Best Stuffed Shells
This stuffed shells recipe features cheesy, saucy shells stuffed with a delicious spinach and ricotta filling. Make these stuffed shells for dinner tonight!
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on August 30, 2024
These stuffed shells are cheesy, saucy, and stuffed with the most delicious ricotta and spinach filling. I’m in love, and I think you will be, too. Speaking of love, they’re so pretty that you could serve these shells for a romantic Valentine’s dinner at home.
A few more reasons to love this recipe:
- It yields a lot of shells, so it’s perfect for serving a crowd.
- Leftovers are great for lunch, or you can freeze them for later.
- This recipe is relatively easy to make, with minimal chopping.
This stuffed shells recipe features simple and classic Italian ingredients. You’ll need jumbo shells, marinara sauce, ricotta cheese, mozzarella, a little Parmesan, garlic and seasonings.
To make this cheesy dish more redeeming, I added an entire pound of fresh greens! You can use fresh or frozen spinach or kale. The greens yield a gorgeous, vibrant green filling with a lovely, mild flavor. These stuffed shells are honestly the best I’ve ever had, by a long shot. Keep reading for some fun variations and tips.
How to Make the Best Stuffed Shells with Spinach & Ricotta
This recipe comes together easily, with minimal chopping. You’ll find the full recipe below, but here’s a rundown:
- First, blanch the greens. This is really easy—just dump them in a big pot of salted water and cook until they’re wilted (about 30 seconds). Using tongs, transfer the greens to a large bowl of ice water. This step preserves their beautiful, bright green color. Once chilled, squeeze all the water out of the greens and set aside.
- Cook the pasta shells in the same pot of water you used for the greens. The water will be a fun shade of greenish yellow, but the pasta will turn out perfectly. We’ll cook the shells until they’re almost al dente—in other words, we want them nicely pliable but not fully tender. They’ll finish cooking in the oven.
- Then, whip up the filling in the food processor. Since we’re blending up the garlic and chives, we don’t need to bother chopping them finely by hand.
- Stuff each shell with a generous spoonful of filling and place them in snug little rows across marinara-lined bakers.
- Spoon marinara sauce over the shells. We don’t need them completely covered. Finish them off with the remaining mozzarella cheese.
- Bake, and serve.
Watch How to Make Stuffed Shells
Stuffed Shells Tips
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Bust out your largest pot and baking dish for this recipe. Ideally, use a 5.5-quart or larger Dutch oven or stockpot to boil the greens and pasta. Then, you’ll transfer all of the cooked greens to a very large bowl of ice water. Finally, you’ll need an extra-large baker (even larger than 9 by 13 inches) or a combination of two bakers like you’ll see below (say, 9 by 13 and 8 by 8).
The filling comes together nicely in a food processor. If you don’t have a food processor, no problem. Chop up the ingredients (chop the chives and garlic finely, and the cooked greens into very small pieces) and stir the ingredients together by hand.
To save time, use store-bought marinara sauce. My favorites are Rao’s (it comes pretty close to my homemade marinara) or Newman’s Own organic. I try to avoid marinaras with added sugar, since it’s unnecessary. Or, make my homemade marinara sauce the night before (be sure to double the recipe to have enough).
Save time (and money) by using frozen greens. Frozen greens are less expensive and work perfectly well for this recipe. Just defrost them in a colander under running water, squeeze out excess water, and it’s good to go.
These shells make great leftovers! Store them in the refrigerator for up to 4 days, or in the freezer for several months.
Stuffed Shell Recipe Variations
I’m completely smitten with this recipe as written below. Here are some fun ways to change it up:
- For lighter, less cheesy shells, use half as much mozzarella or omit it completely.
- For standard cheesy shells (no greens), double the ricotta, finely chop the chives, press or mince the garlic, and stir the mixture together by hand.
- For veggie shells, replace the greens with about 2 cups cooked or roasted vegetables.
- For dairy-free or vegan shells, use my vegan sour cream in place of the ricotta, and sprinkle some vegan Parmesan on top. Find more details in the recipe notes.
Craving more saucy Italian meals?
Here are a few of my favorites:
- Best Vegetable Lasagna or Vegan Lasagna
- Baked Ziti with Roasted Vegetables or Lentil Baked Ziti
- Roasted Ratatouille
- Italian Eggplant Parmesan
- Spaghetti Squash “Pizza” Bowls
I’d serve this recipe or any of the above with my Italian Chopped Salad—even a simplified version would be perfect.
Please let me know how your shells turn out in the comments. I love hearing from you and hope this recipe is a big hit.
