Stuffed Shells Two Ways With Sauce 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.

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 WITH ARRABBIATA SAUCE

Steps:

• Lightly oil a 12 by 9 by 2-inch baking dish and set aside. Lightly oil the baking sheet and set aside.
• Partially cook the pasta shells in a large pot of boiling salted water until slightly tender but still quite firm to the bite, about 4 to 6 minutes. You will continue cooking the shells in the oven after they have been stuffed. Using a slotted spoon, drain pasta shells and place on oiled baking sheet, spreading them out so that they don't stick together and allow to cool.
• Heat the oil in a heavy medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the pancetta and saute until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Add the red pepper flakes. Add the garlic and saute until tender, about 1 minute. Add the marinara sauce. Bring the sauce to a simmer, stirring often.
• In a medium bowl, stir the ricotta, Parmesan, egg yolks, basil, parsley, mint, salt, and pepper. Set aside.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Spoon 1 1/4 cups of the sauce over the prepared baking dish. Fill the cooked shells with the cheese mixture, about 2 tablespoons per shell. Arrange the shells in the prepared dish. Spoon the remaining sauce over the shells, then sprinkle with the mozzarella.
• Bake in the lower third of your oven until the filling is heated through and the top is golden brown, about 25 to 30 minutes.

STUFFED SHELLS, TWO WAYS WITH SAUCE!

Steps:

• For the sauce: mince onion, sautee' in olive oil with dried Italian seasoning till soft, add the crushed tomatoes and the whole tomatoes breaking the whole tomatoes up with your hands into the pot (it's fun, try it!). Add sugar salt and pepper. Simmer 15 minutes or so on low heat, add chopped basil, stir and take off the heat. Set aside.
• Get a large pot of salted water to a boil, cook the shells till aldente (less if you're freezing them) drain and run cold water over. Keep in a bowl or pot of cold water till time to use.
• For the ricotta filling: to a bowl add all the ingredients, stir and taste for seasoning, adjust for salt/pepper if needed.
• For the meat filling: brown ground beef in a medium hot high sided pan (till there's no more pink) drain fat add onion and garlic. Cook till the onion is translucent. Stir in spinach and cook till wilted down. (you may have to drain again).
• Allow to cool completely and then stir in one egg, bread crumbs and cheese.
• Stuff: to easily stuff with the ricotta cheese, pile it into a zip lock bag and snip a corner off, cup a shell in one hand and squeeze the cheese into the shell with the other.
• Stuff: spoon the meat mixture into the other half of the shells, cup a shell in one hand and spoon the meat into the shell with the other hand. Pat down top to kind of pack the meat in a little.
• Freeze: place the stuffed shells on parchment or paper lined cookie sheets in the freezer and allow to freeze till completely hardened. Then you can place them in zip lock bags to use later.
• Cook: in a large lasagna sized pan, spoon some of the tomato sauce on the bottom and add about ¼ cup of water. place the shells in one layer on top of the sauce, and spoon more sauce on top. Cover tightly with foil and bake about 15 - 20 minutes at 375* take the foil off and top with remaining shredded mozzarella cheese and return to oven for about another 10 minutes.
• Allow to cool about 10 minutes before serving.

STUFFED SHELLS

Steps:

• Make the sauce: In a large Dutch oven or pot, heat the olive oil over medium. Add the onion and a pinch of salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the garlic and tomato paste and cook, stirring frequently, until the paste turns one shade darker, about 2 minutes. Stir in the tomato purée, season with salt, then bring to a simmer. Cover halfway to reduce splattering, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the sauce has thickened slightly, 20 to 30 minutes.
• Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
• Make the filling: In a medium bowl, combine the ricotta with 1 1/2 cups mozzarella, 1 cup Parmesan and the egg yolks. Grate the garlic directly into the bowl, then season with 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Stir to combine, then set aside.
• Add the shells to the boiling water and cook until just shy of al dente. (You'll want to cook the shells about 2 minutes less than the minimum time listed on the package, as the shells will continue to cook in the oven in Step 5.) Reserve 1/2 cup pasta water, then drain the pasta and rinse it under cold water to cool. Count out 24 shells. (You will have cooked off more shells than will fit in the dish; that's insurance in case any rip. Reserve extras for another use.)
• Stir the pasta water into the sauce, then add half the sauce to a 3-quart/9-by-13-inch baking dish and spread it in an even layer. Spoon about 2 tablespoons filling into each of the 24 shells, lining up the stuffed shells in the dish as you go. Spoon the remaining sauce over the shells, then sprinkle with the remaining 1 cup mozzarella and 1 cup Parmesan.
• Cover the dish tightly with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and bake, uncovered, until the cheese is melted and the sauce is bubbling, 15 to 20 minutes. (If you'd like to brown the cheese, you can broil for a few minutes.) Let sit 5 minutes, then serve.

STUFFED SHELLS TWO WAYS WITH TOMATO ROSE SAUCE

Steps:

• Make the Ricotta Filling: In a bowl, whisk together the cheeses and the egg until well combined. Set aside.
• Heat the olive oil in a medium skillet over medium to medium-high heat. Saute the onion, garlic, carrot, celery and parsley for 2-3 minutes.
• Stir in the ground beef and cook, stirring occasionally, until meat is cooked through (about 7-8 minutes).
• Add the chopped spinach to meat and cook for an additional minute (you can reserve about 4 tablespoons of spinach for the topping).
• Remove from heat and add the shredded cheese; season to taste with salt and pepper.
• Make the Rosé Sauce: Stir together the marinara sauce with the cream and red wine.
• Spread about 1 cup of the rosé sauce evenly in the bottom of a 13x9-inch baking dish.
• Use a teaspoon to fill half the pasta shells with the Ricotta Filling; fill the remaining pasta shells with the Meat and Spinach Filling.
• Arrange filled shells in a single layer in the prepared baking dish.
• Pour rosé sauce over the pasta shells and top with grated Parmesan cheese (and the reserved spinach, if desired).
• Cover with aluminum foil and bake in a 350 degree F oven for 35 minutes.

STUFFED SHELLS FOR TWO

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350F Have a small casserole dish ready.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the shells for 10 minutes. Drain and let cool.
• In a large bowl, mix together the ricotta, 1 cup mozzarella, parmesan, salt, basil, and the egg.
• Spread 1/4 cup sauce on the bottom of the casserole dish. Stuff each shell with a small amount of the ricotta cheese mixture and place closely together in the dish. Top with remaining sauce and mozzarella cheese. Cover with foil and bake for 20 - 25 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for another 5 -10 minutes or until the cheese is melted on top.

STUFFED SHELLS WITH MEAT SAUCE

Steps:

• Cook pasta shells according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a skillet, cook the beef, onion and garlic over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain. Stir in the tomato sauce, tomatoes, 1/2 teaspoon oregano and basil. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 10-15 minutes., In a large bowl, combine the eggs, cottage cheese, spinach, mozzarella cheese, Parmesan cheese, seasoned salt and remaining oregano. Drain pasta shells; cool slightly. Stuff with cheese mixture., Spread 1 cup of meat sauce into each of 2 greased 11x7-in. baking dishes; arrange shells over sauce in a single layer. Pour remaining meat sauce over the shells. Cover and bake at 350° for 40-50 minutes or until a thermometer reads 160°.