Growing up, my mom made manicotti all the time, but I am pretty sure her manicotti recipe was stuffed with cottage cheese and Kraft powdered parm! We loved it, but my manicotti recipe is definitely a step up! Stuffed with three cheeses and topped with fresh mozzarella, it’s simple, classic and really indulgent, too. If you love a good pasta bake, check out our baked rigatoni, stuffed shells or any of our pasta recipes.
Ingredients For Baked Manicotti
- Manicotti noodles: These “little sleeves” were created to be stuffed and baked, and they do it well!
- Cheese: ricotta, mozzarella, and parmesan
- Seasoning: classic Italian seasoning plus chopped fresh parsley
- Sauce: Marinara sauce! It can be jarred or homemade.
- Eggs: Two eggs help bind the cheese filling and add texture while it bakes
- More cheese: Fresh mozzarella gets dotted across the top of the manicotti before you bake it
How To Make Manicotti, Step By Step
Find the full detailed instructions at the bottom of this page.
- Boil the manicotti noodles until just barely al dente. Remember, they’ll cook more during the bake.
- Mix the filling!
- Stuff the filling into the noodles.
- Spread marinara sauce in a casserole dish.
- Top it with the filled manicotti.
- Cover with more sauce.
- Finish with fresh mozzarella.
- Bake until bubbly! About 40 minutes at 350°F.
How To Fill Manicotti Noodles
It’s really best to use a pastry bag instead of a spoon to fill manicotti. But I’ve got a great pastry bag kitchen hack: Use a zip-top plastic bag and cut the tip off of one corner. Voilà! Instant pastry bag. Fill your pastry bag (or zip-top bag) with the cheese filling and get ready to fill the pasta! Partially filling the manicotti from one side, and then finishing piping from the other side, is the easiest way to avoid breakage.
Make Ahead & Freeze Manicotti
Like lasagna, my manicotti recipe is great for freezing! Stop just before adding the mozzarella and the final bake, wrapping the dish in plastic wrap and then foil, and storing for up to 3 months. When you’re ready to bake, remove the plastic and foil, add the fresh mozzarella on top and pop it in a 350°F oven. Bake until an instant-read thermometer stuck into the middle of the pan reads 165°F degrees.
Tips for Classic Baked Manicotti
- Leftovers can be stored for up to 4 days in the fridge.
- To keep manicotti tubes from breaking when filling them cook them just to the point of being al dente (about 1-2 minutes less than suggested on the pasta package), handle them very gently, fill them only halfway from one end and then flip the half-filled manicotti and and finish filling it from the other end. It’s also very helpful to use a piping bag and not a spoon to fill them. If you only have a spoon, make stuffed shells instead!
- If you want to use cottage cheese instead of ricotta, drain it well by pressing it in cheesecloth or fine mesh strainer. Some folks like the flavor and the additional protein!
Manicotti Variations
- Add veggies: You could add 10 ounces of frozen spinach, or sautéed mushrooms. Roasted red peppers or sun-dried tomatoes would also be nice!
- Instead of marinara sauce, this recipe would work equally well with a different tomato sauce like vodka sauce or arrabbiata or even make a really creamy version with alfredo.
- Make it gluten free with gluten free pasta! There are a few brands that make GF manicotti shells! Jovial is one that I like.
More Baked Pasta Recipes
Make Manicotti, Invite Your Friends For Dinner
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