Spring and the warmer weather are officially here, but here I am still thinking about Sunday dinner. I haven’t had stuffed shells in years, but for some reason they were calling my name and begging for me to make them!
They look more complicated than they are. If you break down each step, putting them together is easy. First you make the sauce, then the filling, then the pasta. Assemble and bake!
Start with the sauce…
I love using fennel sausage here – it adds so much more flavor. You can also just add fennel seeds if your sausage is plain pork. It’s important to build each layer of flavor. You start with browning the sausage for about 8-10 minutes, and then adding sliced garlic, cooking that for a few minutes before adding the tomato paste. This is how you build a final product with layers of flavor, by taking the time to cook after each addition. I added salt, pepper and fresh basil after adding a can of San Marzano crushed tomatoes. The heavy cream will come later on, you don’t want to add it now in case it gets too hot and breaks or starts to seperate. Let the sauce come to a boil, and then reduce to low while you prepare everything else. The sauce should cook on low, covered, for at least an hour to ensure it thickens. Right before you assemble, stir in the heavy cream and taste test – add salt or pepper if needed.
Next comes the filling
In a small bowl, start with mixing the cheeses and spices. When that is mixed, you want to work on the spinach. Spinach contains A LOT of water – which will make a super watery filling, which we do not want. To make sure this doesn’t happen, you want to squeeze out and drain as much water as possible. You can do this by using a clean kitchen towel or paper towels, and squeezing the heck out of it over a bowl or the sink. Once you’ve gotten out as much water as possible, saute it with chopped garlic for about 10 minutes. Allow it to cool, and then add it to the filling.
Cook your pasta and assemble!
Since we are baking the pasta, when you cook the shells, you want to cook them a few minutes shy of what the package says. Just enough so they open slightly and are pliable, and can be easily filled. It’s easiest to make an assembly line – sauce, shells, filling, 9×13 baking dish. Spoon a ladleful of sauce on the bottom of the baking dish (I always do this with any sort of baked pasta or eggplant parm, to help it not stick). Using a spoon, start filling the shells and laying them in line in the baking dish. If you have to squish them or overlap them slightly, that’s ok! Top them with some Pecorino, mozzarella, and breadcrumbs. Then you bake them at 400 degrees covered for about 20-30 minutes, and then uncovered for about 10-15 minutes. Serve with more sauce, more cheese, and fresh basil!
Pastabilities are endless…
Stuffed shells are a great Sunday dinner, party meal, or even week-day meal. You can switch up the filling with just cheese, meat, or vegetables. The sauce can be a simple red, it can be pesto, a cream sauce …whatever you’re feeling that day!! If you make this recipe – please tag me on Instagram so I can see how you made these beauties!
Stuffed Shells with Ricotta and Spinach, with a Sausage Sauce
Equipment
- 9×13 Baking Dish
Ingredients
Sauce:
- 1 28 oz can of San Marzano crushed tomatoes
- ½ lb of Italian sausage about 3-4 sausages, removed from casings
- ¼ cup of heavy cream
- 2 tablespoons of olive oil
- 2 tablespoons of tomato paste
- 2 cloves of garlic sliced
- 3 sprigs of fresh basil chopped
- ½ box of jumbo shells 8 oz, or about 24 shells
- Salt and pepper
Filling:
- 1 10 oz package of frozen spinach thawed
- 1 cup of ricotta
- ⅓ cup shredded mozzarella plus more for topping
- ⅓ cup of Pecorino or Parmesan
- 2 cloves garlic chopped
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- Grated nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- ¼ teaspoon hot pepper flakes
- Handful of fresh parsley chopped
- ¼ cup of seasoned breadcrumbs
Instructions
- Brown the sausage over medium heat with the olive oil. Once it starts to take on color (about 8-10 minutes), add in the garlic and sauté another few minutes. Add the tomato paste and cook about 5 more minutes, lowering the heat to low if needed. Add the crushed tomatoes, pinch of salt and pepper, and the fresh basil. Let the sauce come to a boil, lower the heat to a simmer, and keep it covered while you prepare the filling and cook the pasta.
- In a small bowl, mix the ricotta, mozzarella, pecorino, parsley, dash of grated nutmeg, salt, pepper, onion powder and hot pepper, and set aside.
- Using a clean kitchen towel or paper towels, squeeze out as much water from the thawed spinach as possible. In a small pan, sauté the garlic in one tablespoon of olive oil until fragrant. Add the spinach and cook about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. After 10 minutes, take the spinach off the heat and allow to cool. Once cooled, add to your ricotta mixture and stir until it’s well combined.
- Next step is to boil your pasta. Set a pot with water over high heat. Once the water is boiling, add in a handful of salt and the pasta. Cook about 2 minutes less than the package calls for – they won’t be cooked fully, but just enough that they open and are pliable, and it’s easy to fill them.
- Pre heat the oven to 400 degrees. Once the pasta is cooked, drain and return to the pot, drizzling a little olive oil if you see them sticking together.
- Add the heavy cream to the sauce, and taste to make sure the seasoning is right. If the sauce is still too thin, let it cook a little longer.
- Once all of the ingredients are ready, create an assembly line for yourself: pasta, filling, sauce, 9×13 baking dish. Scoop a ladle full of sauce on the bottom of the baking dish. Using a spoon, start to fill the shells, laying them in a line in the baking dish, squishing them a little if you have to! You can fill these pretty well, they won’t puff up or the filling won’t spill out. Once all of your shells are filled, top with a good amount of sauce, a sprinkling of pecorino and mozzarella, and the breadcrumbs.
- Cover the baking dish tightly with aluminum foil. At this point you can pop in the fridge if you’re making them later on or the next day.
- Bake the shells in the oven, covered, for about 20 minutes, and then uncovered for about 10-15, until they get nice and crispy. Serve with the leftover sauce, more Pecorino, and a little more fresh basil!
