Adapted PW Three Cheese Stuffed Shells with Meaty Tomato Sauce

This is definitely a recent Staples favorite. I "accidentally" adapted the recipe since I thought I had certain ingredients on hand when I had none. However, it turned out oh-so-yummy and will continue with my adaptions.

Ingredients

• 8 ounces, weight Jumbo Pasta Shells {I used double the shells and ended up with maybe 1/4 of the shells left}
• 30 ounces, weight Whole Milk Ricotta Cheese {I used cottage cheese and neither of us really care for ricotta}
• 8 ounces, weight Parmesan Cheese, Grated, Divided
• ½ cups Grated Romano Cheese {I used a combo Parmesan/Romano that comes pre-grated in a tub}
• 1 whole Egg
• 12 leaves Basil, Chiffonade {couldn't find fresh basil so I used dried}
• 2 Tablespoons Minced Parsley {doubled, maybe tripled this}
• Salt And Pepper, to taste
• 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
• ½ whole Medium Onion, Chopped
• 5 cloves Garlic, Minced
• ½ pounds Italian Sausage
• ½ cups Red Wine {okay, Kody totally made fun of me because all we had was red wine VINEGAR so I used it. It was SOOO good}
• 1 whole 28 Ounce Can Crushed Tomatoes
• 1 whole 15-ounce Can Crushed Tomatoes {I thought I had both of these tomatoes on hand but nope, so I improvised and found this super tomato-ey salsa on our shelf. It was perfect and actually didn't end up tasting so tomato-ey (which neither of us like)}
• 2 Tablespoons Sugar
• ½ teaspoons Salt
• 2 Tablespoons Minced Parsley

Preparation Instructions

Cook pasta shells for half the cooking time; make sure not to overcook. Drain and rinse in cool water. Set aside.

Heat olive oil in large skillet or dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onions and garlic and saute for a minute or two. Add Italian sausage and brown, breaking it up into small pieces as it cooks. Pour in red wine and let it cook for a minute or two.

Pour in cans of crushed tomatoes and stir. Add sugar and salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low. Cover and cook 30 to 45 minutes, stirring occasionally. Check for seasonings; can add crushed red peppers if you like a little heat.

In a separate bowl, mix ricotta, half the Parmesan, Romano, egg, salt and pepper, basil, and 2 tablespoons parsley. Stir until combined.

To assemble, coat the bottom of a baking dish with sauce. Fill each half-cooked shell with the cheese mixture. Place face down on the sauce. Repeat with shells until cheese mixture is gone. Top shells with remaining sauce. Sprinkle on extra Parmesan.

Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes, or until hot and bubbly.

Serve with crusty French bread.

Yum! Yum! Yum! We will definitely be eating this one again and again.