Best Cottage Shells N Spinach Recipes

SPINACH STUFFED SHELLS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 9 x 13-inch dish with cooking spray. Pour half of the marinara sauce into the bottom of the dish. Save the rest of the sauce for later.
• Prepare pasta according to package instructions; drain and rinse under cold water.
• Squeeze all of the liquid out of the spinach. I like to use a dish towel for this, and just keep squeezing until you wring out as much water as possible. Place spinach in a large bowl.
• Add ricotta, 1 ½ cups of the mozzarella, Parmesan, egg, basil, salt and garlic powder to the bowl with the spinach and stir really well with a fork to combine. Add a pinch of optional nutmeg, if desired. Stuff each shell with about 2 tablespoons of the spinach mixture.
• Arrange stuffed shells in the prepared baking dish, open side up. Pour remaining half of the marinara sauce over top. Sprinkle with remaining ½ cup of mozzarella.
• Cover with foil and bake for about 30 minutes, or until heated through. Remove the foil cover during the final 5-10 minutes to allow the cheese to get a little bit crispy on top.

SPINACH AND COTTAGE CHEESE STUFFED SHELLS (NO RICOTTA)

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• In a large bowl, combine ingredients "cottage cheese" through "egg".
• Pour half of the sauce in a 9x13 pan (I never measure the sauce, I just pour it from the jar). Fill the shells full with the cheese mixture, and place them into the pan with the sauce.
• Drizzle the remaining sauce lightly over the top of the shells (or spoon sauce from the jar over the shells, like I do). Sprinkle with parmesan cheese.
• Cover with foil and bake for 35 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

SPINACH + COTTAGE CHEESE STUFFED SHELLS ARE HEALTHY AND DELICIOUS

Steps:

• For the sauce, in a large saucepan, cook the onion and grated carrot in the olive oil over medium-low heat until vegetables are softened, about 7 minutes; do not let brown
• Add the garlic and Italian herbs and cook until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes more
• Turn up the heat to high, add the crushed tomatoes, and stir with a wooden spoon
• Once the mixture starts to boil, add the tomato sauce and stock, season with salt and pepper, and bring to a simmer again
• Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes
• In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook the shells according to package directions and remove 1 minute before the suggested cooking time
• Rinse, then place in cold water to prevent sticking
• For the filling, pulse the cottage cheese in a food processor until the large curds are broken down into smaller ricotta-like curds, about 5 pulses
• (Scrape the sides down with a rubber spatula between pulses
• ) Scrape the cottage cheese into a medium bowl and stir in the remaining filling ingredients
• Spoon the filling into a resealable plastic bag, and cut a 1-inch tip open in the corner
• (Refrigerate if waiting before stuffing shells
• ) Preheat oven to 350°F
• Spray a 2½-quart baking dish with nonstick spray
• Spread ½ cup sauce on the bottom of the pan; add 2 tablespoons water if needed to spread the sauce
• Pipe filling into each shell and arrange the filled shells in the pan
• Once shells are filled, pour the remaining sauce on top of the shells, cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes
• Uncover the pan, top with parmesan cheese, if using, and bake for an additional 15 minutes
• Let cool for a few minutes before topping with basil and serving

SPINACH-RICOTTA STUFFED SHELLS

Steps:

• Make the sauce: Heat the olive oil in a large wide pot over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and cook until golden brown, about 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes, oregano, red pepper flakes, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook, stirring, until thickened, 15 to 20 minutes; season with salt. (You should have about 4 heaping cups of sauce.)
• Make the stuffed shells: Preheat the oven to 375˚ F. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta shells and cook as the label directs for baking, about 9 minutes. Rinse under cold water to stop the cooking. Spread out on a baking sheet.
• Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the spinach and cook, tossing occasionally, until wilted, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove to a large plate lined with a kitchen towel. Squeeze to remove any excess liquid, then finely chop.
• Put the spinach in a large bowl and add the ricotta, mozzarella, parsley, Parmesan, lemon zest, beaten egg, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon pepper. Stir until combined.
• To assemble, spread about half of the sauce in the bottom of a 10-by-14-inch baking dish. Evenly fill the shells with the spinach-ricotta mixture using a spoon, or pipe it in using a pastry bag. Arrange the shells side by side, open-side up, in the baking dish on top of the sauce, then top with the remaining sauce.
• Cover the dish with foil and bake until heated through and the sauce is simmering around the edges, about 30 minutes. Remove the foil and bake until any shells or cheese poking through the sauce are lightly browned in spots, about 10 more minutes. Let sit 10 minutes. Top with more Parmesan and red pepper flakes.

COTTAGE SHELLS 'N SPINACH

Steps:

• Cook macaroni as directed on package; drain.
• Combine remaining ingredients in large bowl.
• Add macaroni; toss lightly.

SPINACH STUFFED SHELLS WITH WHITE SAUCE

Steps:

• Cook pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, prepare white sauce according to package directions; set aside., Preheat oven to 375°. In a small bowl, combine cottage cheese, mozzarella cheese, egg white, basil, garlic powder, pepper and half of the spinach (save remaining spinach for another use). Pour half of the white sauce into a greased 11x7-in. baking dish. , Drain pasta and rinse in cold water; stuff each shell with 2 tablespoons spinach mixture. Arrange over sauce. Top with remaining white sauce. , Cover and bake 25 minutes or until heated through. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.