Giant Stuffed Pasta Shells

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As soon as the weather turns cold I turn into a comfort-food-carboholic, which is why we have been gorging ourselves on some truly tasty Giant Stuffed Pasta Shells this week. Pasta loaded up with cheese, meat, herbs, zesty lemon and cooked with a spicy tomato sauce – yes please!

I love using giant pasta shells, or conchiglioni, as not only do they look spectacular, they are a million times less faff to stuff than cannelloni tubes and you get loads more delicious filling in them.

I’ve given the instructions in this recipe to make a quick and easy tomato sauce to go with the pasta, but if you want to give this recipe the speedy weeknight treatment, then it is perfectly acceptable to use a jar of good quality pasta sauce as a shortcut.

I’ve also stuffed these pasta shells with some delicious turkey mince to bulk them out a bit, they are, however, delicious just filled with oozing cheese goodness, so if you are vegetarian or looking to reduce the meat in your diet, leave it out and bump up the quantities of the three kinds of cheese in the filling.

What’s your favourite comfort food? Let me know in the comments below! Take care out there and happy cooking. xJ

Let me know if you try this recipe in the comments below, or using the hashtag #daysofjay on Instagram. Happy cooking!

Giant Stuffed Pasta Shells

Yield: Serves 4

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 45 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour

Pasta, loaded up with cheese, meat, herbs, zesty lemon and cooked with a spicy tomato sauce - yes please! I love using giant pasta shells, or conchiglioni, as not only do they look spectacular, they are a million times less faff to stuff than cannelloni tubes and you get loads more delicious filling in them.

Ingredients

24-30 giant pasta shells / conchiglioni , approx. 175-200g

for the sauce:

1 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp butter
1 large onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 tins whole tomatoes
1.5 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp sea salt
½ tsp chilli flakes
freshly ground black pepper

for the stuffing:

1 Tbsp neutral oil, for frying
400 g chicken or turkey mince
250 g ricotta or cottage cheese
100 g grated mozzarella
50 g grated Parmesan
50 g baby spinach, finely chopped
1 large egg
1 tsp dried oregano, or leaves from a small bunch of fresh
zest of 1 lemon
salt & pepper

for the topping:

50 g grated mozzarella

Instructions

Heat the oven to 180°C / 350°F / Gas 4, then begin by cooking the pasta shells in a large pot of well-salted boiling water until just al-dente. Drain then rinse under cold, running water and set aside.
To make the sauce (see note 1), heat the oil and butter in a large frying pan until melted and the butter is foaming. Cook the onion over a gentle heat for 5 minutes until it is softened but not browned. Add the garlic to the pan and cook for another minute.
Use a pair of scissors to chop the tomatoes while they are still in the tin, then pour into the pan along with all other sauce ingredients. Cook for a further 10-15 minutes, stirring from time to time until the sauce has thickened. Check the seasoning adding more salt and pepper if necessary, then pour the sauce into a bowl and set aside.
Wipe the pan out with a paper towel, then place back over the heat with a tablespoon of neutral oil. Cook the mince, breaking it up with a wooden spoon until all the liquid has evaporated from the pan and the mince is lightly browned. Season with salt and pepper, then remove from the heat.
Combine all stuffing ingredients, including the mince, in a large bowl, stirring well to combine. Spread ¼ of the sauce over the bottom of a baking dish large enough to fit all of the shells in a single layer, then stuff each shell with about a tablespoon of the stuffing mixture, then place the shells meat side up on the sauce. If there is any leftover stuffing, crumble it over the top of the shells.
Cover the shells with the remaining sauce, sprinkle over the mozzarella, then bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes until bubbling and golden brown.
Serve with plenty of freshly ground black pepper and a drizzle of olive oil.