FINALLY a new post - - and a recipe at that!!!!
There are about 100 different variations of recipe out there. This particular one is a 'me' original, with inspiration from an old recipe I used back in college for 3 Cheese Stuffed Shells. I made that one so much that I eventually stopped using the printed recipe and made it my own by altering ingredients left and right. My Shells & Cheese Recipe, is for the most part, components found in stuffed shells or a basic lasagna, just prepared a little different (and cooks quicker than a lasagna!). And of course, I made it as healthy as possible by leaving out fatty elements, using mostly protein rich ingredients.
Here goes....give it a try and hope you enjoy it!
16 oz Cocciole Pasta (looks like shells)
15 oz Ricotta Cheese (low fat or part skim)
16 oz Cottage Cheese (low fat)
12 oz Frozen, Chopped Spinach (defrosted and drained)
¼ cup Fresh Basil, chiffonade
1/8 cup Fresh Flat Leaf Parsley, finely chopped
1 egg, lightly beaten
Pinch of Dried Oregano
Pinch of Red Pepper
Salt & Pepper
Parmigana Reggiano (fresh grated, not that crap that comes in a green can!)
28 oz Basic Marinara Sauce
Instructions:
Cook pasta is a very large pot of salted, boiling water. Cook for a good few minutes less than directed on the package (it will have another opportunity to cook in the oven).
Preheat oven to 350.
While pasta is cooking, mix together ricotta and cottage cheese, fresh and dried herbs and spices.
Fold in spinach (make sure after defrosting, you really get out all the access water by using a tea towel or cheese cloth).
Fold in egg (that has been lightly beaten).
When pasta is cooked, drain and set aside.
Using an oven safe casserole dish, ladle enough marinara sauce to just cover the bottom of the pan (this prevents sticking). Next put in half of the pasta, followed by the cheese mixture, then a little sauce to cover (don't flood it with sauce). Then repeat this step once more, ending with the sauce.
Cover and put in oven until heated through (about 30 minutes). Then take out of oven, remove cover and sprinkle with about ½ - 1 cup of freshly grated parmigana cheese. Put back in oven, raise temp to 400 for about 5-10 minutes until cheese melts.
Serve with a little extra bit of fresh grated parmigana on top and enjoy!!!
P.S. You do not have to bake immediately. You could place in the fridge for up to two days. When you are ready to eat, it will take a bit longer in the oven to heat through. More like 45 min -1 hour depending on the size of your casserole dish.
Variations:
~ Add cooked ground turkey, beef and/or crumbled italian sausage to add another protein element to this dish (careful with the fattiness of the beef and sausage, though!). To do so, brown the meat and cool slightly, then mix in with cheeses and spinach.
~ Add mozzarella in with the other cheeses and on top as well (but like the sausage, this will add another not-so-healthy layer to the recipe.
0 comments:
Post a Comment