Spinach Stuffed Shells are large shell-shaped pasta filled with Italian sausage, spinach and ricotta cheese. The shells are baked with additional cheese and marinara sauce making this a delicious meal.
Perfect for dinner any night of the week!
Stuffed pasta shells
These stuffed pasta shells are a delicious comfort food. It has all the flavors of a lasagna, but instead of layers of pasta, cheese and sauce, the shells are stuffed with a cheese mixture and then baked with a marinara sauce.
I love making this for dinner for my family, but it's also perfect for serving a crowd. This recipe can easily be doubled and baked in two pans. Make this ahead of time and then bake at dinnertime helps make getting dinner on the table easy!
Key Ingredients
- Jumbo pasta shells - look for the jumbo sized shells so they can easily be filled
- Spinach - I used fresh spinach, but you could also use frozen
- Ricotta cheese - Whole milk ricotta is creamier than a skim ricotta. I prefer the whole milk ricotta.
- Fresh mozzarella - This fresh version can often be found in the deli section of most stores
- Marinara sauce - Buy your favorite or make your own marinara sauce
- Parmesan cheese - Use shredded parmesan cheese
- Italian sausage - Spicy or sweet Italian sausage. You may omit it if you'd prefer a vegetarian version.
Making stuffed shells
In this section, I share step-by-step photos, cooking methods, techniques, and a general overview. For detailed instructions, temperatures, and timing, check the printable recipe card below.
- Cook pasta shells
- Cook Italian sausage. Wipe out pan when finished and use the same pan for spinach.
- Sautee garlic for a few seconds in a pan. Add fresh spinach. I add in large batches, allowing spinach to cook down before adding more. Keep all spinach in pan until it has all been cooked. Remove spinach to a colander and allow spinach to cool. Once cool, squeeze out all liquid. This takes a lot of squeezing. Keep rotating spinach in your hands and squeeze until all liquid is removed.
- You start out with about 10 cups of spinach, but once it has cooked down and all the liquid squeezed out, you end up with about 1 cup of spinach.
- Coarsely chop spinach
- Combine ricotta, parmesan, egg and seasonings together in a bowl.
- Add chopped spinach and fold until combined
- Add cooled sausage, be careful to not add any of the grease.
- Carefully stuff each pasta shell with 3 tablespoons of cheese filling
- Place each stuffed shell in a greased baking dish with a layer of marinara sauce
- Continue filling all shells until dish is full
- Drop spoonfuls of sauce around the filled shells
- Place diced mozzarella on top of shells
- Sprinkle the remaining parmesan cheese over the top
- Cover dish with foil and bake at 375 for 30 minutes
- Remove foil and continue cooking for an additional 20 minutes
- Turn the broiler on for an additional 5 minutes and cook until the cheese is slightly browned
- Remove from oven and allow dish to rest for 10 minutes
- Garnish with fresh herbs and serve with additional marinara sauce
Substitutions and variations
- Use frozen spinach in place of fresh. Allow spinach to fully thaw and then squeeze out all liquid
- Omit Italian sausage to make a vegetarian version
- Use cottage cheese in place of the ricotta cheese. This is a great way to save money when making this dish. The cottage cheese is extra creamy and once cooked, you can't tell the difference.
- Add sautéed mushrooms for extra flavor
Serving suggestions
Serve this baked pasta with a Caesar salad and homemade garlic breadsticks.
Other delicious main dishes
If you love this pasta dish, you might also want to check out these dishes:
- Chicken Pasta Bake
- Baked Tortellini
- Baked Rigatoni with Sausage
- Green Chili Enchiladas
- Ham Tetrazzini
- Quinoa Enchilada Bake
- Cheesy Rice, Chicken and Broccoli
If you make this recipe, I’d love to hear about it! Leave a comment below and snap a picture and tag me on Instagram @beyondthechickencoop
Be sure to check out all my delicious main dish recipes!
Spinach Stuffed Shells
Equipment
- Glass Baking Dish 7x11
Ingredients
- 20 -24 Jumbo Pasta Shells
- 1 pound Italian Sausage (Spicy or Sweet)
- 10 ounces Baby Spinach (Fresh)
- 2 tablespoons Olive Oil
- 2 cloves Garlic (Minced)
- 2 cups Ricotta Cheese (Whole milk)
- ¼ cup Parmesan Cheese (Shredded)
- 1 Egg
- ¼ teaspoon Garlic Powder
- ½ teaspoon Dried Basil
- ¼ teaspoon Dried Oregano
- ¼ teaspoon Salt
- ¼ teaspoon Pepper
- pinch Ground Nutmeg
- 3 cups Marinara Sauce
- 4 ounces Fresh Mozzarella (Cubed)
- ½ cup Parmesan Cheese (Shredded)
- 1 teaspoon fresh herbs (For garnish, optional)
Instructions
- Cook pasta shells20 -24 Jumbo Pasta Shells
- Cook Italian sausage. Wipe out pan when finished and use same pan for spinach.1 pound Italian Sausage
- Sautee garlic for a few seconds in a pan. Add fresh spinach. I add in large batches, allowing spinach to cook down before adding more. Keep all spinach in pan until it has all been cooked. Remove spinach to a colander and allow spinach to cool. Once cool, squeeze out all liquid. This takes a lot of squeezing. Keep rotating spinach in your hands and squeeze until all liquid is removed.2 tablespoons Olive Oil, 2 cloves Garlic, 10 ounces Baby Spinach
- Coarsely chop spinach
- Combine ricotta, parmesan, egg and seasonings together in a bowl.2 cups Ricotta Cheese, ¼ cup Parmesan Cheese, 1 Egg, ¼ teaspoon Garlic Powder, ½ teaspoon Dried Basil, ¼ teaspoon Dried Oregano, ¼ teaspoon Salt, ¼ teaspoon Pepper, pinch Ground Nutmeg
- Add chopped spinach and fold until combined
- Add cooled sausage, be careful to not add any of the grease.
