausage, drain & crumble.
• Meanwhile, combine 1/2 cup of the mozzarella cheese, all of the ricotta (use 2 cups if not using meat or if you like it very cheesey, even if you are using meat, otherwise use just 1 cup), as well as the parsley (reserving a small amount to garnish), egg, Parmesan cheese, garlic, nutmeg and black pepper.
• Pour sauce into the baking dish and then set the unfilled shells on top facing up so that you can fill them.
• Evenly portion out the crumbled sausage, if using, in the bottom of each shell.
• Spoon filling to a large ziptop plastic bag and snip off one corner.
• Pipe about 2 Tbsp filling into the each of the prepared pasta shells, or as much or as little as you prefer.
• Cover with foil and bake for 30-35 minutes or until sauce is bubbling under the foil.
• Remove foil, sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese and bake, uncovered, for about 5 minutes or until the cheese melts.
• Serve extra sauce from the pan on the side.

MAKE-AHEAD UNSTUFFED SHELLS

Steps:

• Cook pasta as directed on package, omitting salt. Meanwhile, brown meat in large skillet; Drain. Stir in pasta sauce; simmer on medium heat 2 min. Remove from heat.
• Drain pasta. Mix cream cheese spread, basil, Parmesan, milk and Italian seasoning in large bowl until blended; stir in pasta. Spread half the meat sauce onto bottom of 13x9-inch baking dish sprayed with cooking spray; cover with layers of pasta mixture and remaining meat sauce. Sprinkle with mozzarella; cover with Reynolds Wrap® Aluminum Foil. Refrigerate up to 24 hours.
• Heat oven to 375ºF. Bake casserole, covered, 40 to 45 min. or until heated through, uncovering after 30 min.