Makeover Cheese-Stuffed Shells Recipe

Makeover Cheese-Stuffed Shells Recipe
Photo by: Taste of Home
Rating

66% would make again

You'll love the great flavor in these shells. Our Test Kitchen made them over without using any reduced-fat ingredients, yet still saved a ton on fat and calories!

This recipe is:

Healthy

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  • 12 Servings
  • Prep: 35 min. Bake: 50 min.

Ingredients

  • 3/4 pound lean ground beef
  • 1 Italian turkey sausage link (4 ounces), casing removed
  • 1 large onion, chopped
  • 1 package (10 ounces) frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
  • 1 cup ricotta cheese
  • 1 egg, beaten
  • 1-1/2 cups (6 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese, divided
  • 1-1/2 cups 4% cottage cheese
  • 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
  • 1 cup (4 ounces) shredded sharp cheddar cheese
  • 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
  • 1/4 teaspoon pepper
  • 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon, optional
  • 24 jumbo pasta shells, cooked and drained
  • SAUCE:
  • 3 cans (8 ounces each) no-salt-added tomato sauce
  • 1 tablespoon dried minced onion
  • 1-1/2 teaspoons dried basil
  • 1-1/2 teaspoons dried parsley flakes
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1/4 teaspoon pepper

Directions

  • Crumble beef and sausage into a large nonstick skillet; add onion. Cook and stir over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain.
  • Transfer to a large bowl. Stir in the spinach, ricotta and egg. Add 1 cup mozzarella, cottage cheese, Parmesan, cheddar, Italian seasoning, pepper and cinnamon if desired; mix well.
  • Stuff pasta shells with meat mixture. Arrange in two 11-in. x 7-in. baking dishes coated with cooking spray. Combine the sauce ingredients; spoon over shells.
  • Cover and bake at 350° for 45 minutes. Uncover; sprinkle with remaining mozzarella. Bake 5-10 minutes longer or until bubbly and cheese is melted. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving. Yield: 12 servings.

Nutrition Facts: 2 stuffed shells equals 318 calories, 14 g fat (8 g saturated fat), 79 mg cholesterol, 714 mg sodium, 23 g carbohydrate, 2 g fiber, 25 g protein.

Makeover Cheese-Stuffed Shells published in Healthy Cooking April/May 2008, p12

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Reviews for Makeover Cheese-Stuffed Shells (2)

Makeover Cheese-Stuffed Shells Recipe

Makeover Cheese-Stuffed Shells

Tell us what you think of this recipe.
Did you modify it? Would you make it again? Rate it today!

Reviewed on Apr. 23, 2009 by MargeAZ

Too many cheeses used in this recipe.  There's no reason to use cottage cheese AND ricotta.  And, I've never seen cheddar cheese used in stuffed shells.   My family wouldn't eat it.  To us, Italian cheeses are ricotta, parmesan, mozzarella, and these are the only ones I'd use in stuffed shells or lasagna.

There's very little flavor difference when using low-fat cheeses, so I don't consider this a makeover recipe.  My own recipe has less fat!  I use low-fat ricotta, 2% Mozzarella, and no sausage.  I haven't found a turkey sausage that tastes good to my family.  I also don't put ground beef in the stuffed shells, I make a meat sauce instead with less ground beef (93% lean.)

Reviewed on Aug. 01, 2008 by KWhitehead

Very good, although a weee bit expensive for my budget (with all of the different cheeses). Will definitely make again, but perhaps for special occasions.

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