A Favorite Stuffed Pasta Shells with Ratatouille Sauce
Stuffed Shells in Ratatouille Sauce can be an easy and fun weeknight dinner or Friday night treat!
We love the fresh taste of our classic ratatouille and favorite Heirloom Tomato and Eggplant Lasagna. But there’s something festive about stuffing those delicious ingredients into jumbo pasta shells.
Served with a seasonal green salad, it makes a perfect and even hardy dinner.
I love to garnish each plate… or shell… with a fresh sprig of parsley and liberally sprinkled with fresh chives. Although, of course, a beautiful basil leaf would also be amazing.
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These pasta shells are stuffed with a seasoned ricotta cheese. However, if you’re not a fan of ricotta, a small curd cottage cheese can also work. I’ve tried both and while I prefer ricotta, it can be interchangeable.
For those nights when you’re looking for something soul satisfying, crowd-pleasing, filling, and a bit different… try these Stuffed Shells with Ratatouille Sauce.
A Favorite Stuffed Pasta Shells with Ratatouille Sauce
Stuffed Shells with Ratatouille Sauce
Description
For those nights when you’re looking for something soul satisfying, crowd-pleasing, filling, and a bit different… try these Stuffed Shells with Ratatouille Sauce.
Ingredients
Ratatouille Sauce
- 16 uncooked jumbo pasta shells
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 cup chopped onion
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 small Japanese eggplant, chopped (about 1 1/2 cups)
- 1 medium zucchini, chopped (about 1 cup)
- 3/4 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
- 2 cups marinara sauce
- salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
- 1/2 cup part skim mozzarella, shredded
Cheese Stuffing
- 16 oz part skim ricotta cheese
- 1/3 cup Parmesan cheese
- 1 egg
- 1 tablespoon fresh parsley, minced
- pinch of nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
Garnish
- Fresh parsley and chives
Instructions
Preheat oven to 375°F. Coat a 2-quart baking dish with cooking spray. Set aside.
Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt. Drain.
Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic; saute 2 minutes. Add eggplant, zucchini, and tomatoes. Saute another 2 minutes or until fork tender. Add marinara sauce, salt and pepper. Remove from heat.
Add ratatouille sauce to the prepared baking dish.
In a medium bowl combine ingredients for Cheese Stuffing. Spoon the cheese mixture into each pasta shell and place open side up, in a single layer, onto of the ratatouille sauce in prepared pan.
Loosely cover baking dish with foil and bake for 35 minutes. Remove foil from baking dish, add mozzarella cheese and bake for another 5 minutes or until cheese has melted. Garnish with fresh parsley and chives.
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