Today I offer you.......STUFFED SHELLS!!!
Which are oh..so..yummy. And really easy if you have a little time to spare. Completely worth the time!
I would tell you where I got this recipe but I honestly cannot remember, so I apologize.
What you need:
9X13 clear baking dish (I use 2 dishes)
1 box jumbo pasta shells
15 oz Ricotta cheese (if you get the small container, it is exactly 15 oz)
3 cups mozzarella cheese (separate out 1/2 cup for later)
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 tsp Italian seasoning
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1-2 lb ground beef (up to you)
1 jar pasta sauce (whatever kind your heart desires)
1/2 cup water
Now, what you'll see below is the recipe above, except with 2 different kinds of pasta sauce because I'm a nut and don't like the same kind Wesley does. So I split up the meat in half and use 1/2 a jar of each of the pasta sauces but everything else is the same.
When you make it, you will probably also need 2 pans unless you want to squeeze a bunch of shells into the pan like sardines. I like spreading them out, but you cant do it however you please!
What you need to do:
Preheat your oven to 350
Cook beef and add pasta sauce and 1/2 cup of water to it. Let it simmer for 10 minutes
In a big pot, bring water to a boil and add in the pasta shells. I use about 3/4 of a box for mine, because I like to really stuff the dickens out of them. Cook for 15 minutes.
In a mixing bowl, combine the ricotta, the 2.5 cups mozzarella, Parmesan, eggs, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper. Stir it all up really well. This is better done by hand than a mixer, but you can do whatever is easier for you.
Now, pour some of the meat/pasta sauce combo into the bottom of the pan. Maybe 1/3 or so of what you have just so it covers the bottom. Do this before you start stuffing shells!
By this time your pasta shells should be done, so drain them. The tricky part here is that you want to fill them while they're still hot and pliable, but you don't want to burn yourself. SO after you drain them give it about a minute, and then start filling them. I usually bring that baking dish (the one that now has the meat sauce in it now) over to the sink area so I can grab, stuff and place without really moving.
Get a spoon and scoop some of that ricotta heaven mixture out and fill up the shells. After you stuff some of the yummy goodness in. close the shell a bit and place it in the baking dish.
I can usually get about 14-16 shells in each baking dish.
Once you're done place all the shells, grab the rest of that meat sauce and pour it all over the top of the shells.
Then take that 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese you set aside (or in my case, because I love cheese, a full cup) and sprinkle it all over the top of the meat sauce.
Bake at 350, covered with tin foil for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and make for another 10 minutes.
Pull out of the oven and serve.
And as always, if you have a great recipe you'd like to send me to try out and post let me know in the comments and I will absolutely do it, and give you credit!
Happy eating!
