Baked spinach-and-ricotta pasta shells

Fill giant pasta shells with creamy ricotta and spinach for a simple vegetarian meal on the table in under an hour

Ingreadient:

• 175g giant pasta shells
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• a pinch dried chilli flakes (optional)
• 200g spinach, chopped
• 125g ricotta
• ½ lemon, zested
• 400g jar tomato and chilli pasta sauce
• 25g parmesan (or veggie alternative), finely grated

Directions :

1. Heat the oven to 190C/fan 170C/ gas 5. Cook the shells following pack instructions, but drain when they are still a little al dente as they will cook more in the oven.
2. Heat the olive oil in a pan and gently cook the garlic (and chilli, if using) for 2-3 minutes. Stir in the spinach and cook until wilted. Stir in the ricotta and lemon zest, then season well.
3. Spoon the tomato sauce evenly across the bottom of a baking dish. Use a teaspoon to pack each shell with the spinach and ricotta mixture, then put into the dish, making sure the shells are evenly spaced apart. Dot any left-over mixture on top.
4. Sprinkle with parmesan and bake for 20-25 minutes or until bubbling and golden.