How to Make Italian Comfort Food Like Cheesy Stuffed Shells and Eggplant Pecorino

Hosts Julia Collin Davison and Bridget Lancaster make a streamlined recipe for Cheesy Stuffed Shells. Next, equipment expert Adam Ried reveals his top pick for 13x9 broiler-safe baking dishes. Finally, test cook Bryan Roof shows Julia how to make Eggplant Pecorino.
Get the recipe for Cheesy Stuffed Shells: cooks.io/3hqL797
Get the recipe for Eggplant Pecorino: cooks.io/3hjFyJe
Buy our winning baking dish: cooks.io/2LnYmXi
Buy our winning skillet: cooks.io/2mpf2RA
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[@joh4647]

My Italian Mum makes this.. it is the bomb!!!she also puts chicken mince and ricotta in the filling aswell ❤❤❤❤

[@kkstangret5773]

THAT EGGPLANT!!!! This is how I remember the old country Italians making eggplant. It’s glorious. If you’ve never had it this way, try it. Believe me, it’s exquisite, Can be easily adapted to gluten free.

[@nealtrecartin8788]

I really enjoy watching Bridgett and Julia cook

[@sisgaia]

I love the idea of filling the shells uncooked. No worry about them tearing while you are filling.

[@jhbrown1010]

I just made the egg plant Parmesan/ Pecorino. Off the hook!!!!! My mother is Sicilian and I have been making a version of this dish for 30 years (she taught me how to cook). This recipe and technique is how you should be making egg plant Parmesan. Being from Sicily I prefer Pecorino anyway.

[@debbieschnader]

I made the stuffed shells tonight and WOW! The filling was so creamy, it was amazing. I used passata and did add some Italian seasoning as the sauce was a bit bland. Also, I made a slurry of 1/2 tsp of baking soda and water to "eat" the acid so no heartburn afterwards. Definitely a keeper recipe!! Thanks!

[@chriscaughey1103]

Excellent for those of us who only have one person to cook for! I live alone and could not find a way to do it and now I can!

[@wordsculpt]

I wasn't aware until a found a second hand copy (library bookstore), but ATK puts out an annual "Cooking for Two " cookbook. Wonderful! Just right for one person for 2 to 3 meals! And the adjustments take so many things into account.

[@Isabella66Gracen]

Wow!! Both dishes look fantastic! And much easier than I would have imagined.

[@thihal123]

Agreed! Both look delicious!!!

[@mrkattm]

I have done the no boil on all the baked pasta dishes and is not so good, the pasta comes out gummy at best. For optimal results par boil the pasta for about a third of the required time, unless you have the taste buds of a billy goat then proceed as you see fit.

[@jellybean6778]

You only boil dried fillable pasta for a few minutes shy of al dente. They are easy to fill with spoon or piping bag and finish cooking in the sauce as they bakeand they don't need to bake as long

[@briankepner7569]

You're killing me. That looks so awesome. Thanks for making it look simple and easy.

[@azwife35]

I agree!!!

[@msoperator510]

What dish are you speaking of? Shells or Eggplant, they both look so delicious.

[@azwife35]

@@msoperator510 Sorry, the stuffed shells. It's my absolute favorite dish.

[@OfficerA1C5.9Dovetonsils]

Julia & Bridget, I loved the simplicity of this dish & also Brian's quick & deft assembly of it. Quite a triumph of skill & economy ! All the Best. All the Time. RMH/Ohio

[@joeysausage3437]

These ladies rock! So many tips.

[@joyforeveryoung]

OMG. I can't wait to try the Roast Beef and Eggplant Pecorino recipes!! Julia and Bryan are so inspiring. As a true Foodie Home Cook, I think this Site is the absolute best!!!!! Thank you Cook's Country!!!!!

[@richardstiffler225]

Looks great! Thanks for simplifying what other sites make complicated.

[@joycemiraglia280]

I Always make stuffed shells with a meat mixture...yum 😋

[@CC-iv7uj]

Yes i prefer meat sauce myself and would add even half pound or a pound of geass fed ground beef to my sauce.

[@kimberleegullbailey2547]

Both recipes look unique and delicious!!!

[@cherylanderson3340]

You're so right about some stuffed shells fillings often being too blah. And I'm sure this baked eggplant will be a favorite for me. TY for discovering & sharing these recipes.

