Further Adventures in Cheese

I didn't mention this in my last post, but the primary reason that I made that lemon basil ricotta cheese was so that I could eventually use it in the creation of stuffed shells. And not just any stuffed shells, dear readers, but Lemon Basil Ricotta Stuffed Shells in Champagne Cream Sauce. It sounds fancy because it is! I used the recipe I found on Simply Scratch, and the results were pretty good. Here are some pictures of the process:

Cooking shells while trying to make sauce 

Shells in sauce 

Shells in sauce with parmesan 

Shells in sauce with parmesan after baking 

Close-up shot 

Dinner

Overall, I'd say the shells were a success. Although I do think the sauce was a little too champagne-y. I don't think enough of the alcohol cooked off. Also, this is a recipe that really benefits from having either a sous chef or the foresight to measure out all your ingredients before you start. I tend to do it as I go, but especially when making the sauce, I really needed everything to be ready. I was all alone, trying to whisk constantly, and then I had to stop whisking to open my bottle of champagne and measure things. And this was a very complicated bottle of champagne! I didn't get a picture; just take my word for it.

Anyway, there you have it. The real gem of this dish was the cheese. I'll definitely be making that again. The sauce was a bit heavy, but I might give it another go sometime. And to keep this from becoming exclusively a food blog, maybe I'll write about something non-culinary next time. Cheers!