Lasagna Stuffed Shells

So my husband and I have been in school for our entire marriage. We completed our undergrads, and then he decided to go to Law School. Then he decided to get an MBA on top of his law degree. It felt like we’d be students forever. But now, as of this week, I can officially say we are living in “the light at the end of the tunnel!” He took his last final last week, accepted a job offer and we’ve spent the entire weekend celebrating! On to bigger and better things and I’m so excited to enter this next phase of life!

I can’t help but think how far we’ve come since he started on the JDA/MBA journey. Most importantly, we’ve had two sweet kids who we are crazy about. We’ve had great internships, met a ton of great people, and have completely loved our move to Saint Louis. 

In the midst of our celebrating, Jeff requested these Lasagna Stuffed Shells. He LOVES them, my kids love them–what else can I ask for. I served them with a fresh green salad, and some of my homemade Martinelli’s, since, you know, it was a celebration 🙂 . 

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Lasagna Stuffed Shells

Author: Lauren Allen

Ingredients

• 1 box jumbo shells about 24 shells
• 1/2 lb ground beef
• 1/2 lb ground italian sausage
• salt and pepper
• 2  cloves garlic minced
• 1 small onion chopped
• 1 1/2 cups spinach or chopped kale
• 2 8oz cans tomato sauce
• 1 6oz can tomato paste
• 1 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes, undrained
• 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning or a mix of dried oregano and basil
• 1 cup  ricotta cheese
• 1 egg
• 2 cups mozzarella cheese  divided
• 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese  , divided

Instructions

1. In a large skillet over medium high heat brown the beef and sausage. Drain grease. Season with salt and pepper. Add garlic and onions and cook for 2-3 minutes. Place everything in a food processor and pulse 2-3 times until the meat is crumbled really small. Set aside.
2. Add tomato sauce, and tomato paste to the pan and stir well to combine. Add diced tomatoes and seasonings. Cover and let simmer for 20-30 minutes on medium-low heat. 
3. Meanwhile, cook the jumbo pasta shells according to package instructions, until al-dente. Drain from water and lay out on a large dish to cool, so that they don't stick together.
4. Add the ricotta cheese, egg, 1 cup mozzarella, and 1/2 cup parmesan cheese to a large mixing bowl and mix well to combine.
5. Add meat mixture and chopped spinach to the tomato sauce and stir to combine. Pour about 1/2 of the tomato sauce mixture into the bowl with the ricotta (you want to save the other half for pouring on top of the stuffed shells). Stir to combine.
6. Spoon some of the reserved tomato sauce into the bottom of a 9x13'' pan. Stuff each cooked shell with a heaping 2 tablespoons of the ricotta/tomato mixture and set them face up in the pan. (I fit 4 shells wide and 6 shells long.)
7. Spoon the remaining red sauce over the top of all of the stuffed shells. Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella and parmesan cheese.
8. Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Remove foil and bake for 10 more minutes. Enjoy!

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