Easy Homemade Shells and Cheese
I love shells with my cheese, but any pasta that can hold a sauce should do. Please see the substitutions section below the recipe for in-depth substitutions and explanations.
Servers 4 to 6 as a side dish.
Ingredients
1 (16 oz) package shell pasta
Water, amount varies per pasta used, read package directions
Salt for the water
1 can evaporated milk
2 cups shredded Colby cheese
splash of hot sauce, to taste
1/4 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp white pepper
1 pinch celery seeds
Equipment
1 pot, big enough to cook the pasta in without boiling over
1 wooden spoon, good for stirring something thick
1 colander
measuring spoons and cups
Directions
We start by setting out the cheese so it is close to room temperature when we need it. If shredding your own cheese do so now. Be sure to use the measuring cups to measure two cups. Liquid measuring cups (like the Pyrex with handles and spouts) are based on fluid ounces and therefore measure a different amount than the cups for solids (like you use for flour) be sure to use the right cup.
Now we read the directions on the pasta package and fill our pot with the correct amount of water. Add salt to help bring the water to a boil faster. Put pot on medium high heat and wait for water to boil. When water is boiling (Determined by a cooking thermometer or estimated by seeing bubbles rising to the surface.) add the pasta.
We subtract two minutes from the cook time listed on the pasta package. We remove it from the heat early to prevent it from getting overcooked while we mix in the cheese. If your package has no directions, fill with 1 quart of water for 16oz of shells. If your pasta is larger sized than regular shells, such as bow-ties and penne, then try 1 1/2 to 2 quarts. When we take the pasta off the heat strain in the colander right away. Do not run water over the pasta after it has been strained.
Turn the heat to low. Return the pasta to the empty pot. Add the can of evaporated milk. Return the pot to the cook-top.
Begin adding the cheese. We don’t want the cheese to clump up so we do this slowly. Add a handful of cheese to the milk and shells in the pot and use your wooden spoon to stir until cheese is no longer stringy. It should melt entirely before adding another handful. Repeat this process until there is no more cheese to add. When adding the final handful remove the pot from the heat (remember to turn off the burner) and continue to stir until texture is creamy and strings of cheese are no longer visible. You may get cheese clumping on your spoon, especially if using cheddar as it doesn’t like melting. Just scrape the cheese off the spoon on the edge of the pot and knock it back in the pot for more stirring.
Once your shells and cheese is creamy enough for you, add your spices and stir until well mixed.
Your shells and cheese are ready to eat!
Substitution
Water: I use plain old tap water. If for some reason you do not want to use your tap water (for example, your tap water is not potable) you can substitute bottled spring water or similar. You do not need distilled water as it contains no minerals, many minerals in water are necessary for a healthy diet. Bottled water is referring to the gallon or more jugs of water, using drinking bottle sized containers would be wasteful.
Pasta: Like I said earlier, I enjoy shells with my cheese. You can try many different pastas and cheese combinations. Bow-tie is easy to find and works well. Macaroni is the standard, of course. Penne can be used. Seasonal shapes also hold cheese well, though they may break apart a bit when mixing in the cheese. Also fun are letter shaped pasta.
Milk: Fresh milk has a tendency to curdle when hot, and that affects the texture and flavor of the cheese. Substitute fat-free evaporated milk if wanted. DO NOT substitute condensed milk, as that has been sweetened and is much thicker.
Cheese: When in a hurry you can use the packaged pre-shredded cheeses, they are usually about two cups.
If you like thicker cheese sauce use 1 cup of cheddar and 1 cup of Colby or Colby-jack or jack cheese. I like using the pepper jack cheeses with cheddar.
There are many combinations of cheeses you can try. Smoked cheeses add a nice depth of flavor. You can also do that with chipotle peppers. Which brings us to…
Spices: There are so many ways to flavor your shells and cheese, here are some of the combinations I have tried and liked. I also prefer kosher salt for its powerful flavor compared to table salt. You can also try sea salt instead of kosher salt where applicable.
Spicy: 1/4 tsp cumin; 1 tsp cayenne pepper; 1 tsp crushed jalapeño flakes; hot sauce to taste
German: 2 tsp fresh ground mustard seed; pinch kosher salt; 1/4 tsp fennel seeds, ground in a mortar and pestle; splash of sherry vinegar (We add the vinegar to set the heat level of the mustard, if you don’t want it spicy then mix all in together. The longer you wait to put the vinegar in the spicier the mustard will get.)
Variant One: 1 tbl Sriacha hot sauce; splash of dark soy sauce to taste; (Sriacha can be found in most grocery stores. It comes in a clear plastic bottle, usually with a rooster on it. It is topped with a green twist and squirt topper, like on yellow mustard containers. The contents should be bright red-orange, if they are rusty or dark red colored then it has usually sat too long and will be milder than the bright red-orange. Sriacha can also be found in Asian Markets.) (Dark soy sauce may not be available in your grocery store. It has a more powerful flavor than standard American soy sauces, and is a bit saltier. Low sodium soy sauce can be substituted if needed.)
Variant Two: 1/4 tsp nutmeg; 1/4 tsp white pepper powder or fresh ground; 1/4 tsp black pepper powder or fresh ground; 1/4 tsp allspice; splash of dark soy sauce to taste
Variant Three: 1/4 tsp fresh ground coriander, 1 (6oz) can diced chipotle peppers, or 2 dried chipotle pepper, stems removed, ground on a mortar and pestle, or chipotle hot sauce to taste; 1 tbs
