I’ll be first to admit that I love fusion recipes. These French Onion Soup inspired stuffed pasta shells turned out so dang delish. I seriously can’t wait for you to try them!
When it comes to comfort food… pasta usually pops up at the top of the list. Cozy, cheesy, warm-up-your-belly kind of bliss. Ya know? We enjoy a noodle-tactic meal at least once a week. Other festive favorites include Roasted Acorn Squash and Sausage Fettuccini, this Quick & Easy Italian Wedding Soup, and my High Protein Homemade Mac & Cheese.
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INGREDIENTS FOR THIS RECIPE:
While I utilized Springer Mountain Farms Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts for this recipe, you can also make this with their Boneless Skinless Chicken Thighs. I like to place the chicken in the slow cooker for a couple hours before I’m ready to prep dinner, but you can also pan fry them, bake them, or whichever method you prefer before shredding. I always opt for Springer Mountain Farms, as their dedication to quality of life and a nutritious diet results in a simply superior chicken for you and your family to enjoy.
SHREDDED CHICKEN:
- Chicken Breasts
- Granulated Garlic
- Onion Powder
- Chicken Boullion
FOR THE STUFFED PASTA SHELLS:
- Unsalted Butter
- Sweet Onions
- Italian Seasoning
- Salt + Black Pepper
- Garlic Cloves
- Jumbo Pasta Shells
- Ricotta
- Egg
- Swiss Cheese
- Parmesan
- Unsalted Butter
- All-Purpose Flour
- Chicken Stock
- Dry Sherry Vinegar
- Heavy Cream
- Mozzarella Cheese
- Italian Breadcrumbs
- Fresh Parsley
A couple notes: First, I prefer to shred my own cheese whenever I can. It melts more smoothly and has a stronger taste than pre-shredded. Second… Sherry Vinegar is tangy, acidic and adds an absolutely crave-worthy flavor to the saucy part of this recipe. Don’t confuse this with sherry wine, which is much sweeter. I do not recommend substituting or swapping those here. If you can’t find sherry vinegar at your local market, you can purchase my favorite one on Amazon.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:
WHAT TYPE OF ONIONS ARE BEST FOR THE “FRENCH ONION SOUP” INSPIRATION IN THIS RECIPE? Traditionally French Onion Soup is made with thinly sliced yellow onions. However, I think sweet onions taste best. They’re larger than the yellow variety and provide more flavor when caramelizing.
DO I USE WHOLE MILK OR SKIM MILK RICOTTA? This is totally up to you, as both will work here. I prefer the creaminess and flavor of whole milk ricotta but if you want to lighten things go ahead and opt for the skim milk. My opinion: when it comes to stuffed shells… go for the good stuff. Whole milk ricotta for me.
THIS MAKES A LOT OF STUFFED PASTA SHELLS, SHOULD I USE TWO DISHES? I usually use one 9×13 baking dish for about 3/4th of the stuffed shells and bake those right away. This larger portion will feed 4 adults. Then I stuff the remainder shells and place them in a smaller square baking dish to freeze for later. The smaller portion will feed two adults (which is ideal as a quick weeknight meal for just me and my hubby). However, if you want to cook these all at once I’d use a larger baking dish and feel free to double-layer the shells if needed.
MORE COMFORT FOOD MEALS YOU’LL LOVE:
Dinner Ideas For Fall (a cozy line up for all season!)
Sausage and Homemade Béchamel Pumpkin Lasagna
High Protein Homemade Mac & Cheese
Tuscan Butter Bean Skillet with Crusty Bread Dippers
Yellow Squash Casserole with Shredded Chicken
Cheesy Jumbo Lump Crab Hot Spinach Dip
Super Cozy Potato and Leek Soup
White Lasagna Soup with Chicken
Classic Fettuccini Alfredo with Peas and Pancetta
Beef and Mushroom Lasagna Soup
VIEW ALL RECIPES BY CLICKING HERE!
- 1.25 lbs. Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts
- 2 tsp. Granulated Garlic
- 2 tsp. Onion Powder
- 2 tsp. Chicken Boullion
- ½ Stick Unsalted Butter
- 3 Large Sweet Onions, thinly sliced
- ½ tsp. Italian Seasoning
- ½ tsp. Salt
- ¼ tsp. Black Pepper
- 3 Garlic Cloves, minced
- 16 oz. Jumbo Pasta Shells
- 16 oz. Ricotta
- 1 Egg
- 4 oz. Swiss Cheese, shredded
- ¼ cup Grated Parmesan
- 1 tbsp. Unsalted Butter
- 2 tbsp. All-Purpose Flour
- 3 cups Chicken Stock
- 1 tbsp. Dry Sherry Vinegar
- ¾ cup Heavy Cream
- ½ cup Italian Breadcrumbs
- 1.5 cup Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
- Fresh Italian Parsley, for garnish
- Season the chicken with granulated garlic, onion powder and chicken bouillon. Cook chicken by desired method; this can be 4-hours on high in a slow cooker, pan-fried, or baked. Once fully cooked, shred with two forks and set aside.
- Melt butter over medium heat in a large skillet. Add the onions, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Stir occasionally, cooking for about 25 - 30 minutes, or until the onions have caramelized. Turn off the heat, stir in the minced garlic, and set aside.
- While the onions are cooking, cook the pasta shells in boiling water according to the packaged directions. Drain, and set aside to cool.
- Mix together the ricotta, egg, Swiss cheese, grated parmesan, half of the caramelized onions, and chicken together in a large bowl. This will be your filling.
- Stuff each shell with the filling, trying not to overstuff. Place in a casserole dish and continue until each shell has been stuffed.
- Preheat the oven to 400F.
- Add 1 tablespoon of butter to a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once melted, add the flour and continuously whisk together for 1 minute. While whisking, slowly add the chicken stock and then the dry sherry vinegar. Bring to a boil, turn off the heat, and whisk in the heavy cream. Fold in the remaining onions to create a sauce.
- Pour sauce over the stuffed pasta shells. Sprinkle with Italian breadcrumbs and mozzarella. Bake uncovered for 25 minutes, or until a golden crust has formed on the top. Serve immediately with Italian parsley.
NOTES ON THIS RECIPE:
- Cooking / Prep times will vary, depending on the method you cook the chicken. If pan frying or baking, I’d cook the chicken at the same time as caramelizing the onions. If using the slow cooker, start the chicken a couple hours earlier and shred before assembling the stuffed shells. You can also use leftover rotisserie chicken if you prefer.
- If you’re like me and you like to make a 4-person batch + a 2-person batch to freeze (scroll up earlier in the blog post to read about that), follow directions up until step 7 for the 2-person batch to freeze. Then pour over the sauce, allow to cool slightly, and cover with foil to freeze. When you’re ready to eat it, simply preheat the oven to 350F. Remove the foil and sprinkle with breadcrumbs and mozzarella cheese. Place the foil back on, bake for 35 minutes, or until the internal temperature has reached 165 F. Remove foil and crank the heat up to 450F. Bake for an additional 10 minutes, or until a golden crust has formed. Serve immediately.
- Any leftovers should be kept in a sealed container, refrigerated, and consumed within the next 2 days.
This post is sponsored in partnership with Springer Mountain Farms. Per the usual, all opinions here are mine alone and I would never recommend a product or ingredient that I did not immensely enjoy myself. Thank you for supporting the brands that support SliceOfJess.com!
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