Spinach And Ricotta Stuffed Shells
Shells filled with drained ricotta and wrung out spinach, baked under a thick sauce. Boil them short so they stay firm enough to stuff.
- Prep
- 25 min
- Cook
- 35 min
- Total
- 60 min
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
About 20 shells in a 9 by 13 dish.
- ThinSlim 8 oz ThinSlim Foods Impastable Low Carb Pasta Shells
- 2 tbsp kosher salt, for the pasta water
- 15 oz whole milk ricotta
- 10 oz frozen chopped spinach, thawed
- 1 large egg
- 1 cup grated Parmesan, divided
- 8 oz low moisture mozzarella, shredded and divided
- 1 garlic clove, grated
- 1/4 tsp grated nutmeg
- 2 1/2 cups thick marinara sauce
- Olive oil, for the dish and the sheet pan
- Kosher salt and black pepper
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Method
- Heat the oven to 375F.
- Set the ricotta in a fine sieve over a bowl and let it drain for 15 minutes.
- Squeeze the thawed spinach in a clean kitchen towel until no more water comes out. It should crumble apart in your hand.
- Boil the shells in well salted water for two minutes less than the package timing.
- Drain them and spread them open side up on an oiled sheet pan so they cool fast and do not stick to each other.
- Mix the drained ricotta, spinach, egg, 3/4 cup of the Parmesan, half the mozzarella, garlic, nutmeg, 1 tsp salt and plenty of pepper.
- Spread 1 cup of the marinara across an oiled 9 by 13 inch dish.
- Fill each shell with about 2 tablespoons of the mixture and set it in the dish.
- Spoon the rest of the marinara down the middle of the shells in a band, leaving their edges bare.
- Scatter the remaining mozzarella and Parmesan over the top and cover the dish with foil.
- Bake covered 20 minutes, then uncover and bake 12 to 15 minutes more, until the top browns and the sauce bubbles at the edges.
- Rest 10 minutes before serving.
Tips
A bake designed for semolina shells assumes the pasta will drink a lot of the sauce. Impastable does not absorb anywhere near as much, so a thin jarred sauce will still be a puddle when you serve it. Use a thick marinara or simmer yours down for ten minutes first. The same logic applies to the filling: whatever water you leave in the ricotta or the spinach is water you will be eating.
Pulling the shells two minutes early and cooling them flat is what makes them easy to work with. They stay firm, they open without tearing, and they hold their shape through the bake instead of slumping.
You can build the whole dish a day ahead. Add 10 minutes to the covered stage if it goes in cold.
Pulling the shells two minutes early and cooling them flat is what makes them easy to work with. They stay firm, they open without tearing, and they hold their shape through the bake instead of slumping.
You can build the whole dish a day ahead. Add 10 minutes to the covered stage if it goes in cold.