Meat and Cheese Stuffed Shells

 Last night I had a great time in the red kitchen with my friends Courtney, Frankie, and Pam.  Something funny happened while we were cooking.  After Courtney laid all the shells out on the wax paper, I told her that I couldn't find the ground turkey that was supposed to go into the shells.  Her suggestion was to use something else that I had on hand.  I looked over at the Swedish meatballs that had been slow cooking in the crockpot for the last 4 hours.  I'm not quite sure which recipe to share now.

Easy Slow Cooker Meatballs

1 Bag of 2 lb. Meatballs
1 Can of Cream of Mushroom with Roasted Garlic soup
1 Cup of water or chicken broth or beef broth
(Mix all together on low for 4 hours.)

Sorry kids, I had to use your meatballs for the shells.  It's a good thing Frankie brought them over a large pizza from Pizza Cafe!  No, Jereme, you weren't supposed to scarf 2 slices down while the kids were playing Guitar Hero.

Other Ingredients for Shells:

• 1 Package Jumbo Pasta Shells - prepare as directed
• 8 oz. Mozzarella cheese 
• 1/2 Cup Parmesan Herb Panko Bread Crumbs
• Handful of chopped Parsley
• 1 Beaten Egg

(All ingredients can be found at Kroger Market Place)

Directions:

1. Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees.
2. After preparing shells, mix remaining ingredients with the meatballs in a bowl.  Mash with a potato or avocado masher.  (Another great Courtney idea.)
3. Stuff the shells with the mixture.
4. Spread half a jar of tomato sauce onto bottom of a large rectangle baking dish.  Place shells on top.
5. Spread remaining tomato sauce on top.  Sprinkle with shredded parmesan or asiago.
6. Cover with aluminum foil and bake 30 minutes.

Original Stuffed Shells

In place of the meatballs, brown some ground turkey with finely diced onions and garlic.  Drain.  Use in recipe in place of meatballs.