Skinnier Stuffed Shells Food

SKINNIER STUFFED SHELLS RECIPE

Steps:

• Move oven rack to upper-middle position and preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

SPINACH RICOTTA STUFFED SHELLS WITH MEAT SAUCE

Steps:

• Boil water and cook shells according to package directions, make sure to make them al dente.
• Meanwhile, saute onions and garlic in oil.
• Add turkey and salt and brown until cooked, breaking up in small pieces.
• Add tomatoes, salt, pepper and basil, then simmer on low, covered, about 15 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 375°.
• In a large bowl, mix together ricotta, egg, spinach, mozzarella, and parmesan.
• Once shells are cooked and cool, fill each shell with (about 2 heaping tbsp) cheese mixture and place on a large baking dish, or two smaller dishes, covering the bottom of the dish with a little sauce.
• Top shells with half of the sauce, cover with foil and bake 40 minutes; uncover foil and bake 5 more minutes.
• Serve with additional sauce on top.

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.

THE BEST STUFFED SHELLS

Steps:

• For the marinara sauce: Heat the oil in a medium heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat. Add the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until very soft, 8 to 10 minutes. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes, if using, and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the garlic has softened but not browned, about 3 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste and cook for 2 minutes. Add the crushed tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat, add the basil and dried oregano, partially cover and simmer gently, stirring occasionally, until the sauce is thickened, about 45 minutes.
• Remove the basil sprig. If the sauce is still too chunky, mash the larger chunks of tomato with a potato masher. Season with salt and pepper. Let cool.
• For the shells and filling: Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the dried pasta shells cook, stirring occasionally, until softened slightly but not cooked. (The pasta shells should flexible enough to be filled but remain very al dente; they will continue to cook during baking.) Drain, then run under cold water to stop cooking. Drain well again.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Mix together the ricotta, mozzarella, Parmigiano-Reggiano, parsley and egg in a large bowl until well combined and uniform. Season liberally with salt and pepper. Transfer the filling to a large disposable pastry bag or large resealable plastic bag (or use a spoon for filling directly from the bowl).
• Spread 2 1/2 cups of the marinara sauce in a 13-by-9-inch baking dish. Snip off the end of the pastry bag and squeeze the filling into the shells one at a time. Arrange the shells open-side up in a tight single layer in the baking dish as you fill them. Top with the remaining marinara sauce. Cover the pan tightly with foil and bake the shells until the sauce is bubbling throughout and the filling is heated through, about 35 minutes.
• Remove the foil from the pan and continue to bake for 10 more minutes to reduce the sauce. Let cool slightly before serving. Top with grated Parmigiano-Reggiano.

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.

STUFFED SHELLS III

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain.
• In a large bowl, mix eggs, ricotta, half the mozzarella, half the Parmesan, parsley, salt and pepper until well combined. Stuff cooked shells with ricotta mixture and place in a 9x13 inch baking dish.
• In a medium bowl, stir together pasta sauce, mushrooms and reserved mozzarella and Parmesan. Pour over stuffed shells.
• Bake in preheated oven 45 to 60 minutes, until edges are bubbly and shells are slightly set.

SKINNY SAUSAGE-STUFFED SHELLS

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F. Spray 13x9-inch (3-quart) glass baking dish with cooking spray. Cook and drain pasta as directed on package, omitting salt.
• In 10-inch nonstick skillet, crumble sausage. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until no longer pink; drain.
• In medium bowl, stir ricotta cheese, 1 cup of the Italian cheese blend, the spinach and basil until well mixed. Stir in carrots and sausage.
• Spread about 1/2 cup of the pasta sauce over bottom of baking dish. Spoon about 3 tablespoonfuls sausage mixture into each pasta shell. Arrange shells, filled sides up, on sauce in baking dish. Pour remaining pasta sauce over stuffed shells. Spray 15-inch piece of foil with cooking spray; cover shells with foil.
• Bake 40 minutes. Uncover; sprinkle with remaining 1 cup Italian cheese blend. Bake uncovered 5 to 10 minutes longer or until cheese is melted.