Best Stuffed Shells
This stuffed shells recipe features cheesy, saucy shells stuffed with a delicious spinach and ricotta filling. Make these stuffed shells for dinner tonight! Recipe yields about 28 shells, about 8 servings.
Ingredients
- 1 pound (16 ounces) fresh baby spinach or baby kale, or frozen spinach or kale, or 1 ½ pounds Tuscan kale or spinach bunches, washed and stems removed
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 12 ounces jumbo shells
- 4 cloves garlic, peeled and cut into several segments
- 15 ounces (or 1 pound) ricotta cheese or cottage cheese
- 8 ounces (2 cups) grated part-skim mozzarella, divided
- ½ cup (2 ounces) grated Parmesan, plus extra for garnish
- ¼ cup (⅔-ounce) chives or green onions (mostly green parts), cut into ¼-long pieces
- Freshly ground pepper, to taste
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes, to taste (omit if sensitive to spice)
- ¾ teaspoon fine sea salt, to taste
- 1 large egg, lightly beaten with a fork
- 3 cups (24 ounces) marinara sauce, homemade* or store-bought (I used Rao’s)
- Fresh basil for garnish, optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 with racks in the middle and upper third of the oven. Bring a large Dutch oven or stockpot of water to boil over high heat. Generously salt the water (use at least 2 teaspoons). If you’re not using frozen greens, fill a large bowl with ice water for blanching.
- If you’re using fresh greens, add them to the boiling water and cook just until wilted, about 20 to 40 seconds. Using tongs (leave the water in the pot), transfer the greens to the ice bath and let them cool down. Drain off the water and squeeze as much excess water from the greens as possible. Set aside. (If you’re using frozen greens, place them in a colander and run cool water over them until they’ve full defrosted. Squeeze out as much excess water as possible, and set aside.)
- Bring the water in the pot back to a boil. Gently add the pasta shells in handfuls so they don’t break on the way in. Cook until pliable but just shy of al dente, about 10 minutes, stirring often so they don’t stick to the pot. Drain off the water, return the noodles to the pot, and gently stir in the olive oil to prevent the noodles from sticking. Set aside.
- Turn on your food processor and drop the garlic through the feeding tube. Once the garlic is chopped and stuck to the sides of the bowl, stop the machine and scrape down the sides. For good measure, squeeze off any remaining water in the greens, then add them to the bowl. Process until the greens are chopped into small pieces.
- Add the ricotta and process until well blended. Add half of the mozzarella, reserving the rest for topping. Add all of the Parmesan and chives, about 10 twists of black pepper, the red pepper flakes and salt. Blend well. Taste, and add additional salt, pepper or red pepper flakes if desired. Finally, add the egg and process until blended. Set aside.
- If you have an extra-large baking dish (larger than 9×13 inches), spread 1 cup of the marinara sauce across the bottom. Otherwise, divide 1 cup marinara between a large (9×13 inches) and medium-sized baker (say, an 8-inch square). You might need to add another splash of sauce to evenly coat the bottom of the pans.
- Stuff each intact shell with a heaping spoonful (about 1 ½ to 2 tablespoons) of the green mixture. Place each stuffed shell in the baker in rows. (You might have a few leftover or broken shells; save them for another use.) Spoon the remaining marinara sauce over the tops of the shells. Top the shells with the remaining mozzarella.
- Cover the baker(s) tightly with foil and bake on the middle rack for 30 minutes. Then, remove the foil and place the bakers on the upper rack. Bake for 5 to 10 more minutes, until the mozzarella is fully melted and turning just slightly golden (you can bake longer for a more golden effect, but the greens will become less vibrant).
- Garnish the shells with a light dusting of grated Parmesan and some small or torn fresh basil leaves. Leftover shells will keep well in the refrigerator for up to 4 days, or freeze them for several months.
Notes
Recipe adapted from two New York Times recipes: Stuffed Shells Filled With Spinach and Ricotta by Martha Rose Sherman and Stuffed Shells by Ali Slagle.
*Homemade marinara sauce note: You’ll need to double my marinara recipe to yield enough for this recipe, and then you’ll have extra. If you don’t think you’ll use it up within a few days, you can freeze it for later.
Prepare in advance: You can assemble the shells (through step 7) and store the baker in the refrigerator until ready to bake. While I haven’t tried freezing the shells, they seem like excellent candidates. Let the frozen shells defrost in the refrigerator before baking. Since they’re starting off cold, they might need a few more minutes in the oven.
