There’s nothing better then making a big batch of stuffed shells and feeding friends. Do it. Don’t feel like seeing people? Fine, just make a big batch anyways and eat it over the course of two or three days, one stuffed shell at a time. Yup, I’ve done it. Judge me all you want, NBD.
xx Jenny
If you’re looking for more baked pasta dishes perfect for weeknights check out these recipes:
Simple Spinach and Ricotta Stuffed Shells
This recipe for Simple Spinach and Ricotta Stuffed Shells is perfect for a weeknight dinner. Minimal ingredients make this easy to whip up. You can make ahead and pop in the refrigerator until you are ready to bake!
Servings:
INGREDIENTS
- 25 jumbo pasta shells
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 cup marinara sauce
- ⅓ cup Parmesan, grated
filling
- 2 cups frozen spinach, thawed, drained and chopped
- 2 cups part-skim ricotta
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
- 1 shallot, minced
- 1 tablespoon thyme, minced
- salt and pepper to taste
INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
- Add the pasta, as well as a generous amount of salt, and stir.
- Cook the pasta until al dente, about 15 minutes.
- Drain the pasta and toss with olive oil. Set aside.
- Pour the marinara sauce into a 8”x 8” baking dish and move around to form an even coat.
- In a mixing bowl, combine the filling ingredients and stir together well. Season together with salt and pepper.
- Using a spoon, scoop a small amount of the filling and stuff into a pasta shell.
- Nestle the stuffed shell into the baking sheet and repeat with the remaining shells until the baking dish is filled.
- Top the baking dish with a sprinkle of parmesan.
- Tightly cover the baking dish with aluminum foil and bake for 20 minutes.
- Remove the foil and continue to bake for an additional 5 minutes or until the parmesan begins to bubble and lightly brown.
- Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 5 minutes before serving.
Serving: 1g Calories: 342kcal Carbohydrates: 35g Protein: 19g Fat: 14g Saturated Fat: 6g Cholesterol: 58mg Sodium: 453mg Potassium: 530mg Fiber: 3g Sugar: 4g Vitamin A: 6732IU Vitamin C: 8mg Calcium: 373mg Iron: 3mg
CUISINE: Italian
KEYWORD: baked pasta, stuffed pasta shells
COURSE: dinner
DIET : Vegetarian
Did you make this recipe? We want to see!
tag @SpoonForkBacon and #SpoonForkBacon on Instagram
Do you think these would freeze well if I froze them before I baked them? Thanks in advance!
I think so…you can treat it similarly to a frozen lasagna..I would just go a bit heavier on the sauce before you freeze to ensure your pasta doesn’t dry out!
My daughter made this tonight with alfredo sauce and it was really good. She can come up with little tweaks that just surprise me. YUMMY!!!!
I just made this tonight and ’twas delectable. I threw in some ground italian sausage because I had it in the fridge, and it worked really nicely with the thyme. Thanks for dinner!
LOVE your recipes.. I already planned out the weekly meals with your recipes!! Can’t wait to try them with my family!
I’m going to attempt to make this tomorrow night in my tiny kitchen for myself and my 3 male roommates! Wish me luck! I’ll let you know how it goes. :)
<3
Just discovered your blog and boy am I glad I did! These look beautiful – and delicious! I will be making this soon. Thanks for sharing!
these are heavenly!
You’ve managed to take a much-used combo and turn it into something new and beautiful! I totally dig your blog, the pictures are beautiful and I’m enamoured by so many of the entries!
Great recipe and actually easy enough for a very novice cooker to try and make and love! Its tasty, beautiful and people will think it was much harder to make than it was. Thanks!
Thank you so much for sharing this recipe! Made this last week and wifey and son loved it.
oh wow! that looks so delicious….feel like digging right in. It looks picture perfect!
Personally, I would be wary of the no-bake route because of the egg in the filling. Perhaps you could modify the filling to make it eggless. Delicious food should not be dangerous! :-)
Happily, I do own an oven and I’m always looking for good vegetarian recipes. I found this one on Gojee and I’m sure I’ll be making it soon! I don’t have most of the ingredients on hand, though, so it looks like a shopping trip is in order…
Ahh! Good call, I totally forgot about the egg I added to bind the filling together a little better.
Yes, I would definitely omit the egg and stir in a little bit of Parmesan into the mix.
Thanks for catching that for me :)
Hello!
I have discovered this recipe and your blog via gojee and i would love to cook this! But unfortunately i dont own a oven… do you think i can make this using a microwave? or perhaps skip that step and just sprinkle with parmesan? thanks !
Hi Cristina, you can totally skip the baking step, just make sure your shells are cooked through completely. Good luck!
thank you! im gonna try it today. congrats on your blog, goes straight to my favorites :-)
The recipes look just great. There are so many I want to make. So glad I found you.
Susan
Just found this via Gojee and I can’t wait to make it! How would you suggest I prepare it if I’m not serving it until the next day?
You can actually go as far as getting everything into the pan and covered with foil. When you’re ready, just pop it into the oven, still covered and bake. If the shells look a little dry before sticking them into the oven, I would pour a small amount of sauce over them, recover and then bake. Hope this was helpful!
Just wondering if you could recommend a non tomato sauce for the bottom of the pan? Would a white clam sauce work or a soup for moisture content?
You might consider a Bechamel. Nice change from tomato.
Yes I totally agree, a Bechamel would be a wonderful replacement! I would be careful if trying to use something as thin as a clam sauce (although delicious!). I would probably only use a small amount, enough to allow the steaming to occur, just to ensure your stuffed shells stay stuffed :)
Just found your site via Gojee and I’m in LOVE! Adorable blog and stunning photography. This recipe sounds amazing! Quick, easy, and delicious! I know exactly what I’m making for dinner this week.
I love the name of this blog! You’ve also given me a way to use up the spinach I’ve been avoiding in my “eww, veggies” phase, so you are doubly amazing. Ricotta is also on sale, which I take as a sign that I need to make this NOW.
xx
Looks fantastic! I love stuffed shells. My favorite part is the brown and crusty part of the shell that gets hard in the oven, kind of like the edges of lasagna. Yum!
This is wonderful,the photos make more beautiful.Nice recipe and simple!
Growing up, it was one of those meals which I loved my mother to cook for me, it looks absolutely splendid.
i just discovered your blog!!! i will have to try every.single. dish you’ve presented here!! amazing!!
thank you very much!!
Martina
Hey Jenny!
I’ve decided to make this recipe tonight! Just to clarify, is marinara sauce is under the stuffed shells at the bottom of the pan? I’ve never seen pasta with the sauce completely at the bottom. Thank you so much!
Can’t wait to make it!
Hi Hayley!
Yes, the sauce is at the bottom (mainly for photo purposes, in this case). You can totally pour the sauce on top as well, but it’ll work just fine with it on the bottom. The sauce on the bottom and the tightly foiled dish should be enough to keep the steam in and keep the shells nice and moist (sorry to everyone that hates that word). Also, a sprinkle of shredded mozzarella over the top, during the last 5 minutes of cooking, is wonderful!