Stuffed Manicotti Recipe

 This baked Manicotti recipe is creamy, cheesy, meaty, saucy, and deeply satisfying.  It’s stuffed with beef, Italian sausage, ricotta, mozzarella and Parmesan but I’ve also included recipe variations for Cheese Manicotti, Spinach Manicotti, Chicken Manicotti etc. I’ve included everything you need to know about how to make Manicotti as well as how to make ahead and how to freeze.  Let’s manicotti!

 Watch: How to make Manicotti Shells

 

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This stuffed Manicotti recipe is 5 STARS comfort food right in your own home!

Does it get any better than stuffed and smothered pasta AKA luscious creamy, cheesy meaty filling made with 3 cheeses cocooned in tender shells enveloped in a to-live-for homemade marinara sauce and topped with more cheese?  Not in my world.

This easy Manicotti recipe tastes gourmet enough for special occasions and company but is also fabulous for weeknights because you can make the entire Manicotti recipe in advance, refrigerate and cook at dinner time!

Why you’ll love this Stuffed Manicotti Recipe

Here are a few more reasons to love Homemade Manicotti:

• Family Friendly.  Pasta, cheese meat, marinara – even the pickiest eaters will love this comforting combo.
• Makes a large quantity.  This easy Manicotti recipe makes 14 manicotti, so its perfect for everyone to indulge or for large crowds, dinner parties or company.
• Less Expensive.  A casserole of Manicotti feeds the whole family and makes fabulous leftovers for a fraction of the price of dining out.
• Make Ahead.  Manicotti tastes even better if assembled ahead of time.  This makes for a hassle free, no fuss dinner!  Just pull it out of the fridge and press “bake” when everyone’s ready to eat.
• Freezer friendly.  This Manicotti freezes well, making it ideal for busy days, dinners for new moms or when someone has had surgery.  You can also double the batch and eat one manicotti casserole for dinner and freeze one for later. 

WHAT IS MANICOTTI?

So, with all this Manicotti talk, what exactly is Manicotti?  Manicotti is a popular Italian-American dish inspired by Italian cannelloni. It appropriately means “little sleeve” in Italian.  It is made with large, tubular pasta shells (sleeves) that are boiled until al dente, cooled then stuffed with various fillings, usually ricotta mixed with mozzarella, ground beef, Italian sausage and/or spinach.

The stuffed manicotti shells are lined in a baking dish and either marinara or bechamel sauce is poured over top. The Manicotti is then covered and baked to bubbly deliciousness.

Stuffed Manicotti ingredients

In this Stuffed Manicotti recipe, we use:

• Ricotta – always the main ingredient of authentic Manicotti filling.
• Sour cream – ricotta mixed with sour cream is culinary changing.  It is smooth and lusciously creamy without tasting grainy!
• Mozzarella – it’s creamy, buttery, and melts beautifully.  It’s milky richness cuts through the tangy tomato sauce. Please use freshly grated mozzarella cheese as it tastes far superior and equally important, melts better. 
• Parmesan cheese – infuses the Manicotti filling with its salty, nutty flavor. You don’t want to use the powdered or pre-shredded Parmesan cheese.
• Beef – we are going to use half ground beef and half Italian sausage. The combination results in a superior texture and flavor.  
• Italian sausage – we are going to use half ground beef and half Italian sausage. The meats are cooked with onions, garlic, salt and pepper for a juicy, tantalizing addition to our filling.
• Eggs – act as a binding agent and, along with the sour cream, give our ricotta an ideal creamy texture. 
• Herbs – basil, parsley, nutmeg, salt and pepper to round out the flavor because, like all recipes, every element should be seasoned independently so it is stand-alone flavorful.

Can I use Store Bought MARINARA Sauce?

Other than the filling and pasta shells, the other important element in the best Manicotti is Marinara Sauce.  Using quality Marinara Sauce is HUGELY important because it is where most of the flavor comes from.

You can use store bought Marinara Sauce for this recipe but I HIGHLY recommend my Marinara Sauce recipe.  It is 1000X better than jarred and is done in less than 30 minutes – half of that time is simmering.  It boasts rich, bright tomato flavor and is make ahead and freezer friendly so you can even make it days or months in advance!

