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–+ servings
close up of a stuffed pasta shell with chopped parsley and mozzarella

RECIPE FOR STUFFED PASTA SHELLS WITH SAUSAGE AND RICOTTA

This Recipe for Stuffed Pasta Shells is simple to follow and made with easy to find ingredients. Jumbo pasta shells are stuffed to the brim with Italian sausage, ricotta cheese, marinara sauce and freshly grated mozzarella then oven baked to cheesy perfection.
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 35 minutes
Total Time 50 minutes
Servings 6 Servings

Ingredients

  • 1 (12-14 ounce) box Jumbo Pasta Shells
  • 3 cups Mozzarella Cheese grated
  • 2-3 cups Marinara Sauce*
  • 1 475g tub Ricotta
  • 1 pound Italian Sausage*
  • 1 Egg
  • ¼ cup Parmesan Cheese plus more for sprinkling and serving
  • 2 tbsp Fresh Chopped Parsley plus more for garnish
  • 1 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil plus more for drizzling
  • Salt and Pepper to taste

Instructions

  • In a large pot of salted boiling water, cook the pasta shells until al dente, ~2-3 minutes under the time it says on the back of the box.
    pasta shells cooking in a pot of water
  • Drain and drizzle with a little olive oil to keep them from sticking together.
    cook pasta shells in a colander
  • In a large non-stick skillet, cook the Italian sausage in the olive oil, breaking it up into little pieces, if needed. Drain.
    browned italian sausage cooking in a skillet
  • In a small bowl, add the ricotta, parmesan, parsley, egg and salt and pepper.
    egg, chopped parsley, parmesan, ricotta, salt and pepper unmixed in a bowl
  • Stir until well combined.
    ricotta and spices mixed in a bowl with a rubber spatula
  • Add the cooked sausage and mix again until well combined.
    ricotta, chopped parsley and italian sausage mixed in a bowl
  • Preheat the oven to 350°F and spoon a few tablespoons of marinara into the bottom of a baking dish*
    marinara at the bottom of a baking dish
  • Using a spoon, stuff the sausage and ricotta mixture into each shell filling them to the brim. You can pat the filling down a bit with the back of the spoon but don't aggressively push it down.
    hand spooning a ricotta mixture into a pasta shell
  • Place the filled shells in the baking dish. It's ok if the sides are touching but don't pile them on top of each other.
    italian sausage and ricotta stuffed pasta shells in a baking dish
  • Spread the remaining marinara sauce evenly over the tops of the shells then top with the mozzarella cheese. You can add an extra sprinkling of parmesan here, too, if you like.
    grated mozzarella and marinara in a baking dish with pasta shells
  • Bake, covered with foil, for 25-30 minutes. Remove the foil and bake an additional 5 until the cheese is nice and bubbly. Garnish with fresh chopped parsley and serve with extra parmesan cheese and chili flakes, if desired.
    baked pasta shells with mozzarella, chopped parsley and marinara sauce

Notes

You can use mild, medium, hot, or sweet Italian sausage depending on the flavour you're going for.
Try making your own tomato sauce by following my homemade recipe for tomato sauce from fresh tomatoes. Be sure to add seasonings to it and cook it to thicken it up a bit before using it in this recipe.
You can either use a 9x13 baking dish or two 6x6 baking dishes.

Nutrition

Serving: 1Serving | Calories: 498kcal | Carbohydrates: 6g | Protein: 27g | Fat: 41g | Saturated Fat: 17g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 17g | Trans Fat: 0.003g | Cholesterol: 132mg | Sodium: 1369mg | Potassium: 498mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 917IU | Vitamin C: 9mg | Calcium: 364mg | Iron: 2mg
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