My take on a delicious romantic dinner that contains large pasta shells stuffed with ricotta, spinach and fresh mozzarella which is smothered in a meat sauce and baked is perfection!
Ing:
Preheat oven to 350
I used to small pyrex dishes
45 to 50 large shells
some might break
1 onion chopped
4 spring onions chopped
2 cups mozzarella cheese
(1 cup chopped to add in the ricotta mixture and)
(1 cup sliced thin to add on top)
1 cup cubed and 1 sliced
1/2 cup parmesan cheese divided
11/2 cups cheddar cheese
16 oz frozen spinach squeezed
3 cups white sauce
3 cups pizza sauce
11/2 pound ground beef (cooked)
3 to 4 sundried tomatoes (chopped)
l1 tsp lemon pepper
1 tsp oregano divided
1 tsp basil divided
salt to taste
crushed black pepper to taste
1 tsp ginger and garlic
1 tbsp olive oil
12 oz ricotta cheese
Method:
First boil pasta and keep it aside, next prepare the white sauce and keep it aside. In a pan add the olive oil and saute the onions until a little brown and caramelized, add the spring onions, ginger, garlic and cook it for about a minute then turn the stove off and add the chopped sun dried tomatoes keep it on the side. In a big bowl add the spinach, ricotta cheese, fresh mozzarella, basil, oregano, cheddar cheese, lemon pepper, salt, pepper, cheddar cheese and parmesan cheese. Make sure you give it a taste test to make sure it is seasoned well. Once the onion mixture is cooled add it to the ricotta mixture and keep it aside.
Assemble the pasta sauce by adding the ground beef in it and keep this aside, now you are ready to start assembling the dish. In the pyrex dish start by layering it with white sauce, and then stuff the shells with the ricotta mixture and layers them closely on top of the white sauce. Layer the with the meat sauce on top evenly and sprinkle with cheddar cheese, fresh mozzarella cheese sliced and made into thin trips, lastly add the parmesan cheese and stick it in the oven at 350 degrees for 30 minutes covered and then uncover and bake it for another 7 to 10 minutes depending on how much brown you want it to get!
Enjoy!