[@JustAThought155]

This is a great episode. Thank you!

[@keithwhittier9085]

Been watching your shows for some years, now. I love it!!! I even have one of your cook-books.

[@tomlompa6598]

Love the stuffed shells. I always believed that there are alternatives to water. Since this is tomato sauce, I'd use wine. Why dilute when you can add flavor. 😋😋😋😋

[@carimyfashion]

Hi. I love your recipes. Thanks.

[@brendaaymond9751]

I'm excited to try both the stuffed shells and the eggplant dishes. Thank you for sharing.

[@mattsanchez4893]

Thanks for the cornstarch suggestion for the stuffed shells!

[@eileenvucelich7877]

I always enjoy learning new techniques and watching u do wonderful thi go with foods

[@275carreira]

2 great vegetarian dishes. Way to go! Thanks!

[@eckankar7756]

I made the sloppy joe recipe from another ATK episode recipe. I had some extra so froze it. When I made this I added about a cup of the sloppy joe to the cheese filling and stuffed the shells. Wow, only way I'll make stuffed shells again. I've made stuffed shells with the cheese filling and a meat sauce, but stuffing the shells with the sloppy joe filling and the cheese just takes it up a couple notches.

[@robins5880]

Good tip!

[@nikolassaraiva9088]

I'm going to try that. Stuffed Philly Cheese Steak shells anyone?

[@eckankar7756]

@@nikolassaraiva9088 oh, yeah. with a béchamel sauce.

[@TheBeefTrain]

I grew up with all my old Italian women relatives ALWAYS salting the eggplant before cooking and letting it sit for about an hour before squeezing out the liquid. It definitely helps remove a lot of bitterness.

[@eckankar7756]

My mom soaked it in clabbered milk, or milk with vinegar to get the bitterness out.

[@bostonrailfan2427]

it’s the norm for any large eggplant especially male eggplants

[@sunspot42]

They've bred most of the bitter out of eggplant in the past 50 years. Salting isn't required.

[@austinonaustin6870]

Magnificent recipe for stuffed shells! Tried it tonight and it came out perfectly. I've got a new respect for fontina cheese now. :-)

[@Amahl1971]

Both look great and I will be sure to try them!

[@justsayin5609]

So happy to see you using Romano, which is only what was ever in our house. Parmesan is NOT equivalent. Families from the south of Italy prefer it, while the north goes for Parm.

[@dr.osamaalshareef8846]

Fantastic and very clever recipe...

[@deborahvasquez402]

Delicious dish thank you.

[@aloneagainnaturally5976]

I have the eggplant in the pan right now following right along looking good thanks everyone at America's Test Kitchen

[@jaunrodriguez12]

I CAN'T WAIT TO TRY ALL OF THE DISHES💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓💓

[@inproper3952]

The stuff d shells look bomb! I would make this recipe no question! Thank you for all the tips!

[@Greatbiggrandma]

I can’t wait to try it! I’ve always steered clear of eggplant!

[@katydidiy]

OMG! Ingenious! Thx ATK🍷

[@cerveza2297]

🍷👍

[@CC-iv7uj]

Shells look so so good! I want to try them...

[@JENNYCOOK]

A delicious dish, a great kitchen aid. Hope you will introduce more delicious dishes, good kitchen tools for us to know more about your country. Thank you 😘😘

[@kbunky69]

Please check your link on the baking pan it links to Pyrex glass 3 qt pan .

[@karenross3457]

I found the Mrs Anderson on Amazon only it was $74.00 dollars and not the mid thirties like they posted. I will stick with my pyrex.

[@justj3508]

My pyrex cracked up and broke under high heat.

[@wordkyle]

@@karenross3457 That price increase may have been as a result of this review!

[@karenross3457]

@@sandrah7512 I rarely broil because of the mess.

[@julieweiner1623]

I can’t wait to make both

[@tappychef1098]

Love this stuffed shell recipe. I absolutely love eggplant, we would congregate in the kitchen around my mom frying eggplant in her cast iron skillet for eggplant parm & steal the eggplant as it drained on paper towel! One of many happy memories of my childhood, miss my mum everyday!❤

[@cerveza2297]

My kids did the same. We usually ended up with a very small casserole.

[@RWernsing]

My gosh looks delicious!

[@kennethkauzlaric8948]

I have never cooked eggplant before, but I will be making this along with the shells. Thanks.

[@connielabdalla9567]

I have a good receipe for stuffed shells im gonna make it this week....plus the eggplant receipe ill make too

[@jangiffin1528]

I love your show!!!!!!! Xoxoxo ❤

[@gk6993]

Great recipes. Gonna do at least one of these

[@surgicaltechcrafter2169]

Brilliant stuffed shells

[@Stlmgnolia]

Brian,fantastic looking redo,this I have to try

[@jman4817]

Oh my! We did your ziti from years ago and it was awesome! Can't wait to try this!!!!! Mmmmmmmmm!

[@vaughnguertin4746]

,,,

[@carolscott3868]

my mouth is watering when you ate the shells

[@julieenslow5915]

Impressive stuffed shells and so easy! Much less work, I can attest to that!

[@cattigereyes1]

I love eggplant!

[@imari2305]

I love both stuffed shells and eggplant parmesan. I like adding a meat sauce to my stuffed shells and serve with a salad and garlic bread.

[@gailstacy1340]

I love these. I sure wish you would give a side dish and a wine suggestion.

[@eirikastokes9652]

I'm not ATK but for the eggplant pecorino we served a simple arugula salad tossed with oil, salt and pepper, and served it with a nice oaky Chardonnay :)

[@frankpmarsala7682]

My mom always used Romano with the eggplant . . . beats parmigiana :)

[@blorac9869]

TYVM¡

[@MsKK909]

Thanks, ladies! I’m going to make this…. I just ordered some disposal piping bags…

[@nicholashilton2514]

Woo! Shout out to Cleveland area, my hometown!

[@mr.a822]

Yummy ❤

[@rickzzz1]

The link for the lasagna pan links to the wrong pan, Pyrex vs. Mrs. Anderson’s. The price for Mrs. Anderson is actually around $75.

[@CantankerousDave]

You’re right. This was probably filmed two years ago, so it’s possible that its price went up in the meantime.

[@Stlmgnolia]

@@CantankerousDave so mrs anderson's took advantage of the review and raised the price!1 reason to buy a different brand

[@raycreveling1583]

@@Stlmgnolia Amazon does a form of surge pricing so, if something becomes popular the price goes up.

[@davesvoboda2785]

@@raycreveling1583 Even Walmart has it for $75. It's not Amazon's fault. I think ATK made a mistake.

[@borbetomagus]

This video is from 2019. Bryan Roof wrote an article on La Campagna in 2019 that is currently on Cooks Country's website. Amazon had the lasagna pan available for around $37 in 2019. Demand for the pan (after this segment) has caused the price to rise to $75 since then. When it was first offered in 2012 it appears some were selling the pan for around $23 and it was under $40 until 2019. Looking through the photos in Bryan Roof's article, one photo shows La Campagna chef Carmella Fragassi making the dish with disposable aluminum pans (for a catering order), which might be sufficient for most people. I would guess that Bryan didn't slice the eggplant as thin as Carmella does, to cut down on the time frying the eggplant slices and making the tomato sauce and cheese last in final preparation.

[@ellenryan5507]

Can't wait to try the eggplant. Now if I can find the right size and is good shape.

[@KenDanieli]

Not pre-boiling pastas for baking is at least 10 years old. I've been making very thinly sliced eggplant parm for years. Maybe even thinner than that. I don't cut it lengthwise. The pleasure is cutting through and eating 10 or 12 slices stacked. It's a very cool texture.

[@lisaletto7337]

SAVED

[@ninaclanton6868]

Thanks for the beautiful cheesy pasta recipe. Which garlic press are you using?

[@benjaminsagan5861]

The shells look/sound delicious! But I'm always bummed out by eggplant/aubergine recipes that seem that good, since I'm allergic. 😭

[@stacym735]

Both dishes look so good! It makes me sad, because I developed an allergy to eggplant over the years, so I'll have to skip that one. But the stuffed shells will be on the menu soon!

[@stacym735]

(Also worth noting: that winning baking dish is now $80 on Amazon. So much for it being the least expensive!)

[@tzubin99]

Yeah, definitely going to try the stuffed pasta shells this upcoming fall or winter. I liked the short segment on choosing a broiler-safe pan. Not a big fan of eggplant, so I'll probably not do it.

[@holly_kay5570]

The baking dish in the link to Amazon isn't the same baking dish they recommended in this video :(

[@karenross3457]

I did find the one they recommended . Only it was a lot more expensive.

[@karenughoc2849]

My grandmother had the best egg plant parmesan recipe who she got from her sister inlaw who was Italian. Your link for the pan is showing pryex not Anderson.

[@ydv1984]

Pasta lucious

[@BobGeogeo]

Absolutely, Eggplant Parmesean is best as an eggplant dish with tomato + cheese layers to complement it -- not the other way around Thanks for staying meatless in these. Mashed capers can work as a substitute for anchovies. Maybe someone knows an even better option.

[@douglasrandall8805]

Must wait until the weather cools down to fire the ovens up.

[@eckankar7756]

I'm in Arizona, it's 113 degrees today, not baking much till fall.

[@tomsaaristo6294]

I can't resist par-cooking the pasta shells to season them (mostly). They are still firm enough to fill and I like the texture after baking. I WISH that Mrs Anderson pan was $37. Maybe on eBay

[@tony_25or6to4]

I brush the eggplant with olive oil, sprinkle with salt, pepper, and a little of oregano. Then I put them on sheet pan and put them under the broiler. No breading. No frying.

[@crimsonfancy]

This is the way. Can also be grilled as efficiently on a griddle skillet inside or charcoal fire outside given the most time.

[@Vitoandolini13]

I made the stuffed shells. 👍

[@JmeJ83]

Could you freeze portions of it after cooking, then microwave it to warm it up? Looks yummy btw 😋

[@fjp9]

yes.

[@sylviaseri4235]

Mrs Anderson winning casserole dish dies not come up. What comes up is a glass Pyrex dish. Can you provide tge correct link?

[@michellerenee5028]

Question. How to make those without becoming lard a&& and thick waistline. White pasta is a killer

[@enyab.6939]

America’s Kitchen and Cook’s Country cooking for one or two.? Thanks.

[@annieh2900]

How does she not get any food on her white blouse? Amazing

[@sherryduva5263]

That looks delious the closest to my Dad’s recipe except it has the skin on. We take it off

[@frankpeter6851]

I would slice the eggplant pole to pole so an individual stack would be a smaller portion

[@savannahhunter1457]

I would love to know how Carmella benefits from having her recipe on ATK. The publicity is probably great for business but considering what ATK can make from ads and subscriptions I hope some of that goes back to her as the inspiration for this recipe.

[@chrissinger24]

Who owns a recipe? Watch Adam’s video on it

[@senior_ranger]

Please come to my house and make that eggplant!!

[@mkehammond7277]

Instead of water. You can use vegetable broth/stock.

[@ChadAmI80]

Anyone know which sauce pan she is using at 1:57 ?

[@joshhufstedler1003]

I always wondered what do they do with the food that they make?

[@Leguminator]

I saw on an interview with Jack Bishop they have a big refrigerator where they put leftovers in small containers and employees can grab stuff to take home. Not a bad job perk!

[@elenam4694]

FYI the link to the winning baking dish shown above isn't correct.

[@ririxixi]

It's difficult to find that size shell pasta in Asia

[@caseykittel]

Eggplant Romano!

[@PatriciaSouza-kx2pr]

Coloca a legenda em português

[@wa2k99]

I don't like ricotta at all but the variety of cheese sounds like it would help

[@frankgerlach5059]

"See you later alligator", don't for get the rest of it, "after a while, crocodile.

[@STEVEARABIA1]

Just watching this made me gain 5 lbs.

[@mousiebrown1747]

The baking pan has doubled in price on Amazon -- but Amazon sells a duplicate for the price stated on Cook’s Country. And nobody is surprised .....

[@NBK1122]

I wonder if the stuffed shells recipe would work with manicotti

[@tundrawomansays5067]

Yes, it would. You might need to cook it a few min. longer but it’s great.

[@seannelson29]

The link to winning baking dish now goes to a glass pyrex instead of the ceramic version shown in the episode.

[@MooseMeus]

FEED ME!