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    Home » Recipes » Dinner

    Stuffed Shells

    Published: June 25, 2019 · Updated: December 5, 2020 · By: Krissy · 11 Comments
    This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.

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    the best cheesy stuffed shells

    Stuffed shells are an easy and delicious dinner recipe. Four cheeses including ricotta, mozzarella, mascarpone and parmesan make this the best! 

    This easy Italian dinner recipe is the perfect comfort food! 

    cheesy stuffed shells recipe

    Why this recipe works:

    Stuffed jumbo shells with ricotta are one of my favorite pasta recipes.

    • You'll find that this is a rather easy dinner to make and you can even double the recipe to prepare one in advance!
    • You only need to boil the shells for only a few minutes. This starts the cooking process and softens them enough to easily stuff, but they are still firm enough to not fall apart. I find that a short boil like that will also prevent them from sticking to each other.

    Ingredients need to make this recipe:

    • Jumbo pasta shells - these are found at most major grocery stores
    • Eggs - these are the binder for the filling
    • I was low on ricotta cheese but I had mascarpone in the refrigerator. Boy was that a happy mistake. I loved the combination! 
    • Whole milk mozzarella and parmesan - both grated
    • Dried Italian seasoning, lots of fresh basil, garlic, salt, and red pepper flakes for a small kick.
    • Two jars of your favorite pasta sauce

    How to make this recipe:

    1. Start by preheating your oven and boiling a large pot of salted water. Cook the shells in the boiling water for only a few minutes. Then drain and set aside.
    2. To make the filling, combine the ricotta, mozzarella, mascarpone and parmesan, reserving half the shredded cheeses for later. Mix in a couple eggs, herbs, garlic, salt and a bit of red pepper flakes for some heat.
    3. Fill the pasta shells. You can use a spoon or you can transfer the filling to a plastic bag, snip the corner off, and pipe the filling into the shells.
    4. Place the stuffed shells into a baking dish, smother them with pasta sauce, cover with the remaining shredded cheese, cover with foil, and bake. The moisture from the sauce will finish cooking the pasta shells.
    5. When the shells are just about done, I like to remove the foil and let them continue cooking for a few more minutes to really melt the cheese.
    stuffed shells

    Recipe variations:

    There are two main variations that are different than these cheese stuffed shells and that would be stuffed shells with meat and or stuffed shells with spinach.

    • If you wanted to add meat to your stuffed shells, people generally use ground meat or sausage. To do this, you would simply cook the meat until crumbly in a skillet, allow it to mostly cool, and then mix it with the cheese filling before you fill the shells.
    • If you wanted to make spinach stuffed pasta shells, my preferred method is to use fresh pre-washed baby spinach. Chop it up really small and then mix it with the cheese filling prior to filling the shells. If using spinach, cook the pasta even less because the spinach will release additional moisture that will help the pasta cook in the oven.

    Make ahead directions:

    Italian recipes like this loaded with pasta, cheese and sauce are even better when prepared ahead of time. If you make this recipe the day before you're planning on baking it, or if you stick it in the freezer, you give everything even more time to let all that flavor absorb.

    • To make ahead of time, simply prepare the entire recipe right up to the part where you stick the stuffed shells in the oven.
    • Then, cover and store in the refrigerator if you're planning on cooking within the next couple of days else the freezer for longer term storage.
    • Either bring the shells to room temperature before baking or increase the cooking time if the food is cold or frozen when it goes into the oven.
    stuffed shells with ricotta

    Other great Italian inspired recipes:

    • Homemade Pasta
    • Granny's Classic Homemade Lasagna
    • Butternut Squash Lasagna
    • Slow Cooker Lasagna Soup
    • Roasted Vegetable Lasagna
    • Four Cheese Ravioli
    • Homemade Butternut Squash Ravioli with Brown Butter Sage Sauce
    • Meat and Cheese Ravioli
    • Ham and Pea Pasta Carbonara
    • Cheesy Baked Rigatoni Pasta
    • Dozen Veggie Pasta Primavera
    • Cheesy Sausage Pasta Bake
    • One Pot Cheesy Pizza Pasta Bake
    • Homemade Alfredo Sauce
    • Fettuccine Alfredo
    • Manicotti
    • Loaded Grilled Italian Sandwich
    • Baked Italian Meatballs
    • Italian Wedding Soup
    • Easy Italian Stromboli
    how to make the best stuffed shells