I won’t go into too much detail because I have an entire post dedicated to my Marinara Sauce recipe.  In that post, I have included my BEST Marinara recipe with onions, carrots and celery AND super easy, lazy day Marinara Sauce which eliminates the carrots, and celery and uses garlic and onion powders so there is NO chopping – so there is no excuse not to make Marinara Sauce from scratch!  

That being said, if you use store bought Marinara, you will need about 3 3/4- 4 cups, enough to generously cover the top of your Manicotti.  You also might want to spruce up your store-bought Marinara Sauce like I do in my Spaghetti Bolognese.  It is amazing what a few seasonings can do.

Can I use No Boil Manicotti Shells?

I do not suggest no boil manicotti shells.  They tend to bake up chewy instead of tender and you run the unpalatable risk of crunchy, noodles if they are not adequately submerged in the sauce.  Instead, use traditional Manicotti shells and soak them in hot water per directions.

HOW TO MAKE MANICOTTI

SOAK MANICOTTI SHELLS

1. Place manicotti shells into the bottom of a long pan. Pour hot tap water over the noodles until they are submerged. Let them soak for 30 minutes, but not much longer or they can become too soft.  You can chop your veggies, make marinara and filling during this time. 
2. Alternatively, you can cook your shells for 4-6 minutes in a large pot of salted water, just until al dente then place them on a lightly greased cooling rack.  Don’t wait too long to stuff your shells because they will soften as they cool.

Cook Beef and Sausage for Filling

3. In a Dutch oven or large pot, brown ground beef, sausage and ½ onion, over medium heat until cooked through. Season with salt and pepper then add garlic and cook 30 more seconds.
4. Transfer to a paper towel lined plate to cool. 
5. You can substitute the meat with all beef, all chicken, spinach, etc.  See my recipe variations below.

Make Marinara Sauce

6. In the same pot, heat oil over medium heat.  Add onions, carrots and celery and cook for 7-10 minutes or until soft.  Add garlic and red pepper flakes and cook 30 more seconds.
7. Stir in crushed tomatoes, pureed tomatoes, and all remaining Marinara ingredients. Simmer on the lowest heat for 15 minutes.
8. How easy was our homemade Marinara Sauce?  The ingredient list is lengthy but after you cook your sofrito for 7-10 minutes, it is just a dump and simmer recipe!

Make Filling

9. While sauce is simmering, add eggs to a large bowl and whisk. Add ricotta, sour cream, mozzarella, Parmesan and all remaining Cheese Filling ingredients including cooled meat.  Stir until evenly combined. 

Assemble

10. Spread 1 cup of Marinara sauce on the bottom of the prepared pan (layer will be thin).
11. Pat manicotti shells dry with paper towels. Put the meat and cheese mixture in a piping bag (or plastic bag, snip the corner) and generously fill each shell with the cheese-meat mixture.
12. Arrange the stuffed manicotti in a single layer in the baking pan – it will be tight but you should be able to squeeze them all in there.
13.  Evenly top with remaining sauce followed by 1 ½ cups mozzarella and ½ cup Parmesan.  

Bake

14. Tightly cover manicotti with foil and bake for 40 minutes.  Uncover and bake and an additional 10 minutes or until heated through and Parmesan is golden.

CAN I MAKE Manicotti IN ADVANCE?

Yes! Manicotti is make-ahead friendly so you can assemble and refrigerate then pull it out of the fridge and bake for a no fuss dinner! 

Making Manicotti in advance is actually my preferred method because it tastes even better as the flavors have time build and meld further. To make in advance:

• Assemble and Refrigerate. You can make and assemble the entire Manicotti a day in advance (without baking).  Cover the Manicotti tightly with foil and refrigerate until ready to bake.
• Make Sauce in Advance. As previously mentioned, I HIGHLY recommend homemade Marinara Sauce.  You can make the sauce up to 3 days in advance and refrigerate it or freeze it for up to 3 months.  Grab and dump pre-made Marinara Sauce makes this Manicotti recipe come together super quickly.
• Make Filling in Advance:  You can make the filling in advance and keep tightly covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. 

