If my pantry could talk, it would tell you that I should have been Italian. I love pasta and I love how the different shapes are named: Orzo (barley), d'angelo (angel hair), farfalle (bow tie), penne (quills), fettuccine (ribbons), linguine (little tongues), and probably my favorite, radiatore (radiators). There are more than 600 pasta shapes produced worldwide and I wish I could have every one of them in my pantry!
Tonite I took a package of conchiglie (shells) and stuffed them with a delicious mixture of cheeses: ricotta, parmesan and mozarella. Add to that a mixture of chopped spinach, shallot and garlic with your favorite sauce and you've got a meal fit for a regina (queen).
15 large pasta shells
1 jar spaghetti sauce
1 box frozen spinach
2 tsp olive oil
3T finely chopped shallot
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 eggs
15 oz. Ricotta cheese
1 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
2 cups Mozarella cheese, grated (divided use)
Boil pasta shells until al dente (to the tooth). Run under cold water and set aside. Thaw spinach and drain well. Put olive oil in pan and add shallot; cook for 3 minutes. Add garlic; cook for 1 minute. Add spinach and mix well. Remove from heat and cool. In a medium bowl, place eggs, Ricotta, Parmesan and 1 cup Mozarella. Mix until all ingredients are combined. Cover bottom of 8” square pan with half of the jar of spaghetti sauce. Stuff shells with cheese mixture and place in pan. Cover with remaining sauce. Sprinkle remaining 1 cup Mozarella on top. Bake uncovered at 350 F for 20-25 minutes.
I'm sending this recipe over to Theresa at Food Hunter's Guide who is hosting this week's Presto Pasta Nights.
Are you sure there's no Italian in your ancestry? These look amazing, I want to reach in and grab that plate!! Yummies-Nummies
ReplyDeleteThis looks wonderful! When can I come over?
ReplyDeleteI forgot to add.... your new header is beautiful! I loved your eggs too!! (the header, that is!!)
ReplyDeleteKaren, my pantry would say I am Italian too! This sounds and looks delicious!
ReplyDeleteKaren, my pantry would say I am Italian too!!! I love this dish!
ReplyDeleteI love stuffed shells. These look delicious! Spincah too, MMMM.
ReplyDeleteThose stuffed shells look good. I have been wanting to try making stuffed shells.
ReplyDeleteYou could've fooled me with the non-Italian thing, these look amazing!!! If only Montana was closer I'd be right over :) Love Italian food!!
ReplyDeleteThis sounds like my kind of dinner! Maybe I should have been Italian. :)
ReplyDeletePasta shapes are definitely fun to discover.
ReplyDeleteSpinach stuffed shells are seriously one of my favorite, favorite things because it combines two of my true loves, spinach and noodles. Need to make these again soon!
Awesome! Those look mad good. My girlfriend won't eat stuffed shells, so I don't get to have them much. Do they freeze well?
ReplyDeleteUUUuuuummmmm Karen, I wanna some!
ReplyDeleteI am not much of a foodie, I eat way too basic. But tonight we are having Spaghetti with a pork sauce and REAL Parmigiano Reggiano cheese aged 2 years. We were given a 1/2 pound hunk as a gift! WOW! was it expensive..O O I have never had real Parmesan cheese before.,., just Kraft all ready grated in the plastic container,., I hope I like this
Great Blog! HUGS!!! from Crazy Kitty
Stuffed shells are such a yummy, classic, comfort food (at least in my house growing up!). Yours look great (and I too am amused by the names of all the pastas!)
ReplyDeleteI've been thinking of stuffed shells lately. We are big Italian food lovers too!
ReplyDeletePS I love your new header too. I've loved them all tho.
ReplyDeleteThese look amazing! I love stuffed shells, they freeze really well too.
ReplyDeletePig, honkin' pasta shells like this are my favourite ways to enjoy pasta...wonderful!
ReplyDeleteMmm. I love stuffed shells. Looks really delicious.
ReplyDeleteI love using some store bought "helpers" to make my dishes easier to prepare. Thanks for sharing this one with Presto Pasta Nights. Hope to see you back often.
ReplyDeleteThose stuffed shells look fantastic!
ReplyDeleteNancy
I LOVE stuffed shells and yours look great! This is always so comforting to me. Can you bless the calories out for me?
ReplyDeletei keep meaning to try this sort of stuffed pasta shell dish but put it off as being too fiddly but i think you've persuaded me it'll be worth the effort
ReplyDeleteMaking these tonight. I'd had another recipes in mind, sans spinach, but then couldn't find. So Google brought me to you and I have a box of frozen spinach in the freezer and that sounds like a great addition. Thanks!
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