Stuff Yourself

For the past month or so that I've been here, I've been experimenting with a few new dishes, that eventually I'll make again for all you fine blog folks when I have my ducks in a row and feel like I can really dig into the SoCal scene! But here's a little taste of the mouthwatering goodness coming your way.

The recipe calls for some different items, but I like to try to make my pasta dishes on the lighter side, so hopefully I stay on the lighter side...

Sausage & Spinach Stuff Shells

 - 1 cup of finely chopped fresh spinach

 - 3 Chicken Sausage links (pre-cooked and chopped)

 - About 20 jumbo stuffed shells

 - A handful of skim mozzarella shredded cheese

 - 1 cup of Light Ricotta Cheese

 - 1/2 Cup of chopped onions (optional)

 - 2 tbsp of Olive Oil

 - A dash of salt

This dish is pretty fast paced, only takes about 20-30 minutes.

First, set your oven to 350 and in a pot, toss in the shells and set the timer for about 10 minutes. Usually I just test pasta when I think it's ready, but you don't want to overcook the shells because they'll break when you got to stuff them. 


Then toss your chopped up spinach and diced onions into a saucepan with the olive oil and a 1/4 cup of water. Let them simmer for a bit till the spinach starts to shrivel. Then take your chopped sausage and add it to the mix so the flavors blend together. In a separate bowl, blend your mozzarella cheese, ricotta and the pinch of salt. 

When you feel the spinach & sausage is all cooked up, pour into the bowl with the cheese mixture and blend together.  

You're pasta should be ready now, so drain it and spray it with cold water so the pasta stops cooking and its easier for you to handle.  Start stuffing the shells with the blended ingredients and place into sprayed glass baking dish. Once the baking dish has reached capacity, put a pinch of the shredded mozzarella on each shell. Toss it in the oven for about 10 minutes, then serve alone or with your favorite pasta sauce!