Italian Stuffed Shells

I actually made these once before–or something similar–and they were so awesome, they totally disappeared before I remembered I needed a picture.  This is an adaptation of my original recipe, and as you can see, this time I remembered to take a picture.  These were amazing and absolutely hit the spot.  The arabbita sauce, which I received via the Tastemaker’s Program at Foodbuzz, was awesome.  You could certainly do this with a standard tomato based sauce as well (which is my plan for the second half–as this recipe makes two whole 9×13 dishes full–great for a crowd).  Each shell works out to 107.6 calories and 3.5 grams of fat.  So without further ado, I offer up my Italian Stuffed Shells to Presto Pasta Nights, hosted this week by Aqua from Served with Love.

Ingredients:

  • 1 pound of sweet Italian turkey sausage
  • 1 tub part-skim ricotta cheese
  • 1 box large pasta shells
  • 2 medium zucchini, diced
  • 1 cup roasted red peppers, diced
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 3 tablespoons garlic
  • 1/2 cup grated parmesan
  • 1 cup part skim mozzarella
  • 1 jar Barilla Arabbita sauce

Directions:

  1. Fill a large stock pot with water.  Bring to a boil.
  2. Salt the water, then carefully add the pasta shells.  Cook for 2/3rds of the time recommended on the box.
  3. Meanwhile, remove the sausage from its casing and brown over medium high heat.
  4. Remove to a paper towel and drain.
  5. If the pasta is done, carefully pour into a colander, then transfer shells to a large bowl with cold water to stop the cooking process and keep them from drying out.
  6. To the skillet, add the diced zucchini and onion.  Saute until the onion is translucent.
  7. Add the peppers and garlic and saute for another couple of minutes.
  8. In another large bowl, add the ricotta, 1/2 cup of the mozzarella, the parmesan, the sausage, and the veggie mixture.  Mix well.
  9. Take 2 9×13 pyrex dishes and spray thoroughly with cooking spray.  One of these you’re going to place in the freezer to freeze the shells individually.
  10. Remove each shell from the cold water.  Shake the excess water off and fill with a large spoonful of your filling.
  11. Continue until all shells are filled.
  12. Pop the freezer bound dish into the freezer at this point.
  13. For the one you’re planning on cooking now, top with the jar of Arabbita sauce and the remaining mozzarella cheese.
  14. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Printable version.

This recipe on Tasty Planner.

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