Adventures in Thyme

Our adventures in food

  • Home
  • Contact

Shells Casserole

March 12, 2014 by Ginger Leave a Comment

 

Shells Casserole by D Fenwick, http://dfenwickphotography.com

Shells Casserole

I love pasta shells – little boats of yummy goodness that can be filled with mixtures from sweet to savory.  Today’s offering welcomes back crispy pancetta bits, and cheese.  Does it get any better?  Actually it does…

Ingredients:
1 box of jumbo pasta shells
1 lb hamburger
1 container pasta sauce of choice
~5 oz of cooked spinach, drained  (you can either use a box of frozen spinach or 1/2 bag of frozen organic, I place it in a bowl and pour a cup of hot water over it to defrost, then squeeze out the liquid later)
~2 cups shredded Mozzarella (vegan mozzarella is pictured above)
~1 cup shredded pecorino or parmesan
1 package of sliced pancetta from the deli (you can normally find this in the fine cheeses area).  Dice/chop the pancetta for easy frying.
1/4 tsp cinnamon
~ 1 Tablespoon of olive oil
pinch of salt

1.  Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F while you prepare the dish.
2.  Bring a large pot of water to boil.  Add pasta and cook until tender but not completely soft – remember, you’re going to be baking this later!  When the pasta is done remove and cool with cold water to stop the cooking process.
3.  While the water boils heat olive oil in a skillet and brown the sliced pancetta.  Remove pancetta with a slotted spoon onto a paper towel to drain.
4.  Add hamburger to fry pan and brown in pancetta oil.
5.  Drain hamburger and place in a large bowl, add pancetta, mozzarella, spinach and cinnamon.  Mix well.  Add salt to taste.
6.  In a large baking dish pour ~1 cup of the pasta sauce in the bottom and spread evenly.  Then carefully stuff a shell with ~2 tablespoons of hamburger mixture.
7.  Pour remaining pasta sauce over the shells when finished.  Place in oven and cook until the pasta bubbles and shell tips begin to turn brown (or the cheese is well melted).
8.  Serve with crusty bread, a glass of vino, a good movie, the possibilities are endless…

 

 

 

 

 

Filed Under: Photo, Recipe Tagged With: casserole, Dinner, hamburger, mozzarella, pasta shells, tomato

« Italian Crescent Casserole – it’s a winner!
Beef Stroganoff over noodles »

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Recent Posts

  • Hard Cider Brittle
  • Jalapeno Artichoke Dip
  • Beef and Pasta in Red Sauce
  • Steak – One Pan Meal
  • Grain Free “Strawberry Shortcake” Cookies
  • Meatballs with options for everyone at your party
  • Chicken for game day
  • Spaghetti with sliced beef
  • Baked Salmon in Puff Pastry
  • Christmas Dessert for Two

ARCHIVES

  • November 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • October 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • May 2014
  • April 2014
  • March 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013
  • October 2013

Categories

  • Cooking Information
  • Event
  • Photo
  • Recipe
  • Recipe Modifications
  • Restaurant

Meta

  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.org

Copyright © 2025 · Foodie Child Theme by Shay Bocks · Built on the Genesis Framework · Powered by WordPress