FASTA PASTA SHELLS FOR DINNER

RECIPES THAT MAKE YOU FEEL LIKE MARTHA STEWART ONLY SMARTER AND BETTER.

Once in a while it's nice to have something just a little different when it comes to pasta rather than the same old same old spaghetti, fettuccine, mac and cheese kind of thing. Enter jumbo pasta shells and you're on your way to a fabulous dinner creation that isn't that much work and that everyone will rave about. The nice thing about this recipe is that you can make it for a large crowd or for just a few--it all depends on how many pasta shells you decide to cook. If you think it's just too much trouble to make these pasta shells then think again. And, as I said before, it's rather nice to serve something different on the pasta front. In fact, pasta as a whole has to be the most creative and innovative food ever invented because it comes in so many different sizes and shapes and you can have so many different toppings and fillings for it. So hooray for whoever invented pasta in the first place and thanks to the person who came up with jumbo pasta shells in the second place because they are quite amazing and lots of fun to fill and to serve. As with any recipe, you can make your own changes if there is something you don't like or want to put in of your own that you think will make it better. That's the nice thing about cooking--you can change it however you want if the original isn't quite what you like. So here's to pasta and here's to Fasta Pasta Shells. I hope you like them.

This is a small casserole so if you are cooking for a larger group, you can increases the ingredients as needed.

12 jumbo pasta shells

large pan of boiling salted water

1 tbsp. oil (this is to keep the pasta shells from sticking to the bottom of the pan)

1/2 lb. hamburger or sausage

1/2 medium onion, grated

1/2 green pepper, grated

2 cloves of garlic, chopped fine

1 tsp. garlic powder

1 tsp. salt

1 tbsp. fresh chopped basil

4 oz. cream cheese

3-4 fresh tomatoes, skinned and chopped

1/2 bottle Contadina Pizza Squeeze

1 C. grated Mozzarella cheese

1. Bring the pan of water to a boil and add the pasta shells. Boil until they are cooked through but not falling apart, approximately 20 minutes. Drain and set aside to cool.

2. Brown the meat in a skillet. Drain off the excess fat. Grate the onion and add to the meat. Squeeze excess moisture out of the onion before adding to the browned meat.

3. Mince the garlic and add to the meat.

4. Grate the green pepper and add to the meat mixture.

5. Chop some fresh basil (1 tbsp.) and add to the meat. Now is when you add the cream cheese. Stir to blend then remove from the heat.

6. Skin and chop up the fresh tomatoes.

7. Set them aside until you have filled the pasta shells.

8. Fill the pasta shells with the meat mixture. Place them in a greased or sprayed oven-proof casserole dish. Spread the diced tomatoes on top of the pasta shells.

9. Squeeze out 1/2 of the bottle of the Pizza Squeeze over the top of the casserole.

10. Spread the grated mozzarella cheese on top of everything. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until the cheese is bubbling and slightly browned. Serve immediately. Serves 2-4. Enjoy!