Simple & Delicious Italian Inspired Recipes with Bertolli® Pasta Sauce

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Bertolli®. The opinions and text are all mine.

I have to admit, Italian food is one of my weaknesses. So when I found out that Kroger was having the ‘Taste of Italy‘ program in stores, I was excited! From September 23rd through October 11th offering shoppers a simple and delicious way to use the classic Bertolli® taste that you love with a range of culinary applications.

What I love about Tuscan-inspired food, is that you can make it as simple or complex that you want – which is great for when you want to get creative, or if you are in a time crunch and need to get a tasty meal on the table. Two of my favorite meals to make with Bertolli® Pasta Sauces are a simple Alfredo pasta and also then also stuffed shells. There’s soo many things that you can do with pasta sauces, you’re options are unlimited.

My favorite stuffed shell recipe is fresh spinach and ricotta with the Bertolli® tomato & basil pasta sauce.

Prep time: 15 minutes | Cook Time: 35 minutes | Total time: 50 minutes

Ingredients:

16 jumbo pasta shells + a few extra shells to allow for breakage while pasta is cooking

1 ½ tablespoons Bertolli extra virgin olive oil

2 teaspoons garlic, minced

4 cups (packed) fresh spinach leaves, roughly chopped

12 oz. ricotta cheese

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

½ cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus extra for serving

1 large egg

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon ground black pepper

1 ½ cups Bertolli tomato & basil pasta sauce

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Cooke the pasta al dente, according to directions on packaging. Drain and set aside.
2. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and cook until it begins to brown (less than 2 minutes). Add the spinach and cook, stirring occasionally, until the leaves begin to wilt but still bright green in color. The spinach should be reduced by half. Remove from the heat and let cool.
3. In a mixing bowl, stir together the spinach, ricotta, mozzarella, Parmesan, egg and salt and pepper until thoroughly combined. Pour ½ cup of the marinara sauce into the bottom of a shallow 9×9 baking dish. Stuff each pasta shell generously with spinach and ricotta mixture, and place in baking dish.
4. Cover with remaining sauce and bake covered with aluminum foil for 25 minutes. Remove the foil and continue baking until the top begins to brown and the sauce begins to bubble, another 10-15 minutes. Serve warm with a sprinkle of Parmesan.

Note: This dish can be made a day in advance. Keep refrigerated until ready to cook – use same temperature, but add 10-15 additional minutes to cooking time.

If you don’t have quite enough time to prepare a dish like the stuffed shells above, you can make a simple Alfredo Pasta using the Bertolli Alfredo Sauce. We love penne pasta, and just add a salad or some garlic bread, and dinner is ready in a flash!

What are some of your favorite Tuscan-inspired recipes??

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Bertolli®. The opinions and text are all mine.