This recipe tastes like Italian restaurant takeout food. This is the easiest and best stuffed shells recipe. Who says you have to work hard in the kitchen to eat delicious food? I always bake a loaf of easy no-knead bread whenever we have Italian for dinner!
These pasta shells stuffed with creamy cottage cheese, Parmesan cheese, and egg mixture, topped with a delicious ground beef and tomato sauce, and baked to perfection with a generous amount of melted mozzarella cheese will have everyone asking for seconds!
Bring Italy to your table and enjoy a great dinner tonight.
HOW TO MAKE ITALIAN STUFFED SHELLS?
- Brown the ground beef, onion, and garlic in a large skillet until no pink is left.
- Mix in the hot water, tomato paste, beef bouillon, and oregano. Simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes until reduced to your desired consistency.
- In a small bowl, mix the cottage cheese and beaten egg with the Parmesan cheese and one cup of shredded mozzarella.
- Preheat the oven to 350F. Stuff the cooked pasta shells with the cheese and egg mixture and arrange them in a greased 9 13-inch casserole dish.
- Spoon the meat sauce over the pasta shells, cover with foil, and bake for 30 mins. Remove the foil, sprinkle with the rest of the mozzarella cheese, and bake for 5 more minutes until the cheese is totally melted.
WHAT TO SERVE WITH ITALIAN STUFFED SHELLS?
The perfect side dish for this delicious meal is a tossed mixed-greens salad. but my kids love it with a side of candied carrots. Add a couple of slices of crusty bread, and you have yourself an amazing dinner. As the perfect ending, a Chocolate Ooey Gooey Cake is a must!
HOW TO FREEZE STUFFED SHELLS?
You can either freeze this casserole baked or unbaked. Either way, wrap it with plastic wrap and foil and freeze for up to 3 months. When ready to serve, thaw completely and cover with foil, Bake for 30-40 minutes covered. Take off the foil, add the mozzarella cheese, and bake for 5 more minutes until the cheese is melted.
TIPS AND MODIFICATIONS FOR STUFFED SHELLS:
- Be careful not to overcook the pasta shells. Cook them al dente or just until they are still a bit firm. Otherwise, they will completely fall apart when stuffed and baked.
- When cooking the meat sauce, reduce it until it reaches your desired consistency. Some people like their baked shells with a little more liquid in their sauce, others like it with a thicker sauce.
- If you want to add a bit more color and make it healthier, add chopped spinach to the meat sauce.
- If you don’t mind the extra work, add shredded carrots and chopped celery to your meat along with the chopped onion and minced garlic when browning the meat for a more authentic ragu meat sauce. Add a tsp of Italian seasoning as well.
OTHER RECIPES YOU MIGHT ENJOY
Italian Stuffed Shells
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1 cup chopped onion
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 2 cups hot water
- 1 (12 oz) can tomato paste
- 1 tbsp beef bouillon granules
- 1 ½ tsp dried oregano
- 1 large egg, lightly beaten
- 2 cups 4% cottage cheese
- 2 cups part-skim shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
- ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 24 jumbo pasta shells, cooked and drained
Instructions
- Brown the ground beef, onion, and garlic in a large skillet until no pink is left.
- Mix in the hot water, tomato paste, beef bouillon, and oregano. Simmer uncovered for 30 minutes until reduced to your desired consistency.
- Mix the cottage cheese, beaten egg, grated parmesan, and one cup of shredded mozzarella in a small bow.
- Preheat the oven to 350 F. Stuff the cooked pasta shells with the cheese and egg mixture and arrange them in a greased 9x13-inch casserole dish.
- Spoon the meat sauce over the pasta shells, cover with foil, and bake for 30 mins. Remove the foil, sprinkle with the rest of the mozzarella cheese, and bake for five more minutes until the cheese is melted.
Nutrition
I opted to make the ragout version. SO GOOD! And it was even more satisfying to know I was getting in some extra veggies for my family (especially my picky father-in-law!). I doubled the recipe and served on Easter with an “Olive Garden” style salad and garlic bread. It made for a special Sunday dinner for our group.
How wonderful, Johna! So glad you decided to give it a try!
This was pretty good but the spices definitely need to be pumped up. I made a half portion. Next time I will add spinach to the cheese mixture.