Last night, I made one of my and my husband's favorite Italian meals...stuffed shells! Almost every time I make them, I post pictures on Facebook. My FB friends go crazy over how yummy they look! So, I decided to share the recipe in a public forum.
Momma Mia Stuffed Shells
By Angela Bailey
Ingredients Needed:
Jumbo Pasta Shells
1 Jar (1 lb, 8 oz) of Spaghetti Sauce
Mozzarella Cheese (I used Kraft's part skim.)
Parmesan Cheese
10 oz of Frozen Spinach (thawed/drained)
8 oz Ricotta Cheese
Cooking Spray
Water
Optional Ingredients:
Salt
Pepper
Optional Ingredients:
Salt
Pepper
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Fill a large pot 3/4 of the way full with water.
3. Add a couple dashes of salt to the water.
4. Boil the water.
5. While the water is boiling, spray a 9x13 baking dish with cooking spray.
6. Pour half of the spaghetti sauce into the bottom of the 9x13 baking dish and spread evenly.
7. Add pasta shells to the boiling water. (Don't use the whole box. Only approx. 16-18 shells will actually be made. However, throw in a few extras in case a couple break.)
8. Cook shells until al dente.
9. While shells are cooking, in a medium mixing bowl, mix ricotta, spinach, and 1/4 cup parmesan cheese until all ingredients are thoroughly mixed. (Optional: Add a little salt and pepper.)
10. Drain shells in a colander when done cooking.
11. Rinse shells with cold water until they are cool to the touch.
12. Using a heaping tablespoon of spinach/ricotta mixture, fill shells and place in the 9x13 baking dish, opening facing up.
13. Pour the remainder of the spaghetti sauce over the shells.
14. Sprinkle mozzarella cheese generously over sauce and shells. (I used two handfuls.)
15. Sprinkle parmesan cheese lightly over mozzarella.
16. Cover with tinfoil and put into the oven.
17. Cook for 20 minutes or until cheese is melted.
18 Enjoy!
This dish is very filling and super yummy! Vance and I are only able to eat about 4 shells each and we are stuffed! That just means there are leftovers! MMMM! I can't wait for lunch!
~A
This is one of our favorites, too - which reminds me, I haven't made them in a while!
ReplyDeleteHey am I Momma Mia? One thing I might add is sometimes I add one egg to the ricotta cheese mixture to help everything stick together. But that's just my preference. I may have to make these very soon too! Delicious!
ReplyDeleteActually, Mommy, you are not Momma Mia. This isn't your recipe. It's something I put together. I don't use an egg because that's added calories, plus everything sticks together really well just as it is as long as you drain the spinach really well first!
ReplyDeleteAnd please don't forget to thaw the spinach before prep time! :-)
ReplyDeleteThanks, Love. I meant to put (thawed/drained). I corrected it.
ReplyDeleteThis is how much I know about my husband ladies and gents...I didn't know he had an old blogger account.
;-)
So I am making this tomorrow night...only thing is I will have to roll them up in lasagna noodles because Food Lion only had medium shells....who doesn't have jumbo shells?!?!
ReplyDeleteI excited about making them! :)
@ Samantha--What is WRONG with FL??? Jumbo shells are the only way to go! P.S. When I bought jumbo shells at Harrise Teeter, they only had them in ONE brand...the most expensive. I now buy them at Wal-Mart and get the great value brand.
ReplyDeleteLet me know how it goes with the lasagna noodles! They're a bit thicker and a different consistency, but since it's pasta, it SHOULD work ok!
My mouth is seriously watering...jez!! YUM!! :)
ReplyDeleteThank you for linking this DELICIOUS recipe up to Tasty Tuesday!! ox
<3-Cami from First Day of My Life