Conchiglione

I got the idea for this recipe from my colleague's blog ( K&K Test Titchen) she has a lot of great recipes on there. She also has a series of recipes- 5 meals for $50, which I think is a great idea. I, for one am known to overspend on groceries.

At any rate, I saw her recipe for stuffed shells, and I had spinach and ricotta leftover from spinach ricotta pasta so I decided I'd give it a try. Of course I didn't quite have the exact ingredients, so I made my own variation. I cooked the spinach without oil and reduced the cheese to make it healthier and lighter.

Ingredients:

1/2 pound jumbo pasta shells

8 ounces spinach ( can also use some frozen spinach, I used combo of both)

2 cups light ricotta

1/2 cup cheddar ( if you have  light mozzerella use that)

5 basil leaves, shredded

Salt and pepper

2-1/2 cups marinara sauce

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

Directions

- Preheat oven to 350 F

-Cook the pasta in salted water until just under al dente.  The pasta will continue to cook in the oven. Drain the pasta and let it cool.

- Rinse the spinach and then put in skillet. Cook it until it is wilted.
-Meanwhile stir together the ricotta, cheddar/mozzarella, and basil.  Stir in the cooked spinach. Season wit salt and peper 

Pour half of the marinara sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 inch glass baking dish.  Fill the shells with the spinach-ricotta mixture and line them in the dish.  Cover the shells with the remaining sauce and then cover the dish with aluminum foil.  Bake covered for 30 minutes, then remove the foil and cook 15 more minutes.  In the last minute, sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.