Stuffed Manicotti Recipe variations

The possibilities are endless when it comes to stuffed Manicotti.  The ground beef and Italian sausage in this recipe equal about 3 cups, so you can replace them with anything that equals the same volume. Here are a few ideas:

• Chicken Manicotti:  substitute the ground beef and sausage with 3 cups shredded cooked chicken or 3 cups ground chicken.  You can use marinara sauce or replace it with béchamel/Alfredo sauce.
• Beef Manicotti:  replace the Italian sausage with lean ground beef.
• Ground Turkey Manicotti:  replace the ground beef and sausage with ground turkey. 
• Spinach Manicotti:  replace the ground beef or sausage with one 10 oz. package frozen, thawed spinach that has been well drained.  Use two 10 oz. packages if omitting all of the meat.  You can also use fresh spinach, see below.
• Spinach and Mushroom Manicotti:  replace ground beef and sausage with 12 oz. chopped baby bella mushrooms and 4 cups fresh baby spinach.  Melt 2 tablespoons butter with 2 tablespoons olive oil in a Dutch oven or large pot.  Add onions and cook 2 minutes.  Add mushrooms and sauté 4-6 minutes or until golden.  Add garlic and cook 30 seconds. Add spinach and cook on low for 1-2 minutes or until wilted.
• Vegetable Manicotti:  use any variety of vegetables from spinach, mushrooms, bell peppers, zucchini, carrots, etc.  Chop vegetables and sauté them until crisp-tender.
• Seafood Manicotti:  replace meats with one-pound lump crab meat or a combination of crab meat and cooked, chopped shrimp.  Replace Marinara Sauce with Bechamel/Alfredo Sauce.
• Cheese Manicotti:  You keep your manicotti super simple and just stuff with the cheese filling.  You will want to increase the ingredients to make up for the 3 cups lost volume of meat.  
• Cottage Cheese Manicotti:  keep the sour cream but replace the ricotta with cottage cheese.  I love the added texture of cottage cheese if I am skipping the meat and using spinach instead.

How to serve Baked Manicotti

This Manicotti is all you are going to want to eat but you can make it complete meal with a big green salad, Caesar salad and some garlic bread.  Manicotti is also great served with:

• Buttery Breadsticks (new pics coming soon!)
• Soft and Fluffy Dinner Rolls
• Roasted Parmesan Broccoli
• Sautéed Brussels Sprouts with Garlic, Lemon, Butter
• Tomato Cucumber Salad
• Roasted Asparagus with Balsamic Brown Butter
• Wedge Salad with Blue Cheese Ranch
• Berry Salad with Honey Mascarpone
• Fruit Salad with Honey Lime Vinaigrette
• Winter Fruit Salad with Honey Lime Poppy Seed Vinaigrette

Stuffed Manicotti storage

Baked Manicotti should be tightly covered with foil or transferred to an airtight container.  When properly stored, cooked manicotti will last for approximately 5 days.  As in all leftovers, use your best judgement and if it smells off, then toss it. 

How do you reheat manicotti?

• Full Casserole:  cover baking dish tightly with foil and bake at 350° F for approximately 20 minutes or until heated through.
• Microwave:  Add individual servings to a microwave-safe plate and cover with a paper towel so the sauce doesn’t splatter.  Microwave 1 ½-2 minutes or until heated through.

CAN you FREEZE uncooked manicotti?

Yes! You can freeze uncooked or cooked Manicotti.  Freezing homemade Manicotti is a great way to enjoy a bake-and-eat dinner any night of the week without any prep!  For best results, I recommend freezing uncooked Manicotti, but both methods will work.

1. Assemble Manicotti according to recipe directions in a freezer safe dish.  It is best if your noodles are more on the al dente side.
2. Wrap the dish twice tightly in plastic wrap. 
3. Cover tightly with one layer of aluminum foil.
4. Label Manicotti.
5. Place evenly in the freezer for up to 3 months.
6. When ready to bake, place Manicotti in the refrigerator to thaw completely, 24-48 hours.
7. Remove plastic wrap and cover tightly with foil.
8. Let Manicotti stand at room temperature while the oven preheats.
9. Bake Manicotti according to directions, adding an additional 10-15 minutes.

