Cheesy Stuffed Shells

  • Level: Easy
  • Yield: 4 to 6 servings
  • Total: 2 hr 15 min
  • Prep: 30 min
  • Cook: 1 hr 45 min
Advertisement

Ingredients

For the Sauce:

Kosher salt

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1/2 cup grated carrot

1/2 cup grated zucchini

1 small onion, finely chopped

1/2 cup chopped celery

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 teaspoon dried basil

1 teaspoon dried oregano

2 tablespoons tomato paste

1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes

Freshly ground pepper

For the Shells:

1 12-ounce box jumbo pasta shells

8 ounces silken tofu, mashed

1 10-ounce box frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry

1 1/2 cups cottage cheese

1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

1 large egg, lightly beaten

1 clove garlic, minced

Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

Cooking spray

Directions

  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Make the sauce: Heat the olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the carrot, zucchini, onion and celery and saute until soft but not brown, 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the basil, oregano, tomato paste, crushed tomatoes and 2 cups water. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
  2. Meanwhile, prepare the shells: Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook for 8 minutes; drain. Mix the tofu, spinach, cottage cheese, parmesan, 1/2 cup mozzarella, the egg and garlic in a medium bowl and season with salt and pepper.
  3. Mist a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with cooking spray. Spread about 1 cup of the sauce in the dish. Stuff the cheese mixture into the shells and place in the baking dish, open-side up. Pour the remaining sauce over the shells. Cover tightly with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Uncover, sprinkle with the remaining 1 cup mozzarella and bake for 15 minutes. Let cool slightly before serving.

Let's Get Cooking!

Sign up for the Recipe of the Day newsletter to receive editor-picked recipes,tips and videos delivered to your inbox daily. Privacy Policy

Thanks for subscribing to the Recipe of the Day newsletter. Check out all our other great newsletters from Easy Recipes, Healthy Eating Ideas and Chef Recipe Videos.

We're sorry, there was an error signing you up. Please try again later.

Advertisement

keelar

This has the potential to be good, but the shells did not have enough flavor for my family, despite having added more garlic and some other spices. The sauce ended up a bit watery. I did like how well the tofu blended in and the sauce has good flavor but not enough to carry the shells. Next time, I'll add crushed red peppers to the red sauce, skip the water and add a smaller amount of red wine. For the shells, I'd add flavor -- more garlic, fresh herbs, perhaps shallots and/or grated lemon rind). Overall, too many changes needed to make this one stand out.

See All Reviews