Manicotti Recipe

pulling out some manicotti from the white baking dish with a silver spatula.

4.88 from 8 votes

Manicotti is a comforting classic Italian dish made with tube-shaped pasta stuffed with a mixture of ricotta, mozzarella, parmesan, and herbs. Stuffed pasta shells are nestled in a baking dish and topped with homemade pasta sauce and more cheese before being baked to perfection!

Prep Time20

Cook Time1 20

Total Time1 40

Course: dinner, Main Course

Cuisine: American, Italian

Servings:

Calories: 674kcal

Author: Lyuba Brooke

Ingredients

Pasta Sauce:

3 tbsp olive oil
1 Vidalia onion
2 medium carrots
5-6 garlic cloves
28 oz can crushed tomatoes
1/4 cup minced fresh basil
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tbsp white granulated sugar
2 bay leaves
salt to taste

Pasta:

8 oz manicotti pasta shells

Manicotti Stuffing:

20 oz whole milk ricotta cheese
1 cup shredded Mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 egg whisked
4 garlic cloves
2 tbsp minced fresh basil
1 tbsp minced fresh parsley
1 tsp salt more or less to taste
1/2 tsp fresh cracked black pepper

Topping:

1 1/2 cups shredded Mozzarella cheese for topping
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese for topping

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Sauce:

Preheat a Dutch oven over medium heat and add olive oil. Saute diced onions, carrots, and garlic first until softened. Add canned tomatoes, bay leaves, oregano, sugar, and salt.
Stir well, cover with a lid but leave a crack for steam to escape. Cook for about 20 minutes, stirring from time to time. Add basil, stir, and cook for another 20 minutes or so.
Take out and discard bay leaves and blend sauce in the blender until smooth. (Make sure to open the little tab so the steam can escape while blending.)
NOTE: you may have about a cup of sauce leftover. Store it in a glass container with a lid, in the refrigerator.

Manicotti Pasta Shells:

Bring a pot of water to boil and salt it. Cook pasta in salted boiling water for 6 minutes, drain off water, and set pasta shells aside on a clean cutting board to cool down.

Manicotti Filling:

Spread about a cup and a half of marinara sauce in the bottom of the baking dish. Set aside.
Combine all ingredients for the stuffing in a mixing bowl and mix until evenly incorporated.
Transfer prepared stuffing into a large piping bag (I use 16 oz piping bag.) Tie the opening of the bag with a produce rubber band and cut off the tip when ready to stuff pasta tubes.
Hold manicotti shell in one hand and squeeze the stuffing into it from the piping bag, filling it almost full. Don’t overfill though or a lot of it will come out while baking.
Nestle stuffed manicotti in the sauce. Repeat with all the manicotti pasta shells.
Spread more marinara sauce over the top of all the filled manicotti.
Spread mozzarella and Parmesan cheese over the top.

Baking Manicotti:

Preheat the oven to 350° and lightly grease a 9x13 baking dish.
Spray one side of foil with non-stick cooking spray, the side that will be facing down, so that the cheese doesn’t stick to the foil. Cover the baking dish tightly with foil.
Bake for about 30 minutes. Take off the foil and bake another 10 minutes.

Video

Notes

Pasta Sauce: while it’s always best to use homemade spaghetti sauce (aka marinara), you can also use your favorite store-bought one to save time when needed.
To Make Ahead: Assemble the manicotti but do not bake. Cover and refrigerate for up to one day.
To Bake (from refrigerated): Let the dish warm on the counter as the oven preheats to 350°F. Bake covered with foil for 40 minutes, then uncovered for 10 minutes.
To Store Leftovers: Tightly cover the baking pan or transfer to an airtight container. Refrigerate for 3-5 days.
To Reheat in Oven: Cover with foil and bake at 350°F for about 20 minutes, or until hot. Microwave: Place individual servings on a plate, cover, and heat for 1-2 minutes.
How to Freeze: It is best to freeze unbaked manicotti. Assemble in a freezer-safe pan, wrap tightly in two layers of cling wrap then one layer of foil. Label and freeze for up to 3 months.
Thawing & Baking: Thaw in the refrigerator overnight. Remove the cling wrap, cover with foil, and bake at 350°F for 40 minutes. Uncover and bake for another 10 minutes.

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