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Pasta: Stuffed Shells




Source of Recipe


unknown


List of Ingredients




4 cups Mozzarella Cheese
16 ounces Ricotta Cheese
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
6 Tablespoons fresh basil (or 2 T dried... but go with fresh if you can)
1 box manicotti or large shell pasta
26 ounces prepared spaghetti sauce



Recipe



Prepare the pasta according to package instructions, rinse in cold water.

Mix the 3 cups Mozzarella cheese, all the ricotta cheese and the basil. (My grocery store only had 12 ounces containers of Ricotta so I used that plus about 4 ounces of cottage cheese).

The instructions said to use a spoon to fill the pasta, but I "cheated" and poured the cheese mixture into a large ziplock baggie and cut off a corner and just squeezed it into the shells, very easy and not messy.

Spray a 9x12 baking dish with non-stick spray. Pour about 2/3 of the spaghetti sauce in the bottom of the dish. Place the stuffed shells on top of the sauce. Pour the remaining sauce over the shells. Top with 1 cup of Mozzarella cheese.

Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes (I did that, next time I think I'll go 30 minutes), then remove from oven, sprinkle Parmesan Cheese on top and return to oven for an additional 15 minutes.

Freezing Instruction:

Prepare the shells or manicotti noodles according to package directions, and then fill with the cheese mixture. Place on a cookie sheet and freeze. Remove and store stuffed pasta in ziplock baggies.

Cooking Day: 1. Pan method: Spray baking dish with non-stick spray. Pour spaghetti sauce on the bottom of dish. Place frozen (or thawed) stuffed shells on top of the sauce. Pour more sauce over the shells. Top with Mozzarella cheese. Bake for 30 to 45 minutes, until shells are heated through and sauce is bubbly. Remove from oven, sprinkle with parmesan cheese, and return to oven for an additional 15 minutes.

2. Crock pot method: Spray crock pot with non-stick spray. Pour some spaghetti sauce on the bottom of crock pot. Place stuffed noodles (either thawed or frozen) on top of sauce, pour more sauce on top and top with Mozzarella cheese. Cook on high for about 4-5 hours, low for 6-8 hours. Sprinkle Parmesan cheese on top and cover long enough to melt.

Time Saving Tip:

Use manicotti shells and stuff without cooking. Freeze. On cooking day, add about 1 cup water to the spaghetti sauce and 5-10 minutes to the cooking time.