Mexican Stuffed Shells

     So guys, I am in trouble. I called my good friend to ask him if he wanted to go on a dinner date with me to a new Indian restaurant in town, because we both love Indian food--- him especially. Plus he is PCS-ing (military lingo:moving to another base) soon and I have to get in as much time as I can before he goes. He said he couldn't go tonight but he still didn't have any plans for dinner, so I told him I was probably just gonna eat a bowl of cereal or soup and call it a day. Well, I went to the grocery store afterwards, and decided to pick up the ingredients for a recipe I had decided I needed to make soon, these Mexican stuffed shells. I also bought a frozen dinner meal, a can of soup, and two boxes of cereal  (I love deployments!  ~said by no spouse ever). I completely intended on just making the stuffed shells another day this week when Kelsey, my friend who is living with me currently, was home to eat them with me.

 I totally intended to eat some delicious cinnamon swirl cereal. 

I totally made these shells instead.

and not only did I do this, but I also had another guy friend come over and eat it with me. Without inviting Justin.

It wasn't my fault! Or planned! I received a text wondering what I was doing tonight, and I figured well if he is bored and wants to come over too, might as well make a real dinner.

So I did. And it was delicious. And I have possibly broken Justin's heart.

If you want to break peoples' hearts, here's how you do it:

Mexican Stuffed Shells 

Ingredients:

1 pound ground beef (or ground turkey)

1 package low-sodium taco seasoning

4 ounces cream cheese

20 jumbo pasta shells

1 1/2 cups salsa

1 cup taco sauce

1 cup cheddar cheese

1 cup Monterrey jack cheese

For toppings:

3 green onions

Sour cream

anything else you may want, such as olives, cilantro, jalepenos, etc

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350°.

In a pan brown the ground beef; add taco seasoning and prepare according to package directions. Add cream cheese, cover and simmer until cheese is melted. Stir together and mix well. Set aside and cool completely.

While ground beef is cooking, cook the pasta shells according to package directions; drain. Set shells out individually on cutting board or baking sheet so that they don’t stick together.

Pour salsa on bottom of a 9×13 baking dish. Stuff each shell with 1-2 tablespoons of the meat mixture. Place shells in 9×13 pan open side up. Evenly cover shells with taco sauce. Cover dish with foil and bake for 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes, add shredded cheese and bake for 10-15 more minutes with the foil removed. Top with green onions or olives if desired. Serve with sour cream and/or more salsa.

-Sweet Sarah 

Found at The Girl Who Ate everything