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My Stuffed Shells Are So Good!
Stuffed shells are basically lasagna’s more fun, less fussy cousin—and honestly, I might like them even more. Jumbo pasta shells get filled with a creamy mix of ricotta, mozzarella, and Parmesan, then baked in marinara sauce until bubbly and golden. It’s simple, cheesy comfort food at its best.
I make these stuffed shells whenever I want something hearty but don’t feel like layering a whole lasagna. They’re easy to prep ahead, and always a hit at the table. I like to finish them off with fresh basil and serve with garlic bread.
Stuffed Shell Ingredients
- Jumbo pasta shells: You’ll need extra-large shells to hold the cheesy filling. Manicotti also works, but skip smaller-sized shells—they’re too hard to stuff!
- Ricotta cheese: For the best flavor and creamiest texture, I prefer full-fat ricotta, but you can use low-fat. You can also replace it with 2 cups of the blended cottage cheese.
- Mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses: This classic combination of cheeses is my go-to for baked stuffed shells. You can also try an Italian cheese blend.
- Eggs: Adding an egg to your cheese mixture helps bind the cheeses together and keeps the filling inside the shells. I highly recommend including it, but if you’re out, it’s okay to skip it.
- Italian seasoning, salt and pepper: I like to make my own blend of Italian seasoning, but feel free to use a store-bought mix.
- Marinara sauce: Use your favorite brand of marinara! I love making the sauce from scratch, but don’t always have time on busy weeknights. You can also use bechamel sauce, a creamy alfredo, or meaty Bolognese in place of the marinara.
Popular Additions
- Add veggies. Mix ½ cup sauteed spinach or sauteed kale into the cheese filling. Just make sure to squeeze out any excess moisture to avoid a runny filling.
- Top with pesto. For even more basil flavor, top the baked shells with pesto sauce.
- Make it spicy: Add a kick of heat with a dash of red pepper flakes.
How to Make Cheese Stuffed Shells
My Best Stuffed Shells Tips
- Do not overcook the pasta. While many instructions for stuffed shells with cheese suggest cooking the pasta al dente, I recommend 2 minutes shy of al dente. That’s because these shells will be baking in the oven with the sauce and cheese for more than half an hour.
- Rinse the shells with cold water after boiling. This prevents them from sticking to each other while you’re preparing the cheese mixture and stuffing the pasta shells. Just be sure to let it drain very well so you’re not adding excess moisture to the dish.
- Add a layer of sauce to the pan before adding the shells. This helps to keep the shells moist so they are not sticking together while you are stuffing them. It’s also easier to serve them this way. I find that there’s no need to spray the baking dish or spray the pasta shells with oil. The marinara sauce does the trick!
- Use a large ziplock bag to stuff the cheese stuffing into the shells. This is a fun little trick to make the assembly of the cheese stuffed pasta faster. After mixing the filling, place it in a large enough bag, cut off a corner, and pipe into the shells. This trick saves time, creates less mess and results in an overall better presentation.
Serving Ideas
Recipe Help & FAQs
You probably didn’t add enough sauce to your baking dish before placing the shells inside it. Use about half the sauce as a base for your shells. This helps create a barrier between the shells and the bottom of the baking dish, avoiding sticking.
Yes, you can make these stuffed shells 1-2 days ahead of time. Boil the pasta, stuff the shells and place in the fridge. When you’re ready to bake, pour the sauce over the pasta and then bake. If you pour the sauce a couple days in advance, it will affect the texture of the pasta.
Stuffed shells are done with the sauce is bubbly, the cheese is melted and the shells are soft but set.
More Pasta Recipes:
- Easy Baked Spaghetti
- Homemade Lasagna
- Lemon Ricotta Pasta
- Spaghetti with Meatballs
- Vegan Creamy Tomato Pasta
- Garlic Butter Shrimp Spaghetti
- Easy Lasagna Roll Ups
- Shrimp Orzo Salad
- Creamy Mushroom Pasta
- Pasta with Roasted Cherry Tomatoes
If you try this Cheese Stuffed Shells recipe or any other recipe on Feel Good Foodie, then don’t forget to rate the recipe and leave a comment below! It helps others who are thinking of making the recipe. I would love to hear about your experience making it. And if you snapped some shots, share it on Instagram so we can repost on Stories!
This recipe was originally published on June 23, 2019 and has recently been updated with a more classic ingredient list, new photography, and step-by-step images to help make the recipe.
Stuffed Shells Recipe
Video
Ingredients
- 8 ounces jumbo pasta shells about 32
- 1 (15-ounce) container ricotta cheese
- 1 ½ cups shredded mozzarella cheese divided
- ½ cup grated parmesan cheese divided
- 1 large egg
- ¼ cup chopped basil plus more for garnish
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 (28-ounce) jar marinara sauce
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or a little less than al dente; drain and rinse with cold water.
- In a large bowl, combine ricotta, ½ cup of the mozzarella cheese, ¼ cup of parmesan cheese, egg, basil, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F degrees.
- Spread half of the marinara sauce into a 9×13 baking dish. Spoon the cheese mixture into the pasta shells and place in the baking dish on top of the sauce. Spoon the remaining sauce over the shells and sprinkle with remaining mozzarella cheese.
- Cover with foil and bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes. Remove the foil, and bake for an additional 10 minutes or until the cheese is golden and bubbly.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information provided is an estimate. It will vary based on cooking method and specific ingredients used.
Yum
Can you make this with a meat sauce?
Yes, it should work!
My family loves this recipe. My husband and I also make it to take to other people who are shut-ins and they absolutely love it. It also freezes very well.
I’m so glad everyone is enjoying it! Yay!!
Can you add spinach to the cheese mixture or will it throw off the taste?
I’m sure you could!
wonderful. easy to prepare, instructions easy to follow. thank you
So glad to hear it. Thank you!!
I always hate Prep Times bc while I am not a professional chef, I’m also not an amateur, and it takes almost 20 minutes to boil the water and cook the shells. I don’t know how people do it in that time frame. With that said, my family enjoyed the meal. I did add ground beef (1 lb), but it would be just as good without. Also, does the ingredient list say to separate the parm when really it should be the mozz….or vice versa?
Oh I gotcha with the prep time, but usually it refers to hands-on prep time, that’s how most people count it. And thank you for pointing that out about the dividing the mozzarella cheese, not the parmesan. The mozzarella is more melty, so that’s what we want on top. I’m glad you enjoyed it 🙂
I cannot find shells at any grocery store. Any other suggestions for pasta? Manicotti pasta?
Yes, manicotti would be a great substitute!
I made these tonight and folded an 8 oz container of real crab meat into the cheese mixture. I guess I turned the recipe into sea shells. My husband and I agreed that they turned out as good as a high end Italian restaurant would have produced. My grocer only had one choice of pasta shells and I don’t know if they are smaller than pictured in the recipe, but 8 oz of raw pasta equaled waaay more shells.. about 26 for me. The filling was still enough for all of them. I just had to use a few more baking dishes.
So glad you tried it and I love that you added crab meat. My photo actually shows half the recipe, so 8 ounces is about 26-30 jumbo shells. I added that note to the recipe so thanks for bringing that up!
Made this delicious dish tonight for the family. Was a hit with all which doesn’t happen often!
Easy prep and we even had left overs that we are looking forward to having for lunch. Definitely a five star ?
Aww thank you so much for the feedback. So happy to hear the whole family loved it!! thank you 🙂