HOW TO COOK MANICOTTI FROM FROZEN

1. Remove plastic wrap from Manicotti and cover tightly with foil.
2. Bake Manicotti covered at 350 degrees F for 1 ½ hours.
3. Uncover and bake an addition 15-30 minutes or until hot and bubbly.

HOW TO FREEZE LEFTOVERS

If you forget to thaw your Manicotti the night before, it can also be baked from frozen:

You can freeze the entire baking dish of Manicotti (see How to Freeze Cooked Manicotti) if you are going to be reheating the dish all at once, or I prefer freezing individual servings of Manicotti.  Individual servings are super convenient for on-the-go work lunches or small portion dinners.

1. Let Manicotti cool completely then divide into individual portions.
2. Freeze separate servings in airtight containers or you can even use plastic bags – a little messier but it’s convenient and gets the job done. 
3. To reheat in the microwave: transfer to a microwave-safe dish and microwave from frozen for approximately 5-7 minutes or until heated through.  
4. To reheat in the oven: preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Transfer serving to an oven-proof baking dish.  Cover, and bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes or until heated through.

Manicotti Recipe FAQs

Looking for more Italian Recipes?

• Fettuccine Alfredo
• Lasagna Soup
• Cheesy Chicken Bacon Ranch Pasta
• Sun Dried Tomato Pasta
• Minestrone Soup
• Cheesy Skillet Penne

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Tools Used in This Recipe

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Casserole Dish 9×13 inches

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Cheese Grater

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Garlic Press

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Dutch Oven 7.25 qt. (White)

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Stainless Steel Mixing Bowl Set

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Baked Manicotti

This homemade Manicotti recipe is 5-star Italian comfort food. It’s creamy, cheesy, meaty, saucy, and deeply satisfying. I’ve stuffed my baked Manicotti with beef, Italian sausage, ricotta and mozzarella but I’ve also included recipe variations for Cheese Manicotti, Spinach Manicotti, Chicken Manicotti etc. I’ve included everything you need to know about how to make Manicotti as well as how to make ahead and how to freeze. Let’s manicotti!

Servings: 14 manicotti shells

Total Time: 1 hour hr 55 minutes mins

Prep Time: 45 minutes mins

Cook Time: 1 hour hr 10 minutes mins

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Ingredients

Manicotti

• 1 8 oz. pkg Manicotti Shells (14 shells)

Meat Mixture

• 1/2 pound lean ground beef
• 1/2 pound mild Italian sausage casings removed
• 1/2 medium yellow onion chopped
• 2 garlic cloves minced
• 1/4 tsp EACH salt, pepper

Marinara

• 1 recipe Homemade Marinara Sauce or 3 ¾ cups store bought (warmed)

Cheese Filling

• 1 egg
• 2 1/2 cups whole milk ricotta cheese
• 1/2 cup sour cream full fat please
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil or ½ tablespoon dried
• 2 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley or ½ tablespoon dried
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 1/2 cups freshly grated mozzarella
• 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 tsp EACH salt, pepper

Topping

• 1 1/2 cups freshly grated mozzarella
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Instructions

• Place manicotti shells into the bottom of a long pan. Pour hot tap water over the noodles until they are submerged. Let them soak for 30 minutes (you can chop your veggies, make marinara and filling during this time).
• In a Dutch oven or large pot, brown ground beef, sausage and ½ onion, over medium heat. Season with salt and pepper then add garlic and cook 30 more seconds. Drain all but 1 tablespoon grease. Transfer to a paper towel lined plate to cool.
• Prepare Marinara according to recipe directions using grease from pan instead of olive oil in recipe.
• While sauce is simmering, preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Add egg to a large bowl and whisk. Add all remaining Cheese Filling ingredients including cooled meat. Stir until evenly combined.
• Lightly spray a 9×13 baking pan with nonstick cooking spray. Spread 1 cup of Marinara sauce on the bottom of the prepared pan (layer will be thin).
• Pat manicotti shells dry with paper towels and generously fill each shell with the cheese-meat mixture. To do this, I add the mixture to a freezer size bag, snip the corner and pipe the filling into each end. The ends should be overflowing.
• Arrange the stuffed manicotti in a single layer in the baking pan (squeeze them in). If you have any leftover filling, spread it evenly over the stuffed shells. Evenly top with remaining marinara sauce followed by 1 ½ cups mozzarella and ½ cup Parmesan.
• Tightly cover manicotti with foil and bake for 40 minutes. Uncover and bake and an additional 10 minutes or until heated through and Parmesan is golden.
• Let the manicotti stand 10 minutes before serving.

