Here are some quick tips that may just make it easier to put a hearty stuffed shells dinner on your table. Check the recipe link, below, for a step by step recipe.
You read that right. The shells are easier to stuff if they aren't all soft and slippery. Stuff the shells without cooking them first and the stuffing will go much more smoothly.
Put the cheese mixture you're using to stuff the shells in a gallon sized zip close freezer bag. Squeeze out the air and roll the excess bag down so you can hold the bag in one hand. Snip about ¼ inch off one corner of the bag. Pipe the cheese mixture from the bag into the shells.
Add some of the marinara sauce to the dish before adding the shells. When you use uncooked shells, you may want to add a small amount of water to the sauce in the bottom of the dish to help the shells steam. The sauce (and water) will keep the shells from sticking.
Assemble the entire dish the night before. Don't add the cheese on top, though. Seal the dish tightly with aluminum foil and store it in the refrigerator. Take it out when you preheat the oven and bake the shells in the foil covered dish.
Ten minutes before the end of cooking, remove the dish from the oven. Carefully remove the aluminum foil and distribute the shredded cheese over the top of the cooked shells. Return the uncovered dish to the oven and bake ten more minutes, until the cheese is melted.
Yum! What time is dinner?
I love stuffed shells ... thanks for the great tips to make things easier!
Great suggestions!
h5 tips to perfect stuffed shells.
Heck yeah, Bossy. You are my hero! This I can DO!
select one here...