Tuna Stuffed Shells

I found this recipe at Betty's website. I love stuffed shells and haven't had them in a long time. And I thought it was pretty neat that they were stuffed with tuna instead of the typical ground meat and cheese.

Tuna Stuffed Shells (serves 4, the stuffed shells are 5 points a piece, and the vinaigrette is 2 points a serving)

Ingredients:

16 uncooked jumbo pasta shells

Tomato-Basil Vinaigrette
2 large tomatoes, seeded, chopped (2 cups)
2 tablespoons chopped onion
2 tablespoons chopped fresh or 2 teaspoons dried basil leaves
2 tablespoons olive or vegetable oil
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper

Filling
1/3 cup fat free mayonnaise or salad dressing
2 tablespoons chopped fresh or 2 teaspoons dried basil leaves
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cans (6 oz each) albacore tuna in water, drained, flaked
1 large carrot, shredded (1 cup)
1 small zucchini, shredded (1 cup)
1 small onion, chopped (1/4 cup)
Lettuce leaf

1 . Cook and drain pasta shells as directed on package. Rinse with cold water; drain.

2 . While pasta is cooking, in medium bowl, mix all vinaigrette ingredients just until blended. Set aside.

3 . In another medium bowl, mix mayonnaise, 2 tablespoons basil and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Stir in tuna, carrot, zucchini and onion until evenly mixed. Fill each pasta shell with 1 rounded tablespoon tuna mixture.

4 . Line serving platter with lettuce leaves. Arrange shells on lettuce. Serve with vinaigrette.

This recipe was really easy to put together. Just a little bit of dicing, shredding, and boiling water. That's not difficult at all. I tried one of my shells with a bit of the vinaigrette and decided that I didn't care much for it. I prefer the shells as is. Now the husband on the other hand really enjoyed the dressing. But either way, these were a nice change of pace, and I liked the fact that the tuna wasn't hot.