Video

Notes

Don’t miss the “how to make” recipe video at the top of the post!

STUFFED MANICOTTI VARIATIONS

The ground beef and Italian sausage in this recipe equal about 3 cups, so you can replace them with anything that equals the same volume. Here are a few ideas:

• Chicken Manicotti: substitute the ground beef and sausage with 3 cups shredded cooked chicken or 3 cups ground chicken.  You can use marinara sauce or replace it with béchamel/Alfredo sauce.
• Beef Manicotti: replace the Italian sausage with lean ground beef.
• Ground Turkey Manicotti: replace the ground beef and sausage with ground turkey. 
• Spinach Manicotti: replace the ground beef or sausage with one 10 oz. package frozen, thawed spinach that has been well drained.  Use two 10 oz. packages if omitting all of the meat.  You can also use fresh spinach, see below.
• Spinach and Mushroom Manicotti: replace ground beef and sausage with 12 oz. chopped baby bella mushrooms and 4 cups fresh baby spinach.  Melt 2 tablespoons butter with 2 tablespoons olive oil in a Dutch oven or large pot.  Add onions and cook 2 minutes.  Add mushrooms and sauté 4-6 minutes or until golden.  Add garlic and cook 30 seconds. Add spinach and cook on low for 1-2 minutes or until wilted.
• Vegetable Manicotti: use any variety of vegetables from spinach, mushrooms, bell peppers, zucchini, carrots, etc.  Chop vegetables and sauté them until crisp-tender.
• Seafood Manicotti: replace meats with one-pound lump crab meat or a combination of crab meat and cooked, chopped shrimp.  Replace Marinara Sauce with Bechamel/Alfredo Sauce.
• Cheese Manicotti: You keep your manicotti super simple and just stuff with the cheese filling.  You will want to increase the ingredients to make up for the 3 cups lost volume of meat.  
• Cottage Cheese Manicotti: keep the sour cream but replace the ricotta with cottage cheese.  I love the added texture of cottage cheese if I am skipping the meat and using spinach instead.

CAN I MAKE MANICOTTI IN ADVANCE?

Yes! Manicotti is make-ahead friendly so you can assemble and refrigerate then pull it out of the fridge and bake for a no fuss dinner! 

• Assemble and Refrigerate:  You can make and assemble the entire Manicotti a day in advance (without baking).  Cover the Manicotti tightly with foil and refrigerate until ready to bake.
• Make Marinara Sauce in Advance:  You can make the sauce up to 3 days in advance and refrigerate it or freeze it for up to 3 months.  
• Make Filling in Advance: You can make the filling in advance and keep tightly covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. 

HOW TO FREEZE MANICOTTI

• Assemble Manicotti according to recipe directions in a freezer safe dish but do not bake.
• Wrap the dish twice tightly in plastic wrap. 
• Cover tightly with one layer of aluminum foil.
• Label Manicotti.
• Place evenly in the freezer for up to 3 months.
• When ready to bake, place Manicotti in the refrigerator to thaw completely, 24-48 hours.
• Remove plastic wrap and cover tightly with foil.
• Let Manicotti stand at room temperature while the oven preheats.
• Bake Manicotti according to directions, adding an additional 10-15 minutes.

HOW TO FREEZE LEFTOVERS

• Let Manicotti cool completely then divide into individual portions.
• Freeze separate servings in airtight containers or you can even use plastic bags – a little messier but it’s convenient and gets the job done.   
• To reheat in the microwave: transfer to a microwave-safe dish and microwave from frozen for approximately 5-7 minutes or until heated through.  
• To reheat in the oven:  preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Transfer serving to an oven-proof baking dish.  Cover, and bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes or until heated through.

 

 

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