pizza stuffed shells
Pizza AND pasta in one meal?! A carb n' cheese lover like me's dream!
Ingredients
- 1 box jumbo pasta shells
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
- 15 oz can tomato sauce
- 1 tsp honey
- 1 cup fresh basil, roughly chopped, divided
- 2 cups whole milk ricotta cheese
- 1 cup fontina cheese, shredded
- 1 cup provolone cheese, shredded
- 2 tbsp fresh oregano, chopped
- 1 tsp dried fennel
- 1 cup vegetarian or regular pepperoni, divided
- 8 oz mozzarella ball
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
- Bring a large pot of pasta to a boil. Cook the shells according to package directions. Drain.
- In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium. Stir in the garlic until fragrant, about 60 seconds, then pour in the crushed tomatoes and tomato sauce. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Bring to a gentle simmer, cover, and warm for 10 -15 . If the sauce is acidic on your tongue, stir in the honey; taste and add another 1/2 teaspoon or so as needed. Stir in 3/4 cup of the basil.
- In a bowl, mix together the ricotta, fontina, provolone, the remaining 1/4 cup of basil, oregano, and fennel. Slice up 3/4 cup of the pepperoni and stir into the ricotta mixture.
- Fill each shell with a heaping 1 tablespoon sized portion of the ricotta filling. Nestle the shells into the sauce. Repeat with the remaining shells and filling.
- Slice up the mozzarella ball and arrange over the shells, then top with the remaining pepperoni. Bake 10-15 minutes until the cheese melts and and the sauce bubbles up the sides of the pan. So good. Serve with fresh basil and crusty bread!
Notes
*To make ahead: Prep the shells through the final step, but instead of baking, cover with foil and refrigerate up to 2 days in advance. Remove the foil when ready to bake. You may need an additional 5 minutes or so of baking time to warm the shells all the way through if baking straight from the chiller!