Halloween Monster Mouth Jumbo Shell Pasta
Pasta shells stuffed with seasoned ground beef, bacon, onion, and tomato, then decorated as Halloween monsters with olive-and-carrot eyes, bell pepper fangs, a pickle tongue, and cheese-slice teeth. The filling is a hearty, familiar main dish, and the faces are what make it a hit with kids at a Halloween table.
6 servings · 20 min prep · 5 min cook
| 1 teaspoon vegetable oil | ||||
| 1 medium onion, chopped | ||||
| 4 slices bacon, chopped | ||||
| 1 pound ground beef | ||||
| 2 medium plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped | ||||
| 1/2 teaspoon salt | ||||
| 1/4 teaspoon black pepper | ||||
| 4 slices American cheese, chopped | ||||
| 18 jumbo pasta shells (cooked and drained) | ||||
| cheese slices | ||||
| Baby carrots | ||||
| green pimento olives | ||||
| red bell pepper | ||||
| small pickles | ||||
Steps in full
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly grease 13 x9-inch baking dish.
- Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and bacon; cook until onion is tender.
- Add beef; cook and stir about 5 minutes or until beef is no longer pink.
- Stir in tomatoes, salt and pepper. Stir chopped cheese into beef mixture. Spoon mixture into cooked shells; place in prepared baking dish.
- Cut carrots into very thin strips. Cut small slit into olives; poke one end of thin carrot strips into olives for eyes. Cut red bell pepper into fang shapes. Slice pickle lengthwise into tongue shape. Cut cheese slice into zig-zag pattern for teeth.
- Bake shells 3 to 5 minutes or until shells are hot; remove from oven. Decorate as desired with olive and carrot eyes, bell pepper fangs, pickle tongue and cheese teeth. Serve immediately.
