Cottage Cheese Stuffed Shells with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce
Growing up, my mother always made a tray of ricotta stuffed shells, and a tray of cottage cheese stuffed shells. I couldn't really taste the difference back then, but now, I love the cottage cheese variety so much. Full of protein, creamy, and absolutely delicious.
The filling includes garlic, herbs, mozzarella, and pecorino, reinforcing that cheesy goodness. Baked up under a gorgeous roasted red pepper sauce, and melty pizza mozzarella until bubbly and fab. Everyone will love this recipe, I can guarantee it!
30 minutes
1 hour and 30 minutes
Difficulty:
Intermediate
Show nutritional information
| This is our estimate based on online research. | |
| Calories: | 1956 |
| Fat: | 55 g |
| Carbohydrates: | 271 g |
| Protein: | 100 g |
| Cholesterol: | 70 g |
| Sodium: | 3530 mg |
| Fiber: | 14 g |
| Sugars: | 23 g |
| Calculated per serving. | |
Serves: 4
Ingredients
- 24 whole24 whole24 whole Pasta Shells
- 1 cup1 cup1 cup Mozzarella Cheese
- 500 grams500 grams500 grams Organic Cottage Cheese
- 0.25 cup0.25 cup0.25 cup Flat Leaf Parsley, chopped
- 1.5 Tbsp1.5 Tbsp1.5 Tbsp fresh Basil, chopped
- 0.25 cup0.25 cup0.25 cup Pecorino Romano, shredded
- 0.5 cup0.5 cup0.5 cup Mozzarella Cheese, shredded
- 2 cloves2 cloves2 cloves Garlic, minced
- 1 whole1 whole1 whole Egg
- 0.25 tsp0.25 tsp0.25 tsp Red Pepper Flakes
- 0.5 tsp0.5 tsp0.5 tsp Himalayan Pink Salt
- 0.25 cup0.25 cup0.25 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 3 cloves3 cloves3 cloves Garlic, crushed
- 1 tsp1 tsp1 tsp Red Pepper Flakes
- 1 whole1 whole1 whole Yellow Onion, finely chopped
- 2 whole2 whole2 whole Celery, finely chopped
- 1 whole1 whole1 whole Carrots, peeled & finely chopped
- 1 Tbsp1 Tbsp1 Tbsp Tomato Paste
- 1 cup1 cup1 cup White Wine, I used Pinot Grigio
- 500 ml500 ml500 ml Roasted Red Pepper, Jar
- 1 cup1 cup1 cup Water
- 2 Tbsp2 Tbsp2 Tbsp Sun Dried Tomato Pesto (click for recipe), Store-Bought
- 8 pieces8 pieces8 pieces fresh Basil, About 8 Leaves
- 0.25 tsp0.25 tsp0.25 tsp Himalayan Pink Salt, More To Taste
- 1 whole1 whole1 whole Black Pepper, To Taste
- 1 whole1 whole1 whole fresh Basil, A Few Leaves
- 1 whole1 whole1 whole Parsley, Freshly Chopped
- 1 whole1 whole1 whole Pecorino Romano, Freshly Grated
FILLING
RRP Sauce
GARNISH
Process
Note, these instructions are written assuming the standard serving size, since you have modified the number of servings, these steps may need to be modified for best results
- FILLING - Mix everything together except the egg, in a large mixing bowl. Taste your filling and adjust the salt if needed. Fold in the egg, cover, and refrigerate until assembly.
- Bring a large pot of cold, heavily salted water to a boil and leave covered once boiled.
- SAUCE - Begin heating the EVOO, garlic, and pepper flakes, in a medium sized pot set to just about medium heat. Once heated, stir and let everything sizzle together for a minute or so before adding the carrot, onion, celery, and a good pinch of salt & pepper. Stir and cook about 8 - 10 minutes. Make a well in the center of the pan and drop in the tomato paste. Let it sizzle for 30 + seconds before stirring everything together and continuing to cook another 2 minutes.
- Pour in the wine and let that simmer until reduced by about 2/3. Pour in the roasted peppers + liquid and water, and bring the sauce to a boil. Once boiled, add the 1/4 tsp. salt, fresh basil, and prepared pesto. (I had an open jar in the fridge and decided to add it. You're fine to omit if you don't have it accessible or simply sub any pesto you have on hand) Reduce the heat to a simmer, cover, and cook 25 minutes. Once it's ready, blend the sauce in your Vitamix blender or use an immersion blender until smooth and gorgeous. Taste and add additional salt if needed.
- Cook the jumbo shells until al dente. Strain and let them cool until you can handle them comfortably. I did not rinse them because I wanted that starch for the sauce.
- Preheat oven to 375 F
- ASSEMBLY - Add your filling to a piping bag. Cup the shells in one hand and pipe the filling in to them with the other until nice and full. You should get roughly 20 stuffed shells. We cook 24 in case of any breaking / extra filling at the end. Ladle sauce in to a 7" x 11" baking dish to coat the bottom of the dish. You want a nice bed of sauce to nestle the shells in to. Assemble the shells stuffed side up in to the baking dish until they're all nestled in there. Ladle sauce over the shells and top with the 1 C pizza mozzarella.
- Cover and bake 25 minutes. Remove cover and continue to bake 20 - 25 minutes until bubbly, melty, and delicious. Carefully remove the dish and set it on to a cooling rack for 5 or so minutes before serving.
- Serve shells garnished with heaps of grana padano, fresh parsley, and / or fresh basil. ENJOY!
- Store remaining shells in an airtight container in the fridge for 4 days.
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