Lemon Basil Ricotta Stuffed Shells

We have a really nice system worked out for dinner preparation between DB~ and I, as I've mentioned a few times.  She finds an interesting recipe online (primarily through Pinterest) and I make it.  Pretty simple.

Last week, DB~ found two really good ones and we tried them out.  The first was for Lemon Basil Ricotta Stuffed Shells.  The recipe is pretty much just as it sounds, so I could theoretically just end this post here, but I'll expound for you my loyal reader(s).

I salted a pot of water and brought it to a boil.  Once it was at a roil, I added 10 large shells to the water for 12 minutes.  They need to be big in order for them to be properly stuffed later on.

While that was going, I spooned out approximately 1/2 cup of low fat ricotta cheese into a bowl.  To that, I added some chopped basil.  I took 1/2 of a lemon and squeezed its juice into the bowl (watch out to not add seeds) and then zested the skin of that part of the lemon in for more flavor.

I stirred that together and that was that.  When the shells were cooked and drained, I stuffed each of them with a portion of the mixture and put them in a 8 x 8 baking dish into a 375 degree oven for 20 minutes.

DB~ isn't a huge red sauce girl, plus I think red sauce would smother the delicate taste of lemon.  I made a butter and parmesean sauce that I spooned over the shells when they were done baking.  I roasted some red pepper strips in the oven at the same time as the shells were baking, as well.

This was a relatively easy dish to make, especially as a mid-week dish, and one that will make our list of recipes that we keep hanging on the side of the fridge.