Baked Spinach and Ricotta Shells
My Italian friend taught me something amazing. You know when you buy those lasagna noodle boxes that say you don’t need to cook them first? That’s just a marketing tactic. You actually don’t have to cook any dry pasta before baking it, as long as you’re putting it into a liquid, or in this case, lots and lots of sauce. Have you ever tried to stuff a giant shell noodle once it’s cooked? It is not fun. At all. This technique makes it so easy to stuff shells that you can make this once super-complicated meal during the week. Also, get those kids to stuff the shells. They love it, and its less work for you.
Makes4 - 6 servings
Ingredients
- 15 ounces (425 g) ricotta cheese
- 10 ounces (283 g) chopped frozen spinach, thawed
- 1 egg
- 2 tablespoons (36 g) salt
- 2 tablespoons (13 g) pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon tsp nutmeg
- 12 ounces (340 g) large shell pasta
- 2 (24–oz [680–ml]) jar marinara sauce
- 2 cups (226 g) shredded mozzarella cheese
- 2 tablespoons (7 g) Italian seasoning
- 1 cup (24 g) fresh basil
Instructions
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Preheat the oven to 350°F (176°C). Make sure you do this first. I always forget. This is me telling you: Don’t forget.
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In a mixing bowl, combine the ricotta, spinach, egg, salt, pepper and nutmeg. Mix everything well. This will be the filling for our shells. Add the mixture to each dry pasta shell, making sure each shell is totally full of the mixture. Scrape the top of each shell so the filling is flat and not coming out of the shell.
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Lay the shells in a single layer in a 3-quart (2.8-L) oven-safe baking dish. You do not need to grease the pan as the sauce will provide enough moisture for nothing to stick. Speaking of sauce, add the marinara sauce to make sure all the shells are submerged and there is enough sauce to cover the top. I know it looks like a lot, but remember our shells are not cooked, and this sauce is going to cook them.
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Cover the baking dish (I just use foil) and bake for 1 hour. Remove from the oven and add shredded mozzarella cheese. Sprinkle the Italian seasoning on top of the cheese. Put the dish back into the oven for 15 minutes or until the cheese is golden and bubbling. Remove and top with basil. Pro tip—have garlic bread ready on the side. You will need it to sop up the sauce.
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