Stuffed Pasta Shells Bolognese is a tasty family dish. It’s all you need for meal with perhaps a side of bread.
To create this dish you will need some large pasta shells, one box will do. The shells are stuffed with a trio of cheeses – ricotta, mozzarella and parmesan, then baked in a bolognese sauce.
Fresh ingredients makes this dish marvelous in my view, so don’t let your ingredients languish in the fridge before using them. If you can get your hands on some fresh parsley and basil, then get some. You can create a chimichurri sauce with the parsley and pesto with the basil. Let nothing go to waste! However, if your option is dried herbs only, that’s fine too.
Stuffed Pasta Shells Bolognese is so tasty. I usually make this meal for two, even though the recipe serves four, just so I have leftovers for lunch the next day. If I’m honest, the leftovers serving is a little smaller than it should be as I’m prone to going in for a small second helping.
Admittedly, this dish requires some work. You’ll need a few pots and pans to bring the ingredients together, but the final step is a breeze. You simply pop it in the oven for a short spell to finish it off. The final result is awesome and well worth the effort.
Low fat ground beef works well for this recipe as there is enough fat in the cheese. You can also opt for low fat cheese if you’re concerned about calories. If you do, add a few more ounces of marinara sauce to the bolognese to compensate for the decrease in fat.
I love this dish, the combination of flavors are simple, but when melded together and placed in your mouth, something magical happens. Give this recipe a try and don’t forget to use fresh ingredients if you can.
Stuffed Pasta Shells Bolognese
Ingredients
- Box jumbo pasta shells
- 1/4 cup mozzarella
- 2 cups ricotta cheese
- 1/2 cup parmesan cheese
- 1 egg whisked
- 1/2 cup parsley chopped fine
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 16 oz ground beef
- 1 garlic clove minced
- 26 oz marinara sauce
- 1 tsp oregano
- Extra salt and pepper to taste
- Fresh basil for garnish optional
Instructions
- Cook pasta according to instructions on the box, drain and set aside.
- In a bowl, mix together ricotta, mozzarella and half the quantity of parmesan.
- Set aside 2 tbsp of parsley and add the rest to the cheese and then add the salt and pepper.
- Mix cheese mixture thoroughly and set aside.
- Heat oil in a skillet on high and then add garlic.
- Cook garlic until flavor releases then add ground beef.
- Cook ground beef until it loses its redness and then add the balance of the parsley.
- Drain away fat if needed.
- Add marinara sauce and oregano and lower heat to medium.
- Add salt and pepper to taste.
- Cover skillet and allow flavors to come together for 5-10 mins.
- Spoon a modest layer of sauce on the base of a heat-proof lasagne dish.
- Using a small spoon, fill pasta shells with cheese mixture and arrange in the lasagna dish until the dish is filled. You may have a few shells left over, do not overfill the dish.
- Spoon bolognese sauce around the pasta shells, allowing it to fall between the shells.
- Sprinkle balance of parmesan on top of shells and sauce and place in a preheated oven at 375 for 5-10 mins until bubbling.
- Serve with fresh basil
