Northern Italian Pasta Shells

By CarolM-2

Ingredients

• 3 pkgs. frozen chopped spinach
• 3 lbs. ground beef or turkey
• 2 8 oz pags. cream cheese, softened
• 2 lg. onions, chopped
• grated Parmesan
• salt and pepper
• 2 jumbo eggs
• 1 (1 l) pkg. jumbo pasta shells
• 2 cups tomato sauce (your own or ready-made)

Preparation

Step 1

Place frozen spinach in a strainer and run under hot water until thawed.
Squeeze all of the water out, and place in a large bowl.In a lg. saute pan, cook the meat until browned. Drain, reserving 2 Tbsp. fat. Put meat into same bowl with spinach. Stir in the cream cheese until well blended. Saute the onion in the fat until transparent. Transfer onions into bowl with other ingredients and stir to combine. Add cheese, salt and pepper, to tast and mix well. Let cool, then add the eggs.
The filling can be made up to 1 day in advance and refrigerated until ready to use.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Cook pasta shells in boiling, salted water until al dente. Drain and cool to the touch. Stuff the shells with mixture. Place in a lg. baking pan, cover with sauce. Cover with foil and bake for about 1 hr.