Last night my best friend from high school, Barbie, and her mom Lottie came to dinner. I get to see Barbie for about 10 minutes once a year. She lives and works in Ithica, NY so not only is Nashville something of a haul, she is trying to see her mom and other relatives to say nothing of traveling with an entourage (kids).We never have time to really hang out, so last night was such a treat. I was nervous as a cat to cook for Lottie, hands down the best cook I know, plus Barbie has been a vegetarian forever so I wanted to show off my ability to make a great dinner that she would love. AND I had the usual Sunday house full of football watching guys who simply will not give up on the Titans. So the challenge - a dinner to impress Lottie and Barbie, keep it vegetarian, and feed a bunch of big guys. The answer, a large casserole of homemade manicotti, plus grilled veggies, a fall salad, and that cranberry and ginger dessert from a former blog. I think it worked, plates were filled, refilled, and cleaned, recipes were requested, conversation was lively and none of the guys said, “where’s the beef.” The manicotti was a great choice, someone commented, “it’s really just fancy mac n cheese”. Well it’s a little more than that, but yeah, pasta stuffed with four cheeses, spinach, and artichokes covered with a long simmering tomato sauce would have to work hard to not be a crowd pleaser. That was a dinner to linger over. Barbie and I always have so much to talk about and so little time. My husband says we sound like a record played at the wrong speed. It was hilarious to see the guys’ expressions as we reminisced about high school. Yes boys, the best music is still from our generation. Ha! I already can’t wait for Barbie to come back and visit.
Manicotti with Cheese, Spinach, and Artichokes
Ingredients
Sauce*
1 large onion, diced
5 cloves of garlic, minced
1 Tbsp olive oil
28 oz can of tomatoes, undrained
6 oz can tomato paste
1 tsp basil
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp salt ( more to taste – don’t be shy with tomato sauce)
1 Tbsp sugar
pinch of red pepper flakes
½ cup red wine
Filling
1 box manicotti shells (my box had 15)
2 cups ricotta cheese
2 cups mozzarella cheese
4 oz cream cheese
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese (plus extra for topping)
1 egg
1 tsp basil
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp salt
½ box of frozen chopped spinach **
½ package frozen artichoke hearts, chopped (This is optional – I wanted to try something special.)
Directions
Make sauce. In a large pot over medium high heat, saute onions and garlic in olive oil until softened.
Add remaining ingredients, lower heat and simmer slowly, stirring occasionally for an hour.
*I doubled the sauce for a large crowd.
Make filling. Combine all cheeses, egg, and seasoning in a large mixing bowl. Add spinach and artichoke hearts and mix to blend.
Boil shells for two minutes less than package directions and drain. They will be easier to stuff if they are not fully cooked.
Lots of people probably have genius ways to stuff the pasta shells, but I like to do it with my hands, messy, but less chance of splitting the shells.
Layer sauce with stuffed shells and more sauce.
Top with a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese.
This can be refrigerated until ready to bake.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and bake for about 45 minutes until bubbling and browned on top.
Bonus Recipe
**Use leftover spinach, artichokes, and cream cheese to make a dip. Add Parmesan cheese, garlic salt and a healthy splash of sherry. Bake until heated through and serve with your favorite crackers!
