This easy manicotti recipe treats your family to the ultimate Italian comfort food. Jumbo tubes of pasta are stuffed with an herb ricotta filling. To maximize flavor, I include a quick homemade marinara sauce that adds a rustic tomato taste to each serving.
Recipe Science
- Tomato paste, crushed tomatoes, and diced tomatoes create a thick, textured sauce that clings to the tubular manicotti pasta.
- For the best flavor and texture, use three Italian cheeses: creamy ricotta, stretchy mozzarella, and sharp Parmesan for a nutty kick.
- Add nutmeg to your cheese filling for a subtle sweetness and depth. When paired with salt and pepper, it enhances the flavor.
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Featured Comment 22
“Nutmeg in the filling was a pleasant surprise! Will definitely make this recipe again, because it was a huge hit in my house.”—Liane
Why It Works
A big casserole of manicotti can easily feed a hungry family with leftovers for the week. It’s also simple to prepare in advance, so you can bake it when ready for a hassle-free weeknight meal. This recipe has the seal of approval from my Italian husband. It’s often on the menu for Sunday supper.
After years of testing, I’ve broken the recipe into three essential parts: sauce, pasta, and filling. Each component requires careful attention. I start by simmering the tomato sauce to concentrate the flavors. I cook the pasta until al dente to prevent breakage, then pipe in the creamy filling for the perfect bite. Bake with sauce and cheese on top for the ultimate comfort food!
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Tomato Sauce: Grab your can opener and prepare a quick, flavorful tomato sauce! For a thick sauce that clings perfectly to the pasta, combine tomato paste, crushed tomatoes, and diced tomatoes for bursts of texture. Onions, garlic, and Italian seasoning add depth to the sauce.
- Pasta: Manicotti is the perfect pasta for this dish because its large, tube-shaped structure holds plenty of filling. The ribbed surface allows the sauce to cling nicely, while the firm texture after baking keeps everything together.
- Cheese: The hallmark of a tasty stuffed manicotti is its filling. I use three types of Italian cheeses for a unique texture and flavor. Ricotta cheese is the base. It has a hint of sweetness and a creamy consistency. It’s also soft and gooey, making it easy to pipe. Mozzarella is mild and stretchy, helping to bind the filling and providing a drool-worthy pull. Aged Parmesan cheese is hard, but it has a nutty and sharp taste.
- Filling: In addition to the three cheeses, my recipe for manicotti stuffing includes an egg, parsley, basil, salt, pepper, and nutmeg.
See the recipe card below for all ingredients and measurements (US and metric).
Ingredient Substitutions
This homemade manicotti recipe is easy to customize! Try these tasty options:
- Pasta Options: You can use tubular cannelloni, make large stuffed shells, or use lasagna noodles to make lasagna rolls.
- Add Meat: For extra protein, add cooked Italian sausage, ground beef, chicken, or turkey to the cheese filling or tomato sauce.
- Add Vegetables: Add sauteed spinach, zucchini, mushrooms, eggplant, or corn in the filling.
- Make it Spicy: Add red chili flakes, chili pepper, Calabrian chili peppers, peperoncino, Aleppo peppers, or hot sauce to the tomato sauce to make the dish hotter.
How to Make Manicotti
Step 1: Heat the Oven
Position the oven rack in the center to ensure even heat distribution. Preheat the oven to 400°F (204ºC), the ideal temperature for baking manicotti, until the pasta is perfectly tender and the cheese is golden and bubbly.
Step 2: Cook the Sauce
Heat olive oil in a large saucepan or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onion, garlic, and Italian seasoning until the onion softens. Stir in tomato paste to enhance the umami flavor, then add crushed and diced tomatoes, salt, and black pepper. Simmer, allowing the flavors to meld. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Step 3: Cook the Pasta
Cook the dried pasta before filling. Boiling them in saltwater seasons the bland noodles. I cook them until al dente with some chew because they will continue to soften when baking in the oven.
After removing them from the water, immediately rinse them with cold water to stop the cooking process and prevent them from getting mushy. Al dente noodles are easier to handle when adding the cheese.
Step 4: Make the Filling
Pro Tip: When I was in college, I worked at an Italian restaurant. The head chef told me about a secret ingredient he adds to his cheese-stuffed pasta: nutmeg! Just a dash adds a hint of sweetness and depth. When paired with salt and pepper, you’ll be surprised how much it enhances the taste.
