Today is a fantastic day! And why is that you ask? Because today one our best friends is officially home from his tour of duty in Iraq! It is wonderful to have him home again safe and in one piece. We’re looking forward to spending time together and becoming reacquainted. Thank you dear friend for your service and the time away from your family.
Anyway, in honor of his arrival home, I decided I needed to make the lucky family dinner today. After driving back and forth and becoming re-acclimated as a family, the last thing they needed to worry about was what was for dinner. Today I had the perfect recipe in mind to welcome the whole family home.
Four Cheese Stuffed Shells is a recipe that I’ve been playing with on and off. It first appeared in an issue of Cooking Light magazine, accompanied by a “smoky marinara.” I did not like the marinara, and the filling needed perking, but I liked the combination of cheese and spinach. So I used that recipe as a springboard for my own version of stuffed shells. The best part of this recipe is that it makes two casserole dishes of shells. You can keep one and give one to a neighbor or friend, or toss the second one into the freezer for another time. Cook once, and you get two meals out of this recipe. Here is a picture of my little shell soldiers lined up awaiting their bath of sausage-laden marinara.
My modified recipe for Four Cheese Stuffed Shells can be found in the recipe trove.
Coming up this week, I’ve decided to preview the recipes on the menu for Thanksgiving. I’ll tackle a recipe or two a day to help you plan your Thanksgiving feast. Unfortunately, there will likely not be any pictures, as I won’t be making them this far in advance, but I may do a trial run of one or two recipes.
Also this week, I have a rather fun announcement to make about another little project I’ve been working on, stay tuned!
What a blessing to have family back home! I think I remember seeing this recipe and wanted to try it! Maybe I’ll have it the next time we have our friends over…I know they both like Italian and cheese.
I know how wonderful it feels to have a loved one home from Iraq. Thank yor friend for me!
yay…it’s always a pleasure to have someone special coming home from Iraq!
i love italian food too but i don’t make the complicated ones!
Claire and Eliza, these are way easier than they seem. The hard part is boiling the shells- seriously. The filling just mixes together, and using a spoon to fill them takes no effort. And as a make ahead dish, it works perfectly.
The best part? Last night both kids cleaned their plates again! I surely didn’t expect them to even want to touch the shells, let alone polish them off… where did my kids go?
Thanks Robyn1007! I will pass on the message!!
Hi, these shells look so beautiful with the stuffing.you do have a beautiful blog going!