Tag Archives: Pasta

Recipes - Entrees

Spinach Stuffed Pasta Shells

My cousin prepared this pasta dish using the recipe in my “Missouri to Maui” cookbook and sent me a photo of the results and I wanted to make stuffed shells ever since. Today’s cloudy, cold day was perfect for preparing this rich hearty dish.  Pasta, tomato sauce, and cheese.  No way you can go wrong!

I wanted extra sauce for another use so today I made a homemade tomato sauce using crushed tomatoes, stewed tomatoes, tomato paste, garlic, onion, and spices.  You can also use only canned stewed tomatoes as listed in the cookbook’s recipe below.  The sauce I made today is simple  to prepare and doesn’t overwhelm the flavor of the pasta and the mild Ricotta cheese in the filling.  I had ground pork on hand so added meat to my sauce today.  Preparing the sauce and the pasta was the only prep required; i don’t count filling the pasta shells as prep because that is just way too much fun to do! Do thaw the frozen spinach before beginning, squeezing out the liquid, and by all means use blocks of Swiss and Parmesan cheeses, shredding and  grating them yourself for the best flavor.  Today I used manicotti shells and the recipe yielded 11 pieces as one of the shells tore beyond repair while boiling. Using large seashell pasta shells are also perfect for this recipe.

A simple green salad with early tender lettuce and garlic bread on the side complement this dish perfectly.  You’ll have supper ready in no time, a most satisfying and flavorful one, especially for a chilly spring evening.  Go Italian and enjoy these stuffed shells; I am sure that  your family will give you a big thumbs up!

Spinach Stuffed Pasta Shells

Ingredients

1-(10 oz.) box or pkg. frozen chopped spinach, thawed
1 cup Ricotta cheese
1/2 cup Swiss cheese, shredded
1 T. onion, minced
3 cups canned stewed tomatoes
1-(6 oz.) box jumbo macaroni shells, uncooked
Parmesan cheese, freshly-grated for garnish

Directions Preheat oven to 375. Cook the pasta shells according to package directions; drain and set aside. In large bowl, combine the thawed spinach, Ricotta cheese, Swiss cheese, and the onion; stir until well blended. Pour 1 cup of the stewed tomatoes over bottom of a 9×13″ glass baking dish. Fill the cooked pasta shells by dividing the spinach-cheese mixture into equal parts and pushing into the tube of each the pasta shell. Pour remaining stewed tomatoes around and over the filled shells. Cover dish with foil and bake approximately 25-30 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Remove from oven and sprinkle with freshly grated Parmesan cheese.

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Recipes - Soups, Stews, & Chowders

Tomato Florentine Soup

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When cooking and a recipe has “Florentine” in its name there is your clue that spinach is an ingredient.  Being spinach lovers, it was great that  mama and I thought about this soup last night.  Mama felt bad with a cold and hasn’t hae an appetite at all for several days, and our spying this soup looking through the “Missouri to Maui” cookbook last night was a big a-ha! moment for both of us.  The recipe dates from my finding it in  a low-fat cookbook I was using at the dorm 15 years ago.  I fell totally in love with its rich tomato heartiness and made it often for myself then when visiting the “p’s” in Florida on summer breaks from school. Everybody loves this soup: it’s a great dish whatever the season, guaranteed to piqué your appetite.

Not a long prep or much cooking time really with this one; you’ll be sitting down to eat in less than an hour. Many of the ingredients are already in your pantry and if you have a bag of fresh spinach, you won’t even have to get dressed and head to the grocery store (added bonus!). You must have the spinach, however, for the leafy green flavor here and to Florentine the dish. The pasta is a nice surprise in this soup and ensures that there is something for everyone really: tomato soup lovers, pasta people, and spinach fans. If, like me, you love all three things, you definitely have a win-win-win here! I baked Skillet Cornbread to enjoy with this tonight though crackers work too; whatever you choose on the side, the soup results will have you thinking of a good bowl of minestrone minus any beans.

The soup base comes from canned crushed tomatoes and tomato paste, chicken broth, and chopped onion and it hits the right note for allowing  the pasta and the spinach to star here.  Do chop the onions very small; you want them for flavor, not for showing off.  There is no  need to cook this too long; the broth is thin and once the pasta cooks, you can add the spinach, and turn it off. I enjoy this best while it is still hot, the spinach just wilted and tender. A healthy tablespoon of freshly grated Parmesan in each serving is the only garnish; don’t skip it!  All pau and the soup’s ON!

Tomato Florentine Soup

Ingredients

1 T. cooking oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1-(1 lb. can) crushed tomatoes
1-(32 oz.) box chicken broth
2 T. tomato paste
3/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. dried Italian seasoning
4 oz. seashell pasta
2 cups packed fresh baby spinach leaves, stemmed
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, freshly grated, for garnish

Directions In 4-qt stockpot, add oil and heat then sauté the onion. Add the tomatoes, broth, tomato paste, salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning, stir well to blend. Increase the heat to high and bring to a boil. Add the pasta, cover, cook medium-low for 8-10 minutes until the pasta is tender. Add spinach leaves and simmer 1-2 minutes or until the pasta is al dente and the spinach wilted. Ladle soup into bowls and top each with the freshly grated Parmesan. Serve immediately, while hot.

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