Baked Shells
When I was growing up my mother would have charity or school meetings at least once a week. My father had little-to-no cooking ability, so my mom would keep tons of food she pre-prepared stocked in the freezer. All she had to do on those nights was pop something out of the freezer and toss it in the oven and we would have a homemade meal ready just in time for her to run out the door as Dad was coming in from work!
These baked shells are always a hit and remind me of the foods my mother prepared when I was young. When I make them I double the recipe so we can eat one batch that night and have another tucked away in the freezer for the nights that I’m too tired to cook. Even better, you can save a shell or two from dinner for your kids lunch the next day!
Baked Shell’s (Serves 6)
1 Box Pasta Shells (you will have a few leftover)
1 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 Small Onion, diced,
1 Garlic Clove, minced,
1 Lb. Ground Turkey
1 Tsp Salt
1 1/2 Tsp Italian Herbs
1 1/4 Cup Ricotta Cheese
1/2 Cup Parmesan Cheese, grated, divided
1 Large Egg
1 Cup Mozzarella Cheese, divided
1 1/2 Cups Red Sauce or your favorite jarred brand
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Cook pasta al dente, according to package directions.
3. Place oil in a saute pan over medium heat and cook onions for 4 minutes. Add garlic and cook for an additional minute.
4. Add ground turkey, salt and Italian herbs. Cook for an additional 6-8 minutes or until turkey is cooked through.
5. Place cooled ground turkey mixture in a bowl with ricotta, parmesan and eggs. Stir to combine.
6. Place 2 tbsp of turkey mixture in each pasta shell.
7. Cover the bottom of a 9 x 11 inch baking dish with 1/2 cup of the red sauce.
8. Place the shells, seam side down, into the dish.
8. Cover with remaining tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese and remaining parmesan cheese.
9. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove foil and continue to bake for an additional 10 minutes.
9. Serve.
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Tags: , baked shells, cooking and kids, cooking for kids, eggs, freezing food, freezing pasta, freezing recipes, garlic, ground turkey, ground turkey recipes, healthy italian recipes, healthy recipes, how to freeze pasta, italian herbs, kids and cooking, olive oil, parmesan cheese, pasta recipes, pasta shell recipes, pasta shells, recipes for kids, recipes kids love, recipes you can freeze, ricotta, salt
baked shells looks delicious! i can’t wait to try out your next recipe. one thing that would improve further recipes would be to have simpler instructions with less steps. again i love this recipe! keep on cooking!
what are in italian herbs
You can buy dried Italian herbs at your local grocery store in the dried herbs section. It just says Italian Herbs. They contain Oregano, Marjoram, Savory, Thyme, Basil, Rosemary, and Sage.
so do you freeze these like your mom did? Do you freeze them all prepared and then toss them in the oven? I am having a baby and my husband will be deployed during birth and after for 2-4 months. Looking for anything to make dinner nights with the new baby and our toddler easy!
Your recipe is a little unclear – you list both parmesan and mozzarella cheese amounts as divided but the parmesan is listed to mix with turkey mixture, ricotta and egg and the mozzarella is directed to put over the top. I’m assuming that some of the mozzarella is supposed to be mixed with the turkey to go in the shells and the rest over the top. The same with the parmesan. Is that correct?