Change it up: For less cheesy shells, use half as much mozzarella or omit it completely. For standard cheesy shells (no greens), double the ricotta, finely chop the chives, press or mince the garlic, and stir the mixture together by hand. You could also replace the greens with about 2 cups cooked or roasted vegetables.
Make it egg free: Simply omit the egg. The egg helps the cheese set, but I’ve heard from readers that it turns out well without it!
Make it dairy free/vegan: Double my vegan sour cream recipe, and leave it in the blender. Add the greens, garlic, chives, black pepper and red pepper flakes (hold off on the additional salt). Process until the mixture is pretty well blended, and add salt to taste. Skip the egg. Follow the sauce and baking instructions as written. If desired, garnish with a light sprinkle of vegan Parmesan.
Nutrition
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These were absolutely delicious! I chose to use the spinach and green onions option, and it turned out great! I also made a side of your garlic bread recipe to go along with it, which was the perfect accompaniment. I will say it was a lot more work than anticipated (unfortunately took me almost 2 hours to make), but it was well worth the effort, and we had leftovers for days!
One thing that I struggled with was finding jumbo shells! I checked 4 different stores, and ended up ordering them online instead, which was a pain. Where do you find shells?
Thanks again for such a great recipe! :)
I’m sorry it took so long, but happy you thought it was worth it! Thank you for sharing, Samantha. Yes, finding jumbo shells was a bit difficult depending on what is in demand right now. I got them at a local store.
Another amazing recipe!!! Between your website and the cookbook, I feel like I don’t need anything else :-). Made this for my husband for his Father’s Day meal and it was a hit. I love how your food tastes like love! Thank you Cookie+Kate!
I made this using green onions instead of chives. It was a huge hit! To this day, my family still talks about how delicious it was. Thank you!
These are simply delicious! My family devoured a whole pan, and put the other pan in the freezer for a night we need a quick dinner! I appreciate that the recipe uses a full box of shells, entire container of ricotta, etc. so I’m not left with a small amount of anything leftover – very efficient!
I’m happy to hear they were such a hit, Emma! Thank you for taking the time to review.
This was SO GOOD!! My family loved it – especially my 6-year-old! Will definitely make again.
I made this with half spinach, half arugula (both fresh) and also added a hearty helping of basil to the greens mix (in addition to as a garnish), this added a lot more flavor to the stuffing and would definitely do it again. I also used about 1/3 additional jar of sauce to make it extra saucy. Awesome recipe, C&K!
This is truly THE best stuffed shells!! I’ve made this three times now and every single person falls in love. It’s especially great to make for non-vegetarians who are skeptical that a vegetarian meal cant be delicious and satisfying. Prove ‘em wrong with this one.
The material used in this really helps you to gain core strength and drastically increase the blood sugar level.Thanks for this article.It is really insightful.
Any suggestions/tips on halving this recipe? Would really like to try it but as a college student it just makes too many servings.
Hi Chelsea! You should be able to cut it in half (half all ingredients) and still have a great result. But, I do believe these will freeze well too as that could be a good option!
I made this with spinach and kale did not blanch either one I added basil as well and made my own sauce
Taste was stronger but turned out AWESOME thanks for the share:))
The shells came out perfectly! I had Johnny’s Super Sausage Sauce — a little chunky, so I think next time I’ll use a marinara sauce. I had fresh swiss chard so used that and for the top mozzarella, I used a whole mozz and just cut it in pieces. Phenomenal! I used 1/2 of a 12 ounce pkg of just medium sized shells and they filled a 9×13 pan. Never again! It was such a mess with medium sz shells, very hard to fill them, but they came out great! Thank you, Kate. First time in over 50 yrs of cooking to made a dinner w stuffed shells!
Delicious! I served this to a very skeptical crew.. who then asked for seconds and thirds. I slipped a little pepperoni in for the carnivores, and then enjoyed the spinach / cheese blend myself. Truly yummy.
That’s great! Thank you for letting me know.
These were so easy to make and delicious. When finished it looked just like your photo.
My husband and I are trying to eat clean as he is going through cancer treatments. This was easy on his digestion.
I would suggest putting the stuffing for the shells in a pipping bag to make it easier to stuff the shells.
I made this the other night and it was delicious! My family was very impressed by this recipe! I ran out of spinach so I added some leeks and mushrooms for the filling.Thanks for sharing! Love the photos and video!
I made the stuffed shells and left out the mozzarella inside the shells to decrease fat and calories. Was delicious with enough left over for tomorrow night! Added sauteed pine nuts for a traditional Italian mouthfeel! Thank you for sharing your recipes! Luv your app!