- Carefully stuff each pasta shell with 3 tablespoons of cheese filling. Place each stuffed shell in a greased baking dish with a layer of marinara sauce. Continue filling all shells until dish is full.3 cups Marinara Sauce
- Drop spoonfuls of sauce around the filled shells. Place diced mozzarella on top of shells. Sprinkle remaining parmesan cheese over top4 ounces Fresh Mozzarella, ½ cup Parmesan Cheese
- Cover dish with foil and bake at 375 for 30 minutes. Remove foil and continue cooking for an additional 20 minutes. Turn broiler on for an additional 5 minutes and cook until the cheese is slightly browned.
- Remove from oven and allow dish to rest for 10 minutes Garnish with fresh herbs and serve with additional marinara sauce1 teaspoon fresh herbs
Notes
- I usually cook a few extra shells in case one falls apart and can't be used
- The spinach cooks down from about 10 cups of spinach to about 1 cup of cooked and squeezed spinach
- To make ahead of time, cover and refrigerate after filling shells and adding sauce and cheese. Bake as directed, increasing baking time by 15-20 minutes.
- To prevent cheese from sticking to foil, spray foil lightly with a nonstick spray before placing on dish
- Use frozen spinach in place of fresh. Allow spinach to fully thaw and then squeeze out all liquid
- Omit Italian sausage to make a vegetarian version
- Use cottage cheese in place of the ricotta cheese. This is a great way to save money when making this dish. The cottage cheese is extra creamy and once cooked, you can't tell the difference.
- Add sautéed mushrooms for extra flavor
Nutritional Disclaimer:
Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and should only be construed as an estimate rather than a guarantee. To obtain the most precise nutritional information in a provided recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the exact ingredients you are using when preparing the recipe using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Terry says
So. It's just after 4am, and the pics & description of this recipe have me drooling all over my phone screen 🤗. I'll be adding shells & fresh mozza to my next grocery list.
With that being said, you have an annoying pop-up ad for media vine.com that appears on the bottom left of the screen, covering parts of the text and photos - until you scroll past it. Every other pop-up I've seen has a small "x" that allows you to remove it. Not this one. It has a tiny logo in the bottom left, which, when clicked on, allows you to remove it. This one redirects you to Mediavine's advertising, and when you back out, back to the recipe, it has a tiny centered, superimposed box that reads "Why this ad?". There is now a tiny "x" in the bottom left corner of the ad, but clicking on it RESTORES the ad instead of removing it. With this annoying ad, one is unable to get a clear print.
Thanks so much for listening, and I hope you have a wonderful week! Blessings, from a balmy 27°F Alberta, Canada 🇨🇦 morning...but at least most of our first 2 snowfalls have melted, or been washed away by freezing rain 😖
Kathy says
Hi Terry,
First, thanks so much! Nothing better than being enticed for dinner at 4am! Second, thanks for letting me know about the ad. It should have an "X" to close out the ad on the upper left hand side of the ad, but sometimes things happen. It sounds like a glitch and isn't working. I'll report it to Mediavine to let the know the issue.
Let me know how the stuffed shells turn out!
Enjoy,
Kathy
Valentina says
What a comforting meal! My mom used to make something similar to this. Brings back delicious memories. 🙂 ~Valentina
Kathy says
Food brings back such amazing memories!
Mary Ann | The Beach House Kitchen says
Stuffed shells will always remind me of my mom Kathy. She made them often growing up! These look delicious!
Kathy says
What a wonderful memory. Food takes us back to our roots and there's nothing better than recreating an old favorite!
Enjoy 🙂
Kelly | Foodtasia says
So cozy and comforting! How I'd love to cuddle up on the sofa with a bowl of this pasta!
David @ Spiced says
Holy cow, these stuffed shells look amazing, Kathy! We're visiting Laura's parents this weekend, and she's mixing up a big batch of ravioli and meatballs tonight. I put these stuffed shells in the same category - amazing Italian comfort food that I could seriously eat every night of the week. Yum!! Hope your week is off to a good start so far!
Kathy says
Thanks, David! Have a great visit with your in-laws!!!
Dawn - Girl Heart Food says
If this doesn't scream comfort food, I don't know what does! These look incredibly yummy, Kathy! Delicious meal with a simple green salad 🙂