Stuffed Jumbo Pasta Shells

A quick and easy no meat main dish that is faster than stuffing manicotti, and  will make enough to serve your family as well as another.  Serve with green salad, garlic bread, and your favorite fruit for desert. This recipe calls for lowfat cottage cheese instead of ricotta, making it less expensive and just as delicious.  But be sure to press out any extra liquid from the cottage cheese.

 Cook jumbo pasta shells according to package directions
    (I used just over half of a 12 oz. box of American Beauty brand)
Drain and run under cold water.  Set. aside.  Do not over cook - with the baking time in oven they will be perfect if slightly undercooked.

Cook 10 oz. package of chopped spinach according to directions  and drain well.

 2 eggs  - crack into large bowl
      add to eggs:
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese
3 cups lowfat cottage cheese  - ( if it is watery press out liquid)
1 2/3 cup shredded Colby & Monterey cheese  (2 cups total)
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 Tb. dried parsley
1/2 tsp. dried basil
1/4 tsp. Italian seasoning
Stir altogether, adding the spinach last.

In a baking dish pour enough spaghetti sauce to for the shells to sit in.
I use the 26 oz. can of Hunts premium Garlic and Herb Pasta sauce
Stuff the cooked shells with cheese mixture and arrange in the baking dish.
Spoon some of the sauce over the top of each shell and then sprinkle 1/3 cup shredded cheese from the previous 2 cups - and also some extra Parmesan.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 to 35 min.   

Ukraine is not Russia

    We went to Ukraine last year to do some volunteer work.  Fell in love with the kids and a wonderful city named L'viv.  The city center is a world heritage site and has more of a typical European feel to the architecture than is seen in the eastern cities of Ukraine.  Spring and Fall are a great time to visit. Food and lodging are fairly inexpensive compared to the major cities in the neighboring countries to the west. Through USAID funds, some of the students we met while we were there, had the opportunity to travel to the US and become much better acquainted with the American legal system. We had a great time showing them around our community.  Even a trip to Walmart was an adventure for them.  However 2 of them became lost in the store and decided to go out and sit on the patio furniture to wait for the others, causing some confusion inside the store.  In the process of trying to locate them,  the intern who was not lost overheard one Walmart employee asking another  "Where is Ukraine" ?  A fellow employee replied...  "It's in Russia"!   Ksenia just rolled her eyes!  NOT! The language can be a challenge, but most of the younger students there have a good grasp of English.  Taking the time to learn a few basics with the Ukrainian language will help you have a better experience.

            So -2 things not to miss if you travel to L'viv:

A village which has been painstakingly re-created to portray a typical Ukrainian culture of long ago 

with a wonderful display of hand painted antique Ukrainian Pottery.

   

..and the Cemetery,with it's powerful grieving sculptures created to honor the dead.

                    ..

Women Need Validation

Nana and her better half have had the following conversation on several occasions in the past year.
 
    Me     "This has been a really hard year"!
    Him  " Yes but we have been very blessed"
    Me     "I know we have been blessed, but still, its been a very hard year!"
 
  Then he looks at me with this frustrated look, as if I should just move on from the really stressful memories and pain, and just focus on how blessed we have been.  Fiddlesticks.  Women don't just let go of anxiety and trauma that easily. We need to feel validated that our trials have been difficult, and even though we have triumphed through them, a little older and wiser, it's nice to have someone say,
 " You are right! It has been a difficult year,  but I'm proud of how you have handled all the challenges. 

    Most women are not married to psychotherapists,  they are married to mechanical engineers, math teachers, firemen, lawyers, and other analytical thinking men.  Maybe men are afraid that if they validate feelings,  the floodgates will open wide, with an outpouring of inexplicable issues that simply befuddle the male psyche. 

   But really guys  (not that any guys read this blog)  would it be that hard to simply look at her with your full attention,  say "yes- you are right", and then follow that up a sincere compliment about the job she is doing ? 
Validate feelings, compliment, then share your feelings.  So simple!