Sausage and Spinach Stuffed Shells

Frozen spinach is a great bargain at the grocery store. Just think of all of the bags of fresh spinach it would take to wilt down and fit into a 10-oz. frozen box of spinach. A lot! This recipe is a great way to sneak spinach into your diet. My husband even ate it! I made him some without the spinach, but he said that the ones with the spinach were just as good! If you have a small family, go ahead and make this whole recipe. Cook half now and freeze the other half of the shells for later. Freeze the stuffed shells (without the sauce) and then store in a zippy bag. Top with sauce and cheese before baking. You could use Italian sausage, ground beef or Jimmy Dean like I did. Change it up to use what you have on-hand!



1 box jumbo pasta shells (I didn't use the whole box)
1 lb. Italian sausage (I used Jimmy Dean)
1 15-oz. container ricotta cheese
2 cups shredded mozzarella
1 10-oz. box frozen spinach
3/4 cup shredded or diced carrots (I forgot these!)
1 26-oz. jar spaghetti sauce

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 13 X 9-inch baking dish with cooking spray. Cook and drain pasta according to package directions.

In a large skillet cook sausage over medium-high heat until browned, breaking up chunks with a wooden spoon. Drain. Thaw spinach in the microwave. Squeeze out all excess liquid.

In a medium bowl, stir ricotta cheese, 1 cup of the shredded cheese, spinach, carrots and sausage (I was going to cook the carrots with the sausage to soften, but I forgot!)

Spread about 1/2 cup of the pasta sauce over bottom of baking dish. Fill the shells with the cheese sausage mixture. Arrange shells, filled side up, on sauce in baking dish. Pour remaining sauce over stuffed shells. Cover with foil and bake 40 minutes. Uncover, sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake uncovered 5-10 minutes longer until cheese is melted.



Enjoy!



(adapted from Eat Better America 2010 Calendar)