Baked Sausage and Spinach Pasta Shells
(from largomason’s recipe box)
I prepared the filling, up to this point, and covered and stored it in the refrigerator overnight. When I was ready to bake the shells, I reheated the filling, added the ricotta and followed the rest of the recipe.
Ingredients
- 18 jumbo pasta shells
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1 pound fresh pork sausage links, casing removed and broken up
- 1 can (14-ounces) diced tomatoes
- 1 cup frozen spinach, thawed and squeeze dry
- 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese, plus more to sprinkle on top before baking
- 1/2 cup ricotta cheese
- salt and freshly ground pepper
- 1/2 cup shredded mozarella cheese
Directions
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
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Make an ice bath by filling a large bowl with cold water and ice, set aside.
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Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add pasta shells and cook according to package directions. Drain well then add to ice bath until ready to stuff.
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Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil. Add the garlic and sauté briefly. Add the pork sausage and cook 5-6 minutes until browned. If needed, take a wooden spoon and break the sausage apart more. Add tomatoes, spinach and sprinkle the grated parmesan cheese and cook for 1 minute. Season with salt and pepper.*
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Remove pan from heat and stir in ricotta cheese.
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Using a spoon, fill pasta shells with sausage/spinach mixture and arrange in a baking dish (9-inch x 9-inch dish works well). Sprinkle the top with shredded mozarella and some more grated parmesan and then bake until cheese has melted and tips of shells begin to crisp and brown, about 25 – 30 minutes.