Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Cheese and Spinich Filled Manacotti

Here's a family pleasing meal. All, even the kids love this one! This one freezes quite well, so just whip up a double batch and freeze one for later!

Cheese and Spinach Stuffed Manacotti{or shells!}
1 Box of manacotti noodles or jumbo shells
1 large container of ricotta cheese
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
2 eggs(beaten)
1-2 boxes frozen chopped spinach(thawed and drained)
1 cup mozzarella cheese(shredded)
1 cup cheddar cheese(shredded)
1-2 tsp garlic powder
Boil your noodles 5-7 minutes until just barely tender. If you cook all the way they will break when you try and stuff them.
While cooking noodles mix remaining ingredients(reserve 3/4 cup of cheeses)
Drain noodles. Stuff filling in each shell. I have no problem just using a spoon, but you can put filling in a large freezer bag, cut the corner and squeeze into shells if you prefer.
Top with spaghetti sauce(search this blog for a cheap, easy homemade version!)
and reserved cheese, and bake uncovered for 30 minutes at 350.
To save money you can buy a smaller container of the ricotta and a small container of cottage cheese and combine those. I prefer the texture of the ricotta, so prefer to at least mix the two, rather than use straight cottage cheese.

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