Stuffed Shells with Cherry Tomato Sauce

2025 Update:  I’ve used so many recipe cards during the last almost seventeen years of this blog, and the recipe card for these Stuffed Shells with Cherry Tomato Sauce was missing from this post, so it has been updated.  I decided to leave the rest of this post as is from 2016.

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I woke up yesterday morning at 4 a.m. to get ready for work and I had the worst stomach ache.  Which is weird, because that hardly ever happens.  But I know I have to eat something because once I get to the shop I have to hit the ground running packing everything up.  I had a toasted English muffin with a schmear of peanut butter.  After a while my stomach settled down.  Weird!  It was a pretty sunrise when I got to the shop.

I was doing a new market for me, so I was unsure of how it would go.  The previous record for this market was $1006, so that was my goal to beat that.  This one ran from 7 a.m. until 1:00 p.m.

And for the first hour and a half.  Ghost town!  We were situated right by the Metra station, but hardly anyone walked by.  A Frenchman who sold hummus and olives next to me told me that he keeps telling the market director that this market shouldn’t open before 9, but they won’t listen.  So I walked up and down the street with my breakfast burrito demo and took “vendor” orders for $5 each instead of $8 to get the ball rolling.  I walked back with 7 orders.

I hardly ever sell our mini cheesecakes, so I was determined to sell at least half that I had, and I did.  I did a demo of our mini mixed berry gluten free cheesecake it it was a hit.

I did the bulk of our sales between 10:00 and 12:00 and ended up with a new sales record – $1126!  I am a tad bit competitive, no?!

After work, I headed to Hannah’s work to get lunch.   My stomach was feeling fine and I was really hungry.  She made me their “El Dorado” sandwich.  Grilled turkey panini with chipotle sauce, bacon and cheese.  I ate half and am calling it 10 points because it was on sourdough bread.  So good. 

We were talking about what to make for dinner, when I remembered that I had ricotta cheese and baby spinach at home.  I am still participating in the Food Waste Challenge, which is going really well.  It does make you think to use up what you have vs. going to the store a few times a week.  Well, I did have to stop at the store for large pasta shells.  That’s one type of pasta I rarely keep stocked in the pantry, even though it’s one of Hannah’s favorites.  As I was walking through the store, I stopped in my tracks. 

Halloween candy!  Not only is it out, but it’s also on sale, which is weird to me.  I love fall, and Halloween, but when the temps are 50 degrees and there are leaves on the ground.  Not when it’s close to 90 degrees outside.

My friend Alison grew a garden this year and has a bounty of tomatoes.  Like three large Trader Joe’s paper bags filled with tomatoes!  She and her family are on vacation this week, so she asked if I could use them.  Why yes I can.  Actually I am going to be making giant batches of my base pasta sauce and then can it for them to use later on.  They should at least get a benefit from their hard work of tending to a garden!

Aren’t these gorgeous?!  Normally I would have cheated and bought sauce to make it easy on myself after a long day at the market, but after I took an hour nap I caught my second wind.  This cherry tomato sauce is so easy, it really could be made on a weeknight.

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Stuffed Shells with Cherry Tomato Sauce

Yield: 4 servings, 5 shells with 1/3 cup sauce

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 15 minutes

For the sauce:

• 2 cups cherry tomatoes
• 1 cup passata (or tomato sauce)
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
• 1 tablespoon onion powder
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 tablespoons fat free half and half

For the Stuffed Shells

• 20 large shells, cooked according to package instructions
• 2 cups part skim ricotta cheese
• 2 cups baby spinach
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 12 slices turkey pepperoni
• salt and pepper to taste

To Garnish:

• 2 ounces part skim mozzarella cheese
• 1 tablespoon dried parsley (or fresh parsley)

Print

Ingredients

• Make the Sauce
• In a large skillet or saucepan over medium heat, add the cherry tomatoes, passata, garlic, water, crushed red pepper, Italian seasoning, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, and black pepper. Simmer for 8–10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the cherry tomatoes soften and begin to burst. Using the back of a spoon, gently mash some of the tomatoes for a thicker texture. Stir in the fat free half and half, adjust seasoning if needed, then reduce the heat to low while you prepare the filling. You can also make the sauce creamier by placing ingredients into a blender or food processor.
• Prepare the Filling
• In a food processor, combine ricotta cheese, spinach, garlic, crushed red pepper, chopped turkey pepperoni, salt, and black pepper. Blend until well combined.
• Stuff the Shells
• Cook shells according to package directions until al dente. Drain and rinse under cool water to make them easier to handle. Spoon the ricotta mixture evenly into each shell (about 2 tablespoons per shell).
• Assemble and Bake
• Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C). Spread about 1/2 of the sauce on the bottom of a 9x13-inch baking dish. Arrange the stuffed shells over the sauce in a single layer. Pour the remaining sauce evenly over the shells. Sprinkle with shredded mozzarella cheese and parsley. Bake for 20 minutes. Optional: Finish under the broiler for 5 minutes.
• Serve
• Let the shells cool for 5 minutes before serving. Garnish with extra parsley if desired.

Did you make this recipe?

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I made this with five shells as a serving, but after plating, I realized 4 would be plenty and it was.  Each plate with the 5 shells comes in at 11 smart points.  I had 15 points going into dinner, so it’s all good.

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When I was at the market trying to drum up breakfast business with the other vendors, I came across Standard Market, and they had the most amazing bread display.  I didn’t have my phone with me, but if I work this market again, I am definitely going to take one.  When Hannah was little I used to make her rainbow bread for her sandwiches.  I would make four different loaves of bread, all a different color, then use 1/4 of each colored dough to make my loaf and bake it.  I haven’t thought about rainbow bread in years.  So imagine my surprise when I saw rainbow bagels!  They sold me a 4-pack for $4 (vendor price!) and I surprised Hannah with them.

This morning she is working at the coffee shop.  I woke up at 7:30 this morning to a text of her breakfast – she made a bagel sammie with the rainbow bagel.

The dogs ended up sleeping with me last night.  They do hog the bed, but I don’t mind.  In the morning, Roman is extra snuggly as he wakes up.  So cute!

I have WW this morning.  I didn’t go last week, and not sure what the scale will say.  I always do a sneak peak weigh in at home on WI day, but I stepped on it right out of bed, and the battery is dead and I don’t have any replacements.  Oh well, it is what it is.

Since I worked yesterday I have today and tomorrow off this week.  I have lots of pasta sauce to make and canning to do – among the usually laundry list of things to do.  Make it a great day!

New Here?

If you are new here, welcome to My Bizzy Kitchen! I started this blog 16 years ago to document my recipes and daily life, never imagining it would one day become my full-time career. After losing my husband nearly 10 years ago, I navigated the hardest chapter of my life while still finding joy in cooking and sharing my journey.

In December 2020, I took a leap of faith and left my 30-year career as a legal secretary to pursue My Bizzy Kitchen full-time, a decision that changed my life.

Two years later, in October 2022, I was able to hire my daughter, Hannah, full-time, which brings me so much joy. Now, My Bizzy Kitchen is more than just recipes.  It’s about embracing life, finding balance, and making healthy living sustainable and fun.

Follow along for delicious recipes (mostly Weight Watchers friendly!), realistic weight loss tips, and my daily adventures on Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, and Facebook (@mybizzykitchen). Let’s get bizzy in the kitchen together!

Looking for more Weight Watchers inspiration? Check out my chicken recipes!