We loved these shells and they were fun to make. I used frozen spinach and cottage cheese. This is the 3rd recipe in 6 days I have made from you blog and I just signed up for your newsletter. All recipes were super delicious! Also – your notes are a godsend when cooking for a varied group.
I’m delighted to hear you are making so many of my recipes. Thank you for taking the time to comment and for your support!
Wow, this recipe is amazing! I used large sea shells because the grocery store didn’t have jumbo shells which resulted in making a casserole. I just layered it with marinara sauce, pasta shells, spinach mixture, marinara sauce, and then the mozzarella. This is also great for leftovers. We are definitely adding this recipe to our meal list. :)
OMG these are amazing – I added a little chilli spice to the mix and it really made them pop!
I cannot say how much I love your recipes. I live in Columbia MO but have referred you recipes, blog and books to many cooks on the NYT website. You are an inspiration. (And so close). Thank you!!!!
I made this for dinner this past friday night. They are so good!!! My husband loved them much that we went and got all the stuff to make it again later this week!! Absolutely delicious!! Thank you for the BEST stuffed shell recipe EVER!!
Oh my…these were sooooo good! I’m not a huge stuffed shells fan, probably because the filling is generally lacking flavor. But, these are a different animal. I used homemade ricotta cheese, but otherwise followed the recipe exactly (with fresh spinach & Rao’s Marinara – of course). I am telling you they are a game changer. I have some that I froze and I dream of them at night. Make these ASAP. You will not be disappointed.
I made this tonight. I couldn’t find jumbo shells so I substituted for cannelloni. Turned out great. Husband loved it!!
We loved it! Like so many other Cookie + Kate recipes, this one is as good as the ratings imply. We used fresh spinach, homemade sauce (NYT Cooking Classic Marinara Sauce)and stored in the fridge until ready to eat. Absolutely delicious. Thank you Cookie (and Kate) for another delicious recipe.
This is so great! Love the veggie to cheese ratio! I used half kale and half broccoli because that’s what I had in hand! Love your recipes!
Dear Kate,
ALL your recipes look great and the ones I have made taste divine.
Recipes that call for spinach or kale, do you have another “green” suggestion? My husband has gout and needs to stay far away from these delicious “greens”.
Hi! Unfortunately, those are typically the best substitutions. You can omit as much as you can. Not sure how this one will turn out without it, though. Sorry to not be of more help!
I’m trying this tonight but when you feeeze them do you freeze without the marinara?
Hi! I think it will be ok. I suggest freezing all of it.
We made this last night, what a delicious meal, thank you! I did have to do a few subs (in case anyone else is stuck like I was):
-I didn’t have enough garlic to make the sauce, so I made it the original Marcella Hazan way with just onion. I didn’t have fresh herbs so I used a pinch of Oregano.
-I didn’t have chives (I totally missed that!) so I cubed a cooked onion from the sauce and added for the filling.
-I didn’t have the 2 cups of mozzarella so I only used one cup and enough to sprinkle on top,
All these subs did not affect how delicious this meal was! Just WOW!
Thank you!
P.S. My daughter loved it as well and she is not a fan of Ricotta cheese;)
Thank you for sharing you variations, Tristan! I appreciate your review.
Another winner… love how easy it was to whip together. Basil on top is not so much a suggestion, as a necessity! In my opinion it rounded the dish out perfectly. When (yes when) I make it again I think I’ll half the mozzarella, and a little more parmesan because I love it so! Thanks again for the amazing recipe! All the best!
Thank you for sharing, Shayla! We appreciate you taking the time to review.
Love your recipes! What’s the best way to reheat these stuffed shells? I’d like to do so in the oven but don’t want to dry them out. Thank you!
Hi! Oven or gently in the microwave works too.
Oh my. These were the best stuffed shells I’ve ever had. I even ate a few before baking (I know, I know, raw egg. The risk was worth it). Followed the recipe exactly using blanched fresh spinach.
Hooray! I’m happy you think so, Shannon. I appreciate you taking the time to review.
So good!! My family’s new favorite past recipe
Yes! That’s great to hear. Thank you for your review, Rishika.
If I plan on making the recipe using my own freshly made shells should I still cook them? I usually cook the shells for about 4 min in water to have them be al dente, but I was wondering since they will be cooking in the oven should I just stuff them or only boil them for about 2 min?
Hi Sarah! I’m not 100% sure with homemade shells, but that may work. Be sure to report back!
