Butternut Squash-Stuffed Shells

These stuffed shells are packed with a spicy spinach and ricotta filling and nestled in a cozy roasted butternut Alfredo sauce. Dovetailing Tip: Prepare the Salsa Roja today so that is can sit overnight to let the flavors blend together, use day 3 with Chicken Tortilla Dump Dinner.

Prep time:
Cook time:
Serving size: 4
Calories per serving: 888

Ingredients:
10 ounces diced butternut squash (about 2 1/2 cups)
1 small shallot, halved
1 clove garlic, unpeeled
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/4 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves, finely chopped
1 large leaf fresh sage, finely chopped, plus more for serving
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
30 jumbo pasta shells (about 10 ounces)
1/4 cup vegetable broth or water
2-10 ounces packages frozen chopped spinach, thawed, drained and squeezed dry
1 pound cream cheese, at room temperature
2 cups whole-milk ricotta
2 teaspoons red pepper flakes
2 cups grated parmesan, plus more for serving
2 cups heavy cream
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
pinch freshly grated nutmeg
1 cup freshly grated mozzarella


Directions:
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Add the squash, shallot and garlic to a baking sheet. Drizzle with the olive oil and toss to combine. Sprinkle with the thyme, sage, 1/4 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of black pepper and toss again. Roast until the squash is tender and light golden, about 30 minutes. Let cool.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil; add salt. Add the pasta shells and cook until al dente according to the package directions. Drain and let cool.

Squeeze the roasted garlic into a small food processor or blender, add the squash, shallot and vegetable broth and puree until smooth.

Mix together the spinach, cream cheese, ricotta, red pepper flakes, 2/3 cup of the Parmesan and 1 tablespoon salt in a large bowl. Stuff about 2 tablespoons of the spinach mixture into each shell; set aside.

Add the pureed squash mixture, heavy cream and butter to a large skillet over medium heat. Cook, whisking frequently, until thickened, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and whisk in the nutmeg, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and the remaining 1 1/3 cups Parmesan.

Spread the cheese sauce into the bottom of a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Arrange the stuffed shells in the baking dish seam-side up, shingling them so they all fit (you should have 5 shells along the short side and 6 shells along the long side). Top with the mozzarella. Bake until the cheese is melted and bubbling, 15 to 20 minutes. Top with more Parmesan and sage before serving.

Source: foodnetwork.com


Recipe formatted with the Cook'n Recipe Software from DVO Enterprises.



Add Recipe to Cook'n



Subscribe to Cook'n Premium and get newsletter articles like this each week!


blog comments powered by Disqus