Lip Smackin Stuffed Shells Recipes

CHEESY BRUSCHETTA BITES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place mini fillo shells in and bake for about 5 minutes.
• Chop tomatoes up, place in a bowl and add basil, garlic, balsamic vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper to taste- stir together and set aside.
• Grab a plastic baggie and a cup or a bowl. Fit the baggie in to the cup so that you can scoop the garlic and herb cheese into it. Fold up like you would a pastry bag and cut the tip off. This makes it easy and quick to get the cheese into shells.
• Evenly pipe a small amount of cheese into each shell.
• Top cheese with a small scoop of bruschetta. Garnish with fresh basil.
• Optional, but delicious if you have the time: Place Cheesy Bruschetta Bites back into a 350 degree oven for 5 minutes just before serving.

LIP-SMACKIN' STUFFED SHELLS

Steps:

• Rinse pasta with cold water drain and set aside. Combine the next 7 ingredients together mix well and set aside. Spread 1/4 cup spaghetti sauce evenly over the bottom of a 13" x 9" baking pan. Spoon cheese mixture into shells place stuffed-side up on top of the spaghetti sauce. Pour remaining sauce over the shells sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.TIP: Cook and chill noodles for filled pasta dishes. It'll be so much easier to fill shells and recipes will have one less step. From "Meals in Minutes." Copyright Gooseberry Patch. Used with permission of the publisher, Gooseberry Patch. All Rights Reserved.

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.