    Stuffed Shells

    Stuffed shells are an easy and delicious dinner recipe. Four cheeses including ricotta, mozzarella, mascarpone and parmesan make this the best!
    4.91 from 11 votes
    Print Pin Rate SaveSaved!
    Course: Main Course
    Cuisine: Italian
    Prep Time: 15 minutes
    Cook Time: 1 hour
    Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
    Hover to scale: 8 servings
    Chef: Krissy Allori

    Ingredients

    • 12 ounces jumbo pasta shells
    • 2 eggs (slightly beaten)
    • 16 ounces ricotta cheese
    • 8 ounces mascarpone cheese
    • 1 pound shredded mozzarella cheese (divided)
    • 8 ounces grated Parmesan cheese (divided)
    • 1 tablespoon dried Italian seasoning
    • 8 fresh basil leaves (minced)
    • 2 cloves garlic (minced)
    • ½ teaspoon salt
    • ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
    • 56 ounces pasta sauce ((two 28-ounce jars))

    Instructions

    • Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
    • Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for only 3-4 minutes and then drain. You want to start the cooking process, but you need them firm enough to stuff. They will continue cooking in the oven.
    • In a large bowl, mix eggs, ricotta, mascarpone, half the mozzarella, half the Parmesan, Italian seasoning, basil, garlic, salt and red pepper flakes until well combined. Stuff cooked shells with ricotta mixture by piping through a resealable plastic bag with the corner snipped off. Place stuffed shells in a 9x13 inch baking dish.
    • Cover shells with pasta sauce and then top with remaining shredded cheese. Cover with foil.
    • Bake in preheated oven 45 minutes. Remove foil and continue cooking for another 5-15 minutes until edges are bubbly and cheese is melted.

    NUTRITION INFORMATION

    Calories: 742kcal | Carbohydrates: 47g | Protein: 41g | Fat: 42g | Saturated Fat: 25g | Cholesterol: 167mg | Sodium: 2056mg | Potassium: 912mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 2245IU | Vitamin C: 14.1mg | Calcium: 810mg | Iron: 3.7mg
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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Jill

      March 03, 2022 at 1:45 pm

      5 stars
      I made these last night for our meatless Ash Wednesday meal. I used gluten free manicotti shells and my own homemade sauce but kept everything else the same. They were amazing! The mascarpone was such a wonderful addition. I felt guilty eating it on Ash Wednesday since it was so good!!

      Reply
    2. diane

      January 11, 2022 at 7:09 am

      Looks amazing. Need measurements of ingredients please.

      Reply
      • Krissy

        January 29, 2022 at 7:26 am

        Hi Diane, All of the ingredients with quantities are in the recipe card toward the bottom of the post.

        Reply
    3. Carla Tartaglia

      October 31, 2021 at 2:12 pm

      5 stars
      Great recipe! Love combining ricotta and mascarpone! Used alot more sauce!

      Reply
    4. daniel

      July 18, 2019 at 12:00 am

      4 stars
      What are the alternatives to using pasta shells?

      Reply
      • Krissy

        July 18, 2019 at 5:44 am

        You can make this same recipe with manicotti tubes. If you're looking for a healthier alternative, though, you can use strips of zucchini or eggplant that have been lightly roasted to make them soft and then rolled up.

        Reply
    5. Beth Pierce

      June 25, 2019 at 11:27 am

      5 stars
      What a savory dish, indeed! My kids are going to love this for dinner tonight!

      Reply
    6. Stephanie

      June 25, 2019 at 11:00 am

      5 stars
      Such and easy and delicious dinner! Everyone in my family loved it!

      Reply
    7. April

      June 25, 2019 at 10:46 am

      5 stars
      Stuffed shells are AMAZING. I've never used mascarpone cheese in mine before, I can't wait to try it!

      Reply
    8. Katie

      June 25, 2019 at 10:44 am

      5 stars
      These stuffed shells are one of my FAVORITE dinners to make! The whole family loves it too!

      Reply
    9. Lori

      June 25, 2019 at 10:39 am

      5 stars
      Seriously one of our favorite dinner recipes from your site!

      Reply

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