A while back I was killing time at a Walmart and decided to flip through their food magazines. Well I came across this delicious looking seafood lasagna and my mind was blown; I knew I had to make it. But what with moving and everything I ended up forgetting about it until recently. As you might know, though, we have been living in a hotel for the last 1.5 months and have no square or rectangle baking dishes. So instead of a lasagna I adapted it into a stuffed shell and voila! This actually ended up being a better option for us because there is a larger concentration of seafood in one bite which the hubby loves, AND this way you can control how much cream you are eating…because that is obviously where all of the calories are. Just pour a little on top…or a lot, no big.
Rating: 10/10
Why: It’s so good. I can’t even. There is absolutely nothing I would improve on.
Creamy Seafood Stuffed Shells
Makes 8-9 shells
- jumbo pasta shells, cooked and drained
- 2 green onions, finely chopped
- 1 Tbsp oil
- 1/4 c butter + 1 Tbsp, divided
- 1/4 c chicken broth
- 4 oz clam juice (1/2 bottle)
- 1/2 lb bay scallops
- 1/2 lb small shrimp (peeled & deveined/without tails)
- 1 can (6 oz.) white crab meat
- 1/4 c all-purpose flour
- 3/4 c milk
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp pepper, divided
- 1/2 c heavy cream
- 1/4 c grated Parmesan
- parsley for garnish (opt.)
Directions:
Melt 1 Tbsp butter and oil in a large skillet over med-low heat and saute onions until tender. Stir in the clam juice and chicken broth and bring the mixture to a boil. Once boiling, add in the shrimp, scallops, crab meat and 1/8 tsp pepper. Return to a boil, then reduce heat and let simmer for 4-5 minutes until the seafood is cooked through (shrimp is pink and scallops opaque). Drain the seafood, reserving the liquid. Set aside.
To make the sauce, set a large saucepan over med-low heat and melt the remaining 1/4 cup butter. Stir in the flour and mix until smooth. Gradually add in the milk and reserved liquid while continuously stirring. Sprinkle in the rest of the salt and pepper. Bring the sauce to a boil and cook for about 2 minutes until thickened, continuing to stir.
Remove the sauce from heat and mix in the heavy cream and Parmesan cheese. Take about 1/3 cup of the sauce and mix it in with the seafood.
To assemble:
Fill each of the shells with the seafood mixture. Take your serving plate(s) and spread a generous amount of sauce over the bottom. Top with the shells and sprinkle with parsley.
Adapted from this Seafood Lasagna recipe on Taste of Home.
what temperature do you bake and for how long?
Both the filling and pasta are cooked, so I don’t bake them at all. At the end I just smother them in sauce.
Can this dish be frozen?
I haven’t tried, but I would assume you could freeze it similar to a lasagna!
What is the size of the can of crab meat? 1/4 lb, 1/2 lb, 1 lb?
Hi Mark! I used a 6 oz. can here. Thanks for asking, reminds me to update the recipe and photos~
Excellent recipe!! The flavor is terrific. I usually don’t try new recipes on guests but this turned out perfect; pretty too. The shells tear easily so make sure you have extra water in the pot when boiling and you can add the torn shells to the plate then top with whole shells on top to cover up. Thank you so much for a good recipe that I will definitely will make again.
So glad you liked it! I really need to make it again so that I can update these pictures. Thanks for adding your tips!
I haven't tried, but I would say you can treat it the same as a lasagna, but with a shorter shelf life because of the seafood.
Can this be made ahead and reheated?
I'm glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for commenting~
I made this today, now I am not a big seafood eater, but I do enjoy shrimp, crab, bay scallops and lobster (which I added into the sauce). This dish was absolutely amazing! I love everything about it and it is super easy to make. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
Thank you for sharing this delicious pin with me! I made this for dinner and my family loved it! It just embodied the seafood flavor. I now know to make extra because it was such a big hit!!
I believe all the seafood I used was either fresh or thawed. But honestly the last time I made this I decided the sauce was too thick for my liking so I might even add a bit more liquid next time. So glad you liked it!
I have made this once before and it was DELISH! One question though, should the scallops be frozen or thawed when you the put them in the skillet to cook? I left them frozen last time and it made A LOT of liquid in the skillet (which I just used in the sauce anyway just didn't use all of it).
Sure I can do that, just give me a week and a half because I'm currently overseas
is there a way that you can post pictures of the products we need to use