Pasta shells stuffed with a delicious mixture of sausage, beef, mozzarella and diced tomatoes. Then finished with a tomato cream sauce and more cheese. This is an excellent family dinner. Plus, instructions to make up to 2 days ahead!
Boil the shells until they are al dente, about 8 mins. Drain, rinse with cold water and set aside.Pro Tip: always boil a couple extra shells than you need. This accounts for any shells that tear or fall apart while boiling.
In the now empty pasta cooking pot, over low - medium/low heat, add the butter, once melted stir in the flour, making a roux. Whisk in the heavy cream. Bring to a very light simmer for about 1 minute.Pour in the marinara sauce. Stir to combine. Remove from the heat.
Meanwhile, in a skillet soften the onions in 2 tablespoon oil over medium heat, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, sausage, and ground beef, crumble while cooking until cooked through, about 10 minutes. Remove from the heat. Drain the excess grease. (I like to push the meat to one side of the pan, tip it to the side so the grease drains from the meat, then using tongs and paper towels sop up the grease.)Stir in the drained tomatoes. Set aside to cool for a couple minutes.
Add 1 ½ cups shredded mozzarella to the meat mixture and stir. The mozzarella may melt a little, but that is ok.
Assembly
Pour half the creamy marinara on the bottom of a 9x13 pan. Stuff the shells with the meat mixture and lay in the pan. You will have 20-25 shells.If you have extra meat mixture just add it to the pan around the shells.
Pour the remaining creamy marinara over top.
Cover the pan with foil.
Baking
Bake, covered, for 20 minutes.
Mix the parmesan cheese and remaining shredded mozzarella together.
Uncover and sprinkle the cheese mixture over top. Bake, uncovered, for 10 more minutes. Optionally - broil the last 2 minutes to brown the top.
Let cool for 10 minutes before serving.Serve 3-4 shells per person.
How To Make Ahead
Prep the shells just like the instruction above until it is time to bake in the oven. Instead cover with foil and pop in the fridge. Keep for up to 2 days.Then bake straight from the fridge, covered, 350 degrees for 25 minutes, then remove the foil, top with cheese and bake another 10 minutes.