Turkey And Artichoke Shells

Stuffed pasta shells are excellent because they allow you to eat your protein while cutting down on your carb intake. Rather than serving yourself a hardy bowl of pasta, you can serve yourself a stuffed pasta shell which can be filled with meat and veggies. The recipe below is not only delicious but rather light because it uses turkey meat instead of beef.


Ingredients 

  • 24 large pasta shells (12-ounce)
  • 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 1yellow onion, chopped
  • 3 garlic cloves, chopped
  • 1 lb ground turkey (preferably dark meat)
  • salt & fresh ground pepper
  • 1 (8 ounce) package frozen artichokes, thawed and coarsely chopped
  • 1 (15 ounce) carton whole milk ricotta cheese
  • 34cup parmesan cheese, grated
  • 2 eggs, lightly beaten
  • 1cup fresh basil, chopped
  • 2 tablespoons fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
  • 5 cups marinara sauce
  • 1 1cups mozzarella cheese, grated

Directions 

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
  2. Bring a pot of water to a boil for the shells. Cook according to package directions; drain.
  3. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic and cook until onion is tender and beginning to brown, about 3 minutes.
  4. Add turkey, salt, and pepper, and cook until meat is light golden and heated through, stirring occasionally.
  5. Add artichoke hearts and stir to combine. Remove from heat; allow to cool.
  6. In a large bowl, combine the cooled turkey mixture with ricotta cheese, Parmesan cheese, eggs, basil, parsley, salt, and pepper. Stir.
  7. Cover the bottom of a 9×13-inch baking dish with 1 cup of marinara sauce. Holding a shell in the palm of your hand, stuff with large spoonfuls of turkey mixture, about 2 tablespoons per shell. Place each shell in the baking dish. Keep working until dish is full; you should have about 24 shells.
  8. Drizzle remaining marinara sauce over shells and top with grated mozzarella.
  9. Bake shells until warmed through and until cheese begins to brown, about 25 minutes.

Recipe source: Food.com

Photo source: jeffreyw

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