Your directions are really precise, making this a wonderful dish to tackle. It is packed with flavour and is visually appealing–a perfect dish for a cold winter’s day.
Thanks for sharing it!
You’re welcome, Robin! I’m delighted you think so.
Would this work with manicotti pasta? I don’t have shells in the pantry.
Sure! You can try it. Others have rolled lasagna noodles. I hope you love it!
I made these stuffed shells for Christmas dinner this year. Although I omitted the egg, they were creamy and flavorful. Plus, the dish looks very festive–a fantastic holiday meal. Thank you!
Yes, very festive! I’m glad you liked them, Catherine. I appreciate your review.
I made these (non-dairy) and your spinach pasta (Husband’s fave) for our NYE dinner. So good. I’ve missed stuffed shells and these, using your sour cream recipe, were perfect. I halved the recipe and used one portion of your sour cream. No chives or scallions so subbed onion powder. Another winner!
Love it! Thanks so much Terri, and Happy New Year!
Made the shells with fresh baby spinach, ricotta and homemade marinara sauce yesterday. They were fabulous! I did add a teaspoon of sugar to the sauce as I found it a bit acidic but that did the trick. Might have been the Kirkland tomatoes.
This recipe is so delicious! I do not have a lot of experience cooking, so all of the helpful tips in the instructions are very useful. Every recipe I have made from your blog or cookbook has always turned out well. If people are not great cooks, but want to make healthy recipes that taste great, I highly recommend Cookie and Kate’s recipes.
Loved this recipe! First time making stuffed shells and was very easy. I don’t have a food processor and just mixed the ingredients together. I think this is easier for cleanup and I like the look of the spinach just mixed.
I used frozen chopped spinach which I definitely recommend over fresh to skip the step of blanching. I left it out on my counter for ~15 min to let it defrost and then used a tea towel to squeeze excess water out. (I think I could’ve skipped the tea towel step) I don’t think it’s a good idea to rinse it in water to thaw the spinach. It adds extra moisture you don’t want and gives you more work of ringing it out. I also used Rao’s sauce and thought it was great.
That’s great! Thank you for sharing, Kat. I’m glad you found a method that worked for you.
I made the vegan version tonight and it was excellent! It’s so nice to know we can count on your recipes!
Thank you, Kate!
Turned out super well! Super easy and delicious! Love your recipes!
Delicious and oh so visually appealing. Made exactly as written. The red pepper flakes knocked this one out of the ballpark for me. Freezes beautifully. As suggested by another reviewer, using a piping bag to fill the shells makes things a bit easier. If you don’t have one, you can MacGyver a makeshift one out of a Ziploc.
My daughter just had a baby and I’m looking for ways to leave frozen meals for her family after I leave town. She has limited freezer space but she loves this recipe. Would it work to make these stuffed shells and freeze them in a plastic bag? If so, do you think the sauce should be frozen in the same bag with the stuffed shells or a separate freezer bag? Thanks!!
Hi! I don’t know how well they will holdup in a plastic bag or freezing separately. Maybe freeze in a bag on a tray first to get them set? Sorry to not be of more help!
This is such a great recipe! Tastes and looks elaborate but is simple to prepare. Made it for Dinner last night and it came out delicious. Used the Newman’s organic, but will definitely go the extra mile next time and make your marinara sauce, which is a staple in my kitchen. Looking forward to trying out the version with roasted vegetables next time!
I’m delighted you loved it, Eva! Thank you for your review.
I used frozen spinach and no egg. It was delicious but I’d like to try with fresh spinach and egg next time. This tasted so good that I over-ate!
Will be making this tomorrow’s dinner. Yum! Thanks for sharing
A 12 ounce box of jumbo shells results in 42 cooked shells. Why is this recipe only for 28 shells in all? What do you do with the remaining 14 cooked shells?
Hi Marybeth, Sorry if that disappoints you. You can use them if you make them again or another recipe.
a dinner party hit! i found the filling in need of more brightness, so i put more garlic and chives into it, and then squeezed the juice of an entire lemon into it, to taste. this is great paired with a ‘bufala negra’ cocktail (which uses fresh basil) or with a ‘new york sour’ (kate, i believe, has a version) with rosemary-tinged simple syrup.
Sounds delicious, Erick! Thank you for sharing.
Made this tonight for dinner. It was my first time making stuffed Shells and the recipe was easy and delicious! Thank you!
We did the vegan version of these following Kate’s notes and used frozen kale for ease. They were INCREDIBLE! Can’t wait to make again!