Stuffed Pasta Shells (with Meat and Ricotta)

Instructions

1. 01

   Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

2. 02

   Set a large pot of water to boil. You'll need about 16-20 pasta shells. I like to discard any broken pieces and just cook the ones that are intact. Once the water is boiling, add some salt and cook the shells for about 10 minutes. Drain and rinse.

3. 03

   Brown the ground beef with onions and garlic. Season with salt and pepper, and garlic powder. Drain off any excess grease then add the marinara sauce, dried oregano and let simmer on low heat while you make the filling.

4. 04

   Add the ricotta cheese, egg, pesto, shredded or grated parmesan cheese, mozzarella cheese, garlic powder, dried oregano, and salt and pepper to a large bowl. Mix well until the cheese mixture is well combined.

5. 05

   Add about 2 cups of the prepared meat sauce to the bottom of a greased baking dish that's 9x13 inches. Stuff each pasta shell with about 1 tablespoon of the ricotta mixture. Place the shells in the pan in a single layer.

6. 06

   Top the stuffed shells with the remaining sauce, one cup shredded mozzarella, and ¼ cup parmesan.

7. 07

   Cover the pan with aluminum foil and bake for 15 to 20 minutes. Uncover and bake until lightly browned, about 5-10 minutes.