Healthy Stuffed Shells Recipes

STUFFED SHELLS III

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain.
• In a large bowl, mix eggs, ricotta, half the mozzarella, half the Parmesan, parsley, salt and pepper until well combined. Stuff cooked shells with ricotta mixture and place in a 9x13 inch baking dish.
• In a medium bowl, stir together pasta sauce, mushrooms and reserved mozzarella and Parmesan. Pour over stuffed shells.
• Bake in preheated oven 45 to 60 minutes, until edges are bubbly and shells are slightly set.

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.

HEALTHY STUFFED SHELLS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
• Prepare pasta according to package directions but reduce cooking time by a few minutes; drain.
• In a large skillet over medium high heat, heat oil and then add mushrooms; cover and cook, stirring for 5 minutes. Stir in tomatoes and artichokes. Cover and simmer another 3-5 minutes. Remove from heat.
• In a large bowl combine remaining ingredients, except for the mozzarella.
• Fill shells with mixture and divide among 8 individual baking dishes coated with Pam. Spoon sauce over each portion. Cover with foil and bake for 20-25 minutes.
• Sprinkle with cheese and bake uncovered for 10 minutes or until bubbly.

EASY BEEF-STUFFED SHELLS

Steps:

• Cook pasta shells according to package directions to al dente; drain and rinse in cold water. In a large skillet, cook beef and onion over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain. In a large bowl, combine the ricotta cheese, 1-1/2 cups Italian cheese blend, Parmesan cheese, pesto, egg and half of the beef mixture., Spread 3/4 cup spaghetti sauce into a greased 13x9-in. baking dish. Spoon cheese mixture into pasta shells; place in baking dish. Combine remaining beef mixture and spaghetti sauce; pour over shells. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Cover and refrigerate overnight., Remove from the refrigerator 30 minutes before baking. Preheat oven to 350°. Cover and bake for 40 minutes. Uncover; bake until cheese is melted, 5-10 minutes longer.