Baked Stuffed Shells Recipes

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.

Steps:

• Cook shells according to package directions. Place in cold water to stop cooking. Drain.
• Mix together cottage cheese, mozzarella cheese, 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, eggs, and garlic powder. Rub the dried herbs in the palms of your hands to pulverize them, and stir into the cheese mixture. Stuff mixture into the shells.
• Spread 1/3 of spaghetti sauce in the bottom of a 15 x 10 inch pan. Place shells open side up, and close together in pan. Spread remaining sauce over top, and sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese.
• Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 25 to 35 minutes, or until bubbly. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Steps:

• In an 8 quart pot, bring water to a boil and cook shells for 8 minutes or until al dente.
• Drain and cool immediately with cold water.
• Drain and place open side down on paper towels.
• In a medium bowl, combine the rest of ingredients except the spaghetti sauce.
• Reserve the 1/4 cup of Mozzarella.
• Place a thin layer of spaghetti sauce into the bottom of a 12 x 9 x 2 inch baking dish.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Spoon the cheese mixture into each pasta shell and place open side up, in a single layer, in prepared pan.
• Pour the rest of sauce over the stuffed shells.
• Loosely cover with foil and bake for 40 minutes.
• During last 5 minutes of baking, remove foil and sprinkle remaining Mozzarella cheese on top.
• Bake 5 more minutes.
• Garnish with fresh chopped basil.

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.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta shells and cook for half the cooking time on the package; make sure not to overcook. Drain and rinse in cool water. Set aside.
• In a bowl, mix together the ricotta, Romano, parsley, basil, egg, some salt and pepper and half of the Parmesan. Stir until combined.
• To assemble, coat the bottom of a baking dish with some sauce. Fill each half-cooked shell with the cheese mixture and place face-down on the sauce. Repeat with the shells until the cheese mixture is gone. Top the shells with the remaining sauce. Sprinkle on the mozzarella and extra Parmesan.
• Bake until hot and bubbly, 25 minutes. Serve with crusty French bread.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to boil for pasta. While the sauce cooks, add the shells to the boiling pasta water and cook two-thirds of the recommended cooking time-shells should still be firm. Drain and set all the shells on sheet trays, set apart so they won't stick to each other.
• For the sauce: Heat the olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Sauté the garlic until the edges are golden, about 2 minutes, then pour in the tomatoes. Slosh out the tomato cans with 1 cup hot water each, and add that to the pot. Stir in the salt, oregano, and peperoncino, and bring to a rapid simmer. Cook, uncovered, until thickened, about 20 minutes.
• For the filling: Stir together the ricotta, peas, cubed mozzarella, 1 cup of the grated Grana Padano or Parmigiano-Reggiano, the parsley, and egg in a bowl. Mix the shredded mozzarella and remaining grated Grana Padano or Parmigiano-Reggiano in a bowl, and set aside.
• Spread 2 cups of the sauce in a 15-by-10-inch Pyrex or ceramic baking dish. Stuff each shell with a tablespoon of the stuffing, and arrange in the baking dish. Divide any remaining stuffing between and around the stuffed shells. Top evenly with 2 cups more sauce, and sprinkle with the reserved grated-cheese mixture. Dollop the remaining sauce evenly over the top. Make a tent with foil over the baking dish. Bake, and after 25 minutes, check: the sauce should be bubbly all over. Remove foil, and bake until golden and crusty, 5 to 10 minutes more.

Steps:

• In large skillet, brown ground beef and onion, cooking until onion is tender.
• Add garlic, tomatoes, tomato sauce and seasonings.
• Stir well and bring to a boil.
• Simmer 15 minutes.
• Combine cottage cheese, bread crumbs, 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, parsley and egg.
• Spoon cheese mixture into shells.
• Arrange shells cheese side up in 13x9" baking dish.
• Pour tomato sauce over shells.
• Cover with foil and bake at 375 deg for 30 min.
• Remove cover; sprinkle with remaining Parmesan cheese.
• Continue bake 15 min.
• longer.

Steps:

• Place the ricotta in a cheesecloth-lined sieve and set the sieve over a bowl. Cover the ricotta with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours or up to one day. Discard the liquid in the bowl.
• Pass the tomatoes through a food mill fitted with the fine disc. (If you don't have a food mill, seed the tomatoes and place them in a food processor. Process the tomatoes, using quick on/off pulses, until they are finely ground. Don't overprocess, or you'll incorporate air into the tomatoes and change their texture and color.) Meanwhile, bring 6 quarts of salted water to a boil in an 8-quart pot over high heat.
• Slice half the mozzarella thin and cut the remaining half into 1/4-inch cubes. Turn the drained ricotta into a mixing bowl. Mix in the mozzarella cubes, grated cheese, and parsley. Season to taste with salt and white pepper. Beat the egg well and stir it into the ricotta mixture.
• Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Scatter the garlic over the oil and cook, shaking the pan, until golden brown, about 2 minutes. Lower the tomatoes close to the skillet and carefully pour them into the skillet. Add the crushed red pepper and season lightly with salt. Bring the sauce to a quick boil, then adjust the heat to simmering. Cook until the sauce is lightly thickened, about 30 minutes. Stir the basil into the sauce a few minutes before it is done.
• Meanwhile, stir the shells into the boiling water. Return to a boil, stirring frequently. Cook the pasta, semi-covered, stirring occasionally, until softened but still quite firm, about 7 minutes. Fish the shells out of the water with a large skimmer and carefully lower them into a bowl of cold water. Drain them carefully.
• Preheat the oven to 425°F. Line the bottom of a 15-10-inch baking dish with about 3/4 cup of the tomato sauce. Spoon about 2 tablespoons of the ricotta mixture into each shell. The shell should be filled to capacity but not overstuffed. Nestle the shells next to each other in the baking dish as you fill them. Spoon the remaining sauce over the shells, coating each one. Arrange the slices of mozzarella in an even layer over the shells. Bake until the mozzarella is browned and bubbling, about 25 minutes. Remove, and let stand 5 minutes before serving.