Chicken and Cheese Stuffed Pasta Shells

It's been a long day.  Not bad at all, just ... long.  After some long days, all I want to do is get a Chipotle burrito bowl and pretend my stove is broken.  But sometimes cooking dinner helps.  It's orderly.  It's calming.  You get to eat when you're done.  Cooking is highly therapeutic for me, and today it was just what the doctor ordered, especially since what I ended up with was pure unadulterated comfort food.

Chicken and Cheese Stuffed Pasta Shells
1 box jumbo pasta shells
15 oz part skim ricotta cheese
8 oz low-fat cream cheese, softened
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, diced and cooked
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Garlic, Italian seasoning, red pepper flakes - to taste

Cream Sauce
1 cup fat free half and half
1/2 stick unsalted butter
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
garlic

Cook pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, beat the ricotta, cream cheese and bouillon until blended. Stir in chicken and Parmesan cheese. Drain shells; stuff with chicken mixture. Place in a shallow 9x13 baking dish coated with cooking spray. In a small saucepan, bring cream and butter to a boil. Whisk in 3 tablespoons cheese and parsley. Stir until cheese is melted. Pour over shells. Cover and bake at 350° for 25 minutes. Uncover; sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake 5-10 minutes longer or until cheese is melted and filling is heated through. Adapted from Taste of Home

I'll gladly put in as many more long days as I need to if this dinner is my reward.  Considering that it's busy season with my job and the end is no where near right now, it's a good thing that this freezes and reheats well.

I could eat the whole pan, no lie.