Baked Shells with Spinach and Prosciutto
Our local Italian Market carries Rao’s Pasta Sauces. It really does make a difference to use a good quality Vodka Sauce. Rao’s is a famous restaurant in East Harlem, NY; an Italian neighborhood. With 4 assigned tables and 6 booths, it’s one of the most difficult restaurants to get into. You either get invited by “someone” on their appointed night or they can “give” their table to you for a night.
Ingredients
35 jumbo pasta shells (41 CHO/56 gr dry) 197.67 CHO
TOTAL CHO 197.67 CHO
- 197.67 DIVIDED BY 35 SHELLS = 5.64 CHO EACH
Stuffing
- 6 cups (82 gr) baby spinach 1.5 CHO
- 1 tsp. olive oil 0 CHO
- ¼ cup (30 gr) red onion diced 2.5 CHO
- 3 oz (6 -7 slices – 90 gr) prosciutto, diced 0 CHO
- 1 ½ cup (115 gr) grated cheese Havarti, Cheddar or Gouda 0 CHO
- ½ cup (43 gr) grated parmesan cheese 0 CHO
- 1 cup (250 gr) cottage cheese 12 CHO
- 1 egg beaten 0 CHO
- 1 TBSP fresh chopped basil or 1 tsp. dried 0 CHO
- ¼ tsp. pepper 0 CHO
TOTAL CHO 16 CHO
- TOTAL WEIGHT 594 GRAMS
- 16 CHO DIVIDED BY 594 GRAMS = .026 CHO/GRAM
- 1 TBSP FILLING = 17 GRAMS ((.026 6CHO x 17 GRAMS) .442 CHO/TBSP
- EACH SHELL = (.442 CHO + 5.64 CHO) = 6.08 CHO/STUFFED SHELL
Sauce
- 2.9 cups 680 ml Rao’s Vodka Spaghetti Sauce (3 CHO/1/2 cup/125 ml)
TOTAL CHO 16.32 CHO
- 16.32 CHO DIVIDED BY 680 ML/GR = .024 CHO/GRAM
- 1 TBSP sauce = 16 grams (.024 CHO x 16 GRAMS) .384 CHO/TBSP
Instructions
- Pre Heat oven to 350, unless baking the next day.
- In large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta 8 minutes, until tender but firm. (Resist cooking for longer.) In a sieve, run shells under cold water until shells are cold. Set aside, cut side down on a towel.
- In another pot, bring salted water to a boil and cook spinach for about 2 minutes, until wilted. Drain well and run under cold water until cool enough to squeeze out most of the liquid. Chop spinach and set aside.
- Meanwhile in a skillet, heat oil and gently sauté onion for 3 – 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in spinach, chopped prosciutto, grated cheese of your choice, cottage cheese, parmesan cheese, beaten egg, basil and pepper.
- Spread 1 cup of Tomato Sauce in a large oven proof baking dish. (You may require 2 dishes, if so, spread 1 cup of sauce in each dish).
- Spoon 1 TBSP (17 gr) filling into each shell and arrange in single layer in baking dish. Spoon remaining sauce around shells and drizzle tops of shells with a little sauce. Cover with tin foil and bake for 30 minutes.
Cover with tin foil and refrigerate if baking the next day. Bake for 45 minutes.