Step 5: Fill the Pasta
Add the cheese filling into a large resealable plastic bag or a piping bag with a big round tip (I use Ateco 806). Snip off one corner and carefully pipe the filling into each manicotti shell (you’ll need about 10).
Once filled, place the stuffed pasta on a sheet pan.
Step 6: Assemble the Manicotti
Spread half of the tomato sauce evenly on the bottom of a 13×9-inch baking dish. Arrange the stuffed manicotti in a single layer, then cover them with the remaining sauce. Sprinkle shredded mozzarella cheese evenly over the top.
Step 7: Bake
Cover the manicotti with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Then, remove the foil and bake for an additional 5 minutes, or until the sauce is bubbling. Cooking the stuffed tubes in the sauce will infuse more flavor and tenderize the noodles a bit more.
Step 8: To Serve
Garnish the manicotti with fresh parsley, basil, and a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese for a flavorful finish.
Frequently Asked Questions
They both use large tube-shaped pasta used for stuffing with a filling. The main difference comes down to texture. Manicotti has multiple ridges running down the length of the pasta. This makes for better grooves to grab the sauce. Cannelloni has a smooth surface and is thinner. If you are making fresh pasta sheets, creating cannelloni tubes is easier.
Manicotti are large tubes of Italian pasta, typically with ridges on the outside, making it easy to trap the flavorful sauce. The cheese-filled shells are nestled in tomato sauce, topped with mozzarella, and baked in a casserole dish. To customize the recipe, this popular baked pasta can be stuffed with multiple kinds of cheese and the mixture can even include chopped vegetables like mushrooms and spinach. For a heartier meal, I would make this with a meat sauce consisting of Italian sausage, beef, or veal.
The trick to filling manicotti is using a piping bag or resealable plastic bag with the corner snipped off. This makes it easy to pipe the filling directly into the pasta tubes without breaking them. Make sure the filling is smooth and creamy for an even flow, and hold the pasta steady as you pipe from both ends to ensure it’s fully stuffed
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If you tried this Manicotti Recipe, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below!
Easy Manicotti Recipe
Ingredients
Sauce
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- ½ cup yellow onion, finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
- ¼ cup tomato paste
- 28 ounces crushed tomatoes
- 14.5 ounces diced tomatoes, do not drain
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Pasta
- 4 quarts water
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
- 1 pound manicotti
Filling
- 2 cups whole-milk ricotta cheese
- 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
- ½ cup grated parmesan cheese, more for garnish
- 1 large egg
- 1 tablespoon chopped Italian parsley, more for garnish
- 1 tablespoon chopped basil, more for garnish
- 1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg
Instructions
- Heat the Oven – Set the oven rack to the center position. Preheat to 400°F (204ºC).
- Cook the Sauce – Heat olive oil in a large saucepan or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onion, garlic, and Italian seasoning. Cook, stirring frequently, for 3 minutes or until the onion is tender. Add the tomato paste, stir, and cook for 1 minute. Add crushed tomatoes, diced tomatoes, salt, and black pepper. Simmer and stir occasionally for 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Cook the Pasta – Boil the water in a large pot over high heat. Stir in the salt until dissolved. Add the pasta, and cook for about 8 to 9 minutes until al dente, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. Drain the pasta in a colander and rinse with cold water until it is cool. Place manicotti in a single layer on a sheet pan. Set aside.
- Make the Filling – In a medium bowl, combine ricotta cheese, 1 cup mozzarella, Parmesan, egg, parsley, basil, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper, and nutmeg.
- Fill the Pasta – Transfer cheese filling into a large resealable plastic bag or piping bag fitted with a large round tip. Cut off one corner of the bag. Pipe the cheese mixture into each manicotti shell (about 10). Set filled pasta on a sheet pan.
- Assemble the Manicotti – Evenly spread half of the tomato sauce on the bottom of a 13 x 9-inch baking dish. Add the stuffed manicotti in a single layer. Spread the remaining pasta sauce over the stuffed pasta. Evenly sprinkle 1 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese on top.
- Bake – Cover the manicotti with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for about 5 additional minutes until the sauce bubbles.
