Year of the Noodle:  Week 50

I have recently become addicted to Words With Friends on my iPhone.

Yes, I know I’m about two years late to the party.  I don’t care.

My sister keeps kicking my butt.  The other day she played “queued” on a double letter tile and a triple word score.  It was like 76 points.  How do you compete with that?

I wish I knew more two letter words.  And seven letter words.  You know what is a seven letter word?  Stuffed.  As in stuffed shells.  Pasta filled with sun-dried tomatoes, cheese and tofu, then covered in tasty tomato and pepper sauce.

Tofu?  That’s right.  It turns out well and has less fat.  But if you have a fear of tofu, you can substitute ricotta.

That’s another seven letter word.  If only I ever got the right letters, this recipe would have me totally set.

At least I always have qi to fall back on.  Except I taught that to my sister and now she uses it against me.  Sigh.  Oh well, she can’t get the Q every time.

Ingredients

Stuffing:

1/4 cup boiling water
6 sun-dried tomatoes
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup (1 ounce) grated fresh Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 (14-ounce) package reduced-fat firm tofu
1 egg, lightly beaten
18 cooked jumbo pasta shells

Sauce:

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 3/4 cups chopped onion (about 1 large)
1 cup chopped green bell pepper (about 1 medium)
1 cup chopped red bell pepper (about 1 medium)
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup red wine
2 tablespoons no-salt-added tomato paste
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 (28-ounce) can organic crushed tomatoes
2 tablespoons grated fresh Parmesan cheese

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°.
To prepare stuffing, combine 1/4 cup boiling water and sun-dried tomatoes in a small bowl; let stand 20 minutes or until tomatoes soften. Drain and finely chop. Combine tomatoes, mozzarella, and next 6 ingredients (through egg) in a food processor; process until smooth. Spoon 2 tablespoons stuffing into each shell. Set stuffed shells aside.
To prepare sauce, heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion, bell peppers, and garlic; sauté 6 minutes or until tender. Place onion mixture in a bowl.  Add wine; cook until wine is reduced to 2 tablespoons (about 3 minutes). Stir in onion mixture, tomato paste, and next 5 ingredients (through tomatoes); bring to a simmer. Cook 25 minutes or until slightly thick.
Spread 2 cups sauce over bottom of an 11 x 7-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Arrange stuffed shells in a single layer in pan; top with remaining sauce. Sprinkle mozzarella cheese over sauce. Bake at 350° for 40 minutes or until bubbly.
Source: Cooking Light (slightly adapted)