Tasty Tuesday: Easy Stuffed Shells

When the craving for hearty, filling, cheesy Italian food strikes, it's hard to look away. But this recipe is packed with fresh spinach, which totally cancels out the three different cheeses, right?.

If you want to lighten this up, grab the low-fat cheese options and don't eat as many shells at one time as I did.

Ingredients:

1 box, large shells

16 oz marinara sauce

12 oz ricotta cheese

1 cup of shredded or grated mozzarella

2 cups of finely chopped spinach (frozen would probably work too - just be sure to drain it well)

1/2 cup of shaved parmesan

Directions:

1. Boil your shells - remember to be gentle when pouring them in so that you don't break too many. After they're cooked, set them aside to cool. Go ahead and preheat the oven to 350.

2. Combine your spinach, ricotta, mozzarella - mix well. Season with salt and pepper.

3. Grease a baking dish and line it with your favorite marinara sauce. Create a good base for the pasta to sit in, but be sure to save some sauce for the topping.

4. Gently begin filling the shells. I used a regular spoon because it fit best in the noodle. Lay them in the sauce in rows. (You can put them much closer to together to fit more than in the photo below.)

5. Top the shells with a bit of sauce and sprinkle with shaved parmesan. Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes - until the sauce starts to bubble and parmesan is melted.