Ricotta Spinach Stuffed Peppers Food

VEGETARIAN STUFFED PEPPERS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 F.
• Add cherry tomatoes, 1/2 tablespoon olive oil, salt, and pepper to a 9 x 11 inch oven safe baking dish. Toss them in the pan to combine. Place peppers in the pan and bake for 10 minutes.*
• While the tomatoes and peppers are cooking, heat 1 tbsp of olive oil over medium-high heat and sauté spinach, garlic, and onions until spinach has wilted. Drain the spinach well (I like to use a fine mesh strainer) and set aside in a mixing bowl.
• Add ricotta, red pepper flakes, egg, basil, and lemon zest to the mixing bowl with the spinach and mix until fully combined.
• Remove the peppers from the oven and stuff with the spinach and ricotta mixture. Top each pepper with about half a tablespoon of shredded parmesan cheese.
• Place the stuffed peppers in the oven and bake for about 5 minutes, just until the cheese on top has melted and the peppers are warm all the way through. Don't bake them too long or they will become watery inside!

SPINACH & RICOTTA STUFFED PEPPERS

Steps:

• 1. Preheat oven to 425.
• 2. In a small skillet, add the spinach with 1/4 cup water and cover. Cook on medium-high heat until spinach has wilted. Drain well and squeeze to remove any excess water. Set aside.
• 3. While the spinach is wilting, slice peppers into quarters, discarding seeds and carefully removing any membrane with a sharp knife. Place cut side up on baking sheet.
• 4. Combine the ricotta and Parmesan cheeses in a medium sized bowl. Add the onion, garlic and spinach. Combine well. If you opted for the bacon, add it to the cheese mixture and combine.
• 5. Stuff peppers with cheese mixture and bake for approximately 25 minutes.

SPINACH-RICOTTA STUFFED SHELLS

Steps:

• Make the sauce: Heat the olive oil in a large wide pot over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and cook until golden brown, about 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes, oregano, red pepper flakes, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook, stirring, until thickened, 15 to 20 minutes; season with salt. (You should have about 4 heaping cups of sauce.)
• Make the stuffed shells: Preheat the oven to 375˚ F. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta shells and cook as the label directs for baking, about 9 minutes. Rinse under cold water to stop the cooking. Spread out on a baking sheet.
• Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the spinach and cook, tossing occasionally, until wilted, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove to a large plate lined with a kitchen towel. Squeeze to remove any excess liquid, then finely chop.
• Put the spinach in a large bowl and add the ricotta, mozzarella, parsley, Parmesan, lemon zest, beaten egg, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon pepper. Stir until combined.
• To assemble, spread about half of the sauce in the bottom of a 10-by-14-inch baking dish. Evenly fill the shells with the spinach-ricotta mixture using a spoon, or pipe it in using a pastry bag. Arrange the shells side by side, open-side up, in the baking dish on top of the sauce, then top with the remaining sauce.
• Cover the dish with foil and bake until heated through and the sauce is simmering around the edges, about 30 minutes. Remove the foil and bake until any shells or cheese poking through the sauce are lightly browned in spots, about 10 more minutes. Let sit 10 minutes. Top with more Parmesan and red pepper flakes.

SPINACH AND RICOTTA STUFFED PEPPERS

Steps:

• Chop red bell peppers in halves and remove their seeds. Place them upside down in an oven-safe tray and bake them for 10 minutes at 375°F. Then turn them and bake them for another 5-10 minutes or until peppers are fork tender.
• In the meantime, chop onion and garlic into small pieces. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add chopped onion, salt and garlic and sauté until onion is translucent. Then add ground black pepper and freshly ground nutmeg.
• Add fresh spinach and stir for 1 to 2 minutes until spinach is evenly cooked.
• Remove the skillet from the stove and add the ricotta cheese and 1 ½ cups of shredded mozzarella cheese.
• Once the red bell peppers are fork tender (they should be tender but still keeping their shape), remove them from the oven. Fill red bell peppers with the spinach and ricotta mixture and top them with the remaining shredded mozzarella cheese.
• Place them in the oven for 8-10 minutes for the cheese to melt.
• Serve hot.