Spinach, Parmesan & Ricotta Stuffed Shells with Tomato Meat Sauce

November 18, 2013

Spinach, Parmesan & Ricotta Stuffed Shells with Tomato Meat Sauce

When I decided to start a food blog, I wanted to spotlight various foods that make us feel great and comforts us. Whether its fried chicken, macaroni & cheese or this stuffed shells recipe, food is a great way to cure homesickness, a bad day at work or a rainy day. This recipe is a great recipe during the week when time is very limited. It is also good for Sunday dinner or for entertaining friends. I hope that you enjoy the recipe as much as me and my family did!

Spinach, Parmesan & Ricotta Stuffed Shells

with Tomato Meat Sauce

Prep Time: 20-25 minutes Cook Time: 1 hour

Difficulty: Moderate Yields: 4 to 6 servings

Ingredients:

1/2 (12 oz.) box Jumbo Shells (I used Barilla)

1 1/2 cup whole milk ricotta cheese

1 (10 oz.) box frozen chopped spinach, thawed & drained

1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

3 tablespoons Italian parsley, chopped

1 egg, beaten

1/4 sour cream

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 large yellow onion, diced

1 (7 oz.) can mushrooms (pieces & stems)

1/8 teaspoon crushed pepper flakes

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 pound ground beef (80/20 mix)

2 links of Italian sausage, cases removed

3 tablespoons tomato paste

1 (29 oz.) can tomato sauce

1 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon onion powder

1 teaspoon Italian seasoning

2 tablespoons Italian parsley, chopped

2 tablespoons basil, julienned

1 1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt

1 teaspoon pepper

1 (8 oz.) package of shredded Mozzarella cheese

Preparation Instructions:

Preheat oven to 400°F.

In a large pot of salted, boiling water, cook shells for 9-10 minutes. (DO NOT OVERCOOK OR COOK TO THE NORMAL AL DENTE STAGE.) Drain shells and cool on a sheet pan in a single layer. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine the ricotta, spinach, parmesan, egg, sour cream and parsley until well mixed. Taste mixture and season with salt and pepper to your desired taste. Set aside.

In a heavy bottomed (3-inch deep) pan, bring butter and olive oil to temperature over medium high heat. Add onions, pepper flakes and mushrooms to the pan and sauté for about 10 minutes. Add garlic to the pan and cook for an additional minute. Add the ground beef and Italian sausage to pan making sure to break up the meat with a wooden spoon. Cook meat until it is no longer pink. Stir tomato paste into meat mixture and cook four two minutes. Add tomato sauce, garlic powder, onion powder, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper. Cook for about 15 minutes and then stir in parsley and basil.

Ladle about 1/4 of the tomato meat sauce in the bottom of a 9x12x2 pan. Set aside.

Fill about 1 tablespoon of the ricotta/spinach mixture into the cooled jumbo shells. Place each filled shell in the pan (filled side up). Ladle additional sauce over the filled shells and top with the mozzarella cheese.

Bake covered with aluminum foil at 400°F for 25 minutes. Remove the foil and continue baking until the top begins to brown and the sauce begins the bubble, another 10-15 minutes. Serve warm.