Pesto Chicken Stuffed Shells

Dayum! Look at those amazing stuffed shells - overflowing with the most incredible, cheesy filling of ricotta, mozzarella, shredded chicken, and pesto. There's so much flavor going on... The top is drenched with marinara (and more cheese, of course). These are the BEST stuffed shells you will EVER have. Confident about that.

I'm not kidding, these shells reign supreme. And I know this from experience. My boys like shells, but (truth), stuffed shells aren't their favorite way to enjoy pasta. My guess is, it's the ratio of filling-to-pasta. Most fillings are too heavy, and there's not enough pasta to compensate. That's just my theory; but after serving these to the boys, I'm pretty sure I'm right. Why? Because they ate the ENTIRE casserole. Every last shell. I was expecting to put leftovers in the freezer. But there weren't any.

And here's why: The filling is LIGHT. I used part-skim ricotta and just enough mozzarella to make the filling gooey, but not heavy. And the pesto, it adds a refreshing blast of herby flavor, without weighing the dish down. Plus, I used chicken, not beef, a lighter choice all around.

About the chicken: The recipe calls for cooked chicken, so you have a few options here. You can use leftover baked or roasted chicken breasts from a previous meal. Or you can shred some store-bought rotisserie chicken. Or, if you're starting with raw chicken, you can poach boneless or bone-in breasts in boiling water for about 8 to 10 minutes, until they're cooked through (bone-in breasts will take slightly longer). I used poached chicken in my batch; I actually pulled frozen breasts from the freezer and dropped them right in the boiling water. Frozen to poached in about 12 to 15 minutes. Fabulous.

About the pasta shells: I used 6 ounces, or half a package. This recipe makes the perfect amount of filling to stuff 6 ounces of cooked shells. And that's plenty for 4 people. If you want to cook the whole package of shells, simply double the filling ingredients and make two casseroles (freeze the second one for up to 3 months). OR, you can save the extra cooked shells and stuff them with fun ingredients; they make great "vessels" for chicken salad, tuna salad, and mixed bean salads - all delicious options for school and work lunch boxes.

Pesto Chicken Stuffed Shells

6 ounces jumbo pasta shells (1/2 package; see note above)
15 ounces part-skim ricotta cheese
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
2 tablespoons prepared pesto
1 teaspoon dried basil
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 cups cooked chicken, cubed or shredded (see note above)
1 1/2 cups marinara sauce of choice
Thinly sliced fresh basil leaves for serving

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Cook the pasta shells according to the package directions. Drain and arrange the shells on a large piece of foil (this prevents them from sticking).
Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine the ricotta, 1/2 cup of the mozzarella, pesto, basil, garlic, onion, salt, and pepper. Mix well. Fold in the chicken.
Pour about 1/2 cup of the marinara sauce in the bottom of a large baking dish (enough sauce to cover the surface with a thin layer). My pan was about 9x12 inches.
Stuff the shells with the chicken mixture and arrange them in the prepared pan. Pour the remaining sauce over top (I like to pour the sauce in rows, so you can still see the chicken filling). Top with the remaining mozzarella cheese.
Cover with foil and bake for 15 minutes. Uncover and bake for 5 more minutes, until the cheese melts.
Top with basil and serve.
Serves 4