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Spinach and Ricotta Stuffed Pasta Shells


  • Author: Meagan
  • Total Time: 30 Minutes

Description

A wonderful pasta dish adapted from a Nigella Lawson recipe.  We’d all highly recommend it – enjoy!


Ingredients

Scale

Spinach and Ricotta Stuffed Pasta Shells

4, 300 g packages of frozen chopped spinach – thawed and squeezed of water

500 g or 2 c. ricotta

3 eggs, beaten

1/2 c. grated Parmesan

~1 t. nutmeg , or to taste

salt and freshly ground pepper

fresh herbs, chopped, to taste (optional, but dill is nice!)

500 g large pasta shells

Tomato Sauce – I recommend it fresh each time, especially since it’s so quick and it’s easy to make as much as you want/need;

1 T. olive oil AND 2 cloves garlic – minced

1/2 t. salt AND 1, 680 g bottle of tomato passata (strained tomatoes)

Marcella Hazan’s is another tomato sauce we love…and there are also a few super tasty ready-made sauces – choose your weapon and don’t look back, especially if it’s a weeknight!


Instructions

When I originally made this, I based everything on the 500 g of pasta shells.  According to my notations, this turned out to be about 60 – obviously less can be made, just adjust the recipe.  Cook the shells according to directions so that they end up al dente.  Drain and leave them long enough so that you can touch them without burning your fingers.  Meanwhile, press the spinach between paper towels to make sure it gets as dry as possible, put it in a bowl with the ricotta, Parmesan and eggs.  Stir everything well, add the nutmeg,  salt and pepper – season it well!  Because this made so many, I stuffed the shells and what I didn’t use for dinner that night, I placed on a cookie sheet to freeze.  Once frozen solid, I put them in meal-size bags.

For the sauce listed above – sauté the garlic in the oil, add the passata and salt and gently bring to a boil so that the flavors blend.  Pour over your greased casserole dish full of stuffed shells, cover with more grated Parmesan and cook for about 30 minutes at 350 to 400 until heated thru.

I’m sure it would be lovely on it’s own or with a salad – we chose Winkler’s sausage on the BBQ.  Happy eating!

  • Category: Freezes Well, Make-ahead, Pasta, Spinach, Ricotta