- To Serve – Garnish manicotti with parsley, basil, and parmesan cheese.
Notes
- Serving Size: One manicotti with sauce.
- Make-Ahead: The casserole can be assembled 3 days in advance. Bake the day you’re ready to serve.
- Using Store-Bought Sauce: Add 5 cups of marinara sauce to the sauteed onions, garlic, and Italian seasoning. Simmer for 10 minutes.
- Make a Meat Sauce: You can brown 1 pound of Italian sausage, ground chicken, turkey, or beef first, then simmer it with the tomato sauce for added flavor.
- Storing and Reheating: The manicotti can be refrigerated for up to 5 days. Cover and reheat individual servings on high power in the microwave until warmed, about 1 ½ to 2 minutes.
Nutrition Facts
Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000-calorie diet. All nutritional information is based on estimated third-party calculations. Each recipe and nutritional value will vary depending on the brands you use, measuring methods, and portion sizes per household.
Jenny says
Hi Jessica, Love your recipes! I’m making this one right now, and noticed when making the filling in step 4, you don’t have Italian seasoning listed. Its listed above in ingredients. Just a heads up for a quick fix.
Jessica Gavin says
Thanks for the catch! I just updated the recipe.
Recipe land says
Seems tasty
Thanks for sharing
Jessica Gavin says
You’re welcome! I hope you give the manicotti a try.
Charlotte says
Thanks Jessica for sharing this recipe! I have made this many times for family and friends and they always rave about it!
Jessica Gavin says
You’re welcome, Charlotte!
Liane @ Foodie Digital says
Nutmeg in the filling was a pleasant surprise! Will definitely make this recipe again, because it was a huge hit in my house.
Jessica Gavin says
The nutmeg is such a game changer! Thrilled to hear that your family enjoyed the manicotti.
Allbaugh Terri says
Why do you need to precook the noodles? I make a lasagna without precooked noodles
Jessica Gavin says
I personally like to cook the noodles fully to ensure it’s tender throughout before baking. Since it only bakes for 30 minutes and is not completely submerged in layers of sauce, I feel more comfortable pre-cooking. If you try it without cooking the noodles first, I’d love to hear how it turns out!
Deborah Urciolo says
This was really great! Easy, fairly quick, wonderful flavor. However, I think this should be the 8 oz pkg of manicotti (which yields approx 12 noodles). Maybe it would be better to provide the ounces of your packaging…. If I used a pound I’d have manicotti for a very large crowd!
Thanks for a new family favorite!
Jessica Gavin says
I’m so happy that you enjoyed the manicotti recipe, Deborah! I will look in the packaging for the noodles. Sometimes there are broken shells after boiling, so I like to have extra just in case.
DIane says
Can this be made ahead and frozen before cooking? It would only be frozen for about 3 weeks.
Jessica Gavin says
Yes, you can freeze the recipe if you wrap it up well.
Marilena Silbey says
I just made a pan of these and they are delicious.
Next time I will use only 1/2 teaspoon of salt in the filling mixture.
Thank you for posting this classic recipe.
Great website !
Jessica Gavin says
Thank you! I’m so happy to hear that you enjoyed the manicotti recipe.
Nancy Call says
Hi Jessica. Are you sure that it is one pound of manicotti? I cooked two boxes of manicotti noodles and it was way too much.
Jessica Gavin says
Yes, but perhaps the brand you use is smaller in size? How many tubes did you fill?
Nancy Call says
Hi Jessica. I filled at least 15 tubes and also we had to double the filling. We tried the freezer bag method which did not work to fill the tubes, so we ended up using a long handled small spoon. Despite all of the confusion, it tasted delicious.
Jessica Gavin says
Thanks for letting me know! I was able to fill about 10, but had some extra that went unfilled. Appreciate your feedback!
Judy says
Hi Jessica,
Delicious. I made this for our friends yesterday so all they had to do was put it in the oven to bake. She asked for the recipe so it was a hit. I came home from their house and made it for us last night too. Wonderful recipe I will use again and again. As always thank you for the delicious food you put share. The nutmeg was a great addition as you mentioned and I enjoyed reading about how you came to add that to the dish.
Jessica Gavin says
You’re such a wonderful friend, Judy! I’m so happy to hear that your family got to enjoy the dish as well. Nutmeg is one of my favorite spices!