Spinach Stuffed Shells is an easy and healthy vegetarian dinner recipe that can be prepared in advance! With three types of cheese, the ultimate cozy, family-friendly meal is a hearty and satisfying meatless dish that's perfect for hungry appetites.
How to Make Spinach Stuffed Shells | 1-Minute Video
If you're trying to eat less meat, or if you're serving supper to a vegetarian guest, it helps to have a few good go-to recipes that you know everyone will enjoy. These easy spinach stuffed shells do not disappoint!
What are stuffed shells?
This Italian-inspired dish includes Jumbo Shells pasta, which has been stuffed with a variety of ingredients and baked with sauce and cheese in a casserole dish. Spinach and cheese is a classic stuffed shells filling, but you might also find beef and ricotta stuffed shells or sausage and cheese stuffed shells.
How to make Spinach Stuffed Shells:
While they might look fancy, I assure you -- if you can boil pasta, you can make this recipe! Plus, it's a great prep-ahead option for busy nights. Stash the stuffed shells in your fridge or keep them in your freezer, and you'll be glad that dinner's waiting for you when you're ready to bake them!
Ingredients for Stuffed Shells:
- Jumbo pasta shells
- Frozen chopped spinach
- Ricotta cheese
- Mozzarella cheese
- Egg
- Basil, salt and garlic powder
- Marinara sauce
First, cook the pasta shells according to the package instructions. You will only need to use about half of the box of pasta shells (about 20-22 shells total); however, I recommend cooking the entire box because you will find that many of the shells break during the cooking process and will not be useable for stuffing.
Meanwhile, spread half of the marinara sauce in the bottom of a 9 x 13-inch baking dish.
Then squeeze all of the liquid out of the spinach. I find that it's easiest to put the spinach in a dish towel and then just wring out as much water as you possibly can!
Prepare the filling by stirring together the spinach, ricotta, 1 ½ cups of the mozzarella, Parmesan, egg, basil, salt and garlic powder.
Stuff each shell with about 2 tablespoons of filling, and then arrange the shells in the baking dish.
Pour the remaining marinara sauce over top and sprinkle with remaining mozzarella.
Cover and bake the shells at 350 degrees F for about 30 minutes, or until heated through. Remove the cover during the final 5-10 minutes to allow the cheese to melt and get crispy on top.
What side dishes go with Spinach Stuffed Shells?
If you're wondering what goes with stuffed shells for dinner, here are a few easy ideas to get you started:
- A simple green salad tossed in Italian Balsamic Vinaigrette
- Garlic bread or crusty French baguette
- 3-Ingredient Homemade Breadsticks
- Garlic Parmesan Zucchini Casserole
- Marinated Vegetable Salad
- Garlic Roasted Broccoli
Cook's Tips and Recipe Variations:
- To prep ahead: Assemble the stuffed shells in the baking dish as instructed. Cover and refrigerate for up to 24 hours.
- Can you freeze Spinach Stuffed Shells? Yes! Assemble the stuffed shells in the baking dish as instructed and freeze before baking. Wrapped tightly, the shells will keep in the freezer for up to 3 months. When ready to bake, you can either thaw the stuffed shells in the refrigerator overnight (and bake according to the recipe instructions); or you can bake the frozen casserole at 350 degrees for about 50-60 minutes (or until heated through). Don’t forget to remove the foil during the final 5-10 minutes of baking to allow the cheese to brown on top!
- How many stuffed shells per person? I generally assume about 2-3 shells per person. Larger appetites might like 4, while smaller eaters may prefer 2. This recipe yields about 22 stuffed shells, and it typically feeds about 6-8 people.
- This recipe yields a large batch to serve 8, so it's perfect for entertaining. If you're feeding a smaller family, you can divide the stuffed shells between two smaller 8-inch baking dishes and freeze one for later.
- If you'd like to make the Spinach Stuffed Shells with Meat Sauce, simply add ½ pound of cooked ground beef or ground Italian sausage to the marinara sauce.
- To make these Spinach Stuffed Shells without ricotta, you can substitute with cottage cheese instead. If using cottage cheese, I recommend straining off some of the liquid first or using a whipped cottage cheese so that you don't end up with a watery filling.
- These stuffed shells are a relatively healthy option, since they have just 329 calories per serving and they're full of leafy green veggies and satiating protein! One serving includes more than 20 grams of protein, which is a lot for a vegetarian dinner!
More easy pasta dinner recipes that you might enjoy:
- Stuffed Shells with Ground Beef or Sausage
- Dump-and-Bake Ravioli Casserole
- Dump-and-Bake Meatball Casserole
- Turkey and Pesto Slow Cooker Lasagna
- Chi-Chi’s Christmas Eve Lasagna
Spinach Stuffed Shells
Ingredients
- 1 (12 ounce) package jumbo pasta shells
- 2 (10 ounce) packages frozen chopped spinach, thawed
- 15 ounces ricotta cheese
- 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
- ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 egg
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil (or 1 teaspoon dried basil)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 (24 ounce) jar marinara sauce (about 2 ½ cups total)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 9 x 13-inch dish with cooking spray. Pour half of the marinara sauce into