Unique Stuffed Shells And Tomato Sauce Food

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.

"UNIQUE" STUFFED SHELLS AND TOMATO SAUCE

Steps:

• For the Sauce: Heat a large frying pan with the olive oil; add the chopped onion, carrot and garlic. Sauté until the onion is softened and the garlic is fragrant. Add the crushed tomato, wine, chicken broth, basil and the seasonings. Simmer on low; partially covered while preparing the shells. For the Shells: Prepare the shells as directed. Filling: Preheat Oven 350 degrees: In a food processor combine the cottage cheese, sour cream, parsley, garlic, grated cheese, orange zest and seasonings in the food processor. Give a few good chops. Carefully, take the shells and fill them with teaspoon. Place a ladle of the tomato sauce in a baking pan and place the filled shells in the pan. Top with more tomato sauce and the shredded cheese. Bake 25 - 30 minutes. Serve with extra grated cheese and tomato sauce.

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

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.

SAUSAGE & CHEESE STUFFED SHELLS WITH TOMATO MUSHROOM SAUCE

Steps:

• Tomato Mushroom Sauce:.
• In a frying pan or Dutch oven, cook bacon strips until crisp.
• Remove cooked bacon, and drain on paper towels.
• Reserve 3 Tablespoons bacon fat and discard the rest.
• Using the same frying pan (or Dutch oven), place 3 Tablespoons bacon drippings, mushrooms and garlic into the pan.
• Cook mixture over low heat until mushrooms are softened (be careful not to burn the garlic).
• Add tomatoes, basil and pepper.
• Cook uncovered over medium-high heat for about 15 minutes or until sauce boils and thickens.
• Crumble the bacon and stir it into the sauce, season with a bit of salt (to taste).
• While waiting for the pasta water to boil, start the sausage filling.
• When water is at a rolling boil, add the pasta and cook it according to package directions, until it is almost done.
• When pasta is cooked, drain it, rinse it with cold water, and drain it again.
• Stuff the shells with the sausage ricotta mixture.
• Pasta Stuffing: If necessary, remove casings from sausage, and crumble the meat.
• In a frying pan, cook crumbled sausage over medium to medium-high heat until its browned.
• Drain cooked sausage.
• In a bowl, beat egg into ricotta, stir in cooked sausage, 2 Tablespoons Parmesan cheese, salt and parsley.
• Stuff the cooked shells with the sausage cheese filling.
• Bake:.
• Place about half the sauce into a shallow 1 1/2-quart casserole dish or a 9-inch square baking dish.
• Arrange stuffed pasta in sauce lined pan.
• Spoon remaining sauce on top of the stuffed pasta.
• (At this point, the pasta may be covered with plastic wrap and refrigerated until the next day*, or baked immediately).
• Cover pan with tin foil, and bake in a preheated 350°F for 30-45 minutes, or until bubbly and heated through.
• Remove from oven, remove foil and sprinkle remaining 4 Tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese on top of the baked shells.
• *NOTE:If stuffed pasta was refrigerated overnight, remove plastic wrap from the pan and cover the pan with tin foil, bake as stated above, but baking time may be 5-15 minutes longer.

STUFFED SHELLS WITH VODKA-TOMATO CREAM SAUCE

Steps:

• Adjust an oven rack to the middle position; preheat to 400°.
• Bring 4 quarts of water to a boil in a Dutch oven over high heat.
• Stir in 1 tablespoon salt and the shells; cook, stirring occasionally, until almost al dente.
• Drain the shells and spread out on a rimmed baking sheet to cool.
• Using a dinner fork, pry apart any shells that have clung together, discarding any that are badly torn (you should have 30-33 good shells).
• Filling-mix the ricotta, mozzarella, peas, mint, egg, garlic, 3/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper together in a bowl.
• Spoon a tablespoon of the filling into each shell and arrange them, seam-side down, into a 13 x 9 inch baking dish.
• Cover the filled shells loosely with damp paper towels and set aside.
• Sauce-puree the canned tomatoes with their juice in a food processor fitted with the steel blade until smooth, about 1 minute.
• Heat the oil and garlic in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until fragrant but not browned, about 2 minutes.
• Add the pureed tomatoes, red pepper flakes, vodka, cream, and sugar; bring to a simmer and cook, stirring often, until the flavors have melded and the sauce has thickened, 10-12 minutes.
• Off the heat, season with salt and pepper to taste.
• Discard the paper towels covering the filled shells and pour the tomato sauce over the top.
• Tilt the dish to distribute the sauce evenly and make sure each shell is covered with sauce (spoon over each shell if necessary).
• Cover with foil and bake until the sauce is bubbling around the edges and the ricotta filling is hot, about 30 minutes.
• Cool for 5 minutes.
• Sprinkle with basil and Parmesan before serving.