Recipe: Stuffed Shells with Crispy Pancetta (Bacon) and Spinach

I have been trying to plan more meals that warrant more leftovers so we can spend less and make less.  The enchiladas lasted about a week of leftovers cause instead of the regular two enchiladas I would have stuffed myself with, I had half of one with some black beans.  More food leftover and less calories to worry about burning off!

This time, we went the Italian route with some of Giada's Stuffed Shells, and they were so good!  They looked and tasted like restaurant quality food in both of our opinions.  I was a little hesitant about the nutmeg that is in there, but we both agreed it adds something very different to the dish.  There isn't a lot in there, but it goes a long way. I might even half the amount to 1/8 the next time so it's a bit less of that flavor.  Very good though. We also get all of our groceries for the most part at Target and they don't have pancetta, so I settled for it's poorer man's counterpart, bacon.  Also, we looked a few places for cream (Target, Walmart, and McKinney's) and all they had was half and half so I used that instead and it worked just dandy.  The recipe also asks for 2 lbs of spinach, but I just used a 10 oz container and it was enough. Everything tasted and looked great!  We only had about 4 shells per serving so these will last us a few days!  Give them a whirl, they won't disappoint.

Recipe courtesy of Foodnetwork.com