Shells With Crispy Pancetta and Spinach - Giada De Laurentiis

Submitted by greyghost

"LOVE Giada De Laurentiis . . . this is one of her great recipes. LOTS of spinach- can cut in half if you are not a huge fan- but yummy none the less!"

 

• Ready In: 50mins
• Ingredients: 14
• Serves: 4-6

ingredients

• Shells

• 1 (12 ounce) package jumbo pasta shells
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1⁄2 lb thick cut pancetta, cut into 3/4-inch cubes
• 2 lbs frozen spinach, thawed and drained
• 1 (15 ounce) container whole milk ricotta cheese
• 1 cup grated asiago cheese
• 1⁄2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
• 1⁄4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

• Sauce

• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 cup cream
• 2 cups grated asiago cheese, plus 1/4 cup
• 1⁄4 cup chopped fresh parsley
• 1⁄4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

2. Shells:

3. Boil large pot of salted water over high heat.
4. Add pasta and cook until tender but firm to bite, 8-10 minutes.
5. Drain pasta.
6. Warm olive oil in large skillet over medium heat.
7. Add pancetta, cook until lightly golden, about 5 minutes.
8. Remove pancetta with slotted spoon to large bowl, let cool.
9. Add spinach, ricotta and asiago cheeses, pepper and nutmeg to bowl.
10. Stir to combine.
11. Stuff shells with about 2 TBS. of spinach mixture.
12. Place shells in large buttered baking dish.

13. Sauce:

14. Melt butter in medium saucepan.
15. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute.
16. Add cream and simmer.
17. Turn heat to very low and add 2 cups of asiago cheese, parsley, and pepper.
18. Stir until cheese is melted.
19. Pour sauce over shells.
20. Top with remaining 1/4 cup asiago cheese.
21. Bake until golden on top, about 25 minutes.
22. Remove and serve immediately.

Reviews

[hannahportlock]

One word.....FOODGASMIC!!! :-D

 

[SiouxChef]

I made this tonight. Wonderful. I followed Kitty Kat Cook's suggestions with the cheese. It worked beautifully. I was putting this here for safe keeping. I was happy to see it already here! I got 25 shells. LOVELY.

 

[Kitty Kat Cook]

I actually watched this episode and it looked so yummy on screen. I made it last night, I loved it. Thank you for posting it. This makes about 20-30 shells. One last tip: in an effort to save $$, instead of just asiago cheese, I bought the Kraft asiago, romano, parmesan grated cheese, one container is almost enough for the sauce and the shells; it's just about 1/4 cup short.