Mexican Stuffed Shells

Adapted slightly from The Way to His Heart

I originally found these stuffed shells on Pinterest many months ago, but for some reason never made them until recently.  Had I known what I was missing out on, I would have made them much sooner!  These were delicious!  Spicy, creamy, cheesy.... drool!  I made these the night before my husband was having all of his wisdom teeth removed, so he would have a nice, hearty meal before having to have soft foods for a while.  He devoured seven shells in one sitting!  They were that good!

I adapted the recipe slightly to try to make it less unhealthy.  I used a combination of lean ground beef and Boca brand “meat” crumbles and added a green pepper for some veggie presence.  I also used 1/3-less fat cream cheese and reduced-fat cheese (and cut back on the amount), plus reduced-fat sour cream to top them with.  I also used homemade taco seasoning to cut back on salt.  Even with all of my changes to lessen the guilt-factor, these shells were still amazing!  Make these.  Seriously.  Your taste buds will thank you.

Ingredients

1 lb ground beef
1 green bell pepper, diced
1 package low-sodium taco seasoning (or 2 T. homemade Taco Seasoning)
4 oz. cream cheese, softened and cut into small blocks
18 jumbo pasta shells
1 ½ cups salsa (I used medium-heat)
1 cup taco sauce (I used medium-heat)
¾ cup Cheddar cheese
¾ cup Monterey Jack cheese (I used Pepper Jack for added heat)
Green onions- optional
Sour cream- optional


Directions

Preheat the oven to 350°. Spray a 9×13-inch baking dish with cooking spray. Set aside.

Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add the ground beef and green pepper and cook until beef is cooked through and pepper has softened. Add taco seasoning and prepare according to package directions (if using homemade, add 1 cup of water, stir to combine). Add the cream cheese and simmer until cheese is melted and the mixture has thickened slightly, stirring occasionally to help the cream cheese melt. Set aside and cool (I didn’t, but it is easier to stuff the shells if the filling is cooled).

While the ground beef is cooking, cook the pasta shells according to directions; drain. Place shells on a cutting board so that they don’t stick together, or spray with a little cooking spray and keep in the (empty) pan they were cooked in.

Pour salsa into the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Stuff each shell with the filling mixture. Place shells baking dish open-side facing up. Cover shells evenly with the taco sauce. Cover with foil; bake 30 minutes.

Remove foil; add shredded cheeses. Continue to bake approximately 10 more minutes, until the cheese has melted. Top with green onions and sour cream, if desired.

Yields: 18 shells, approx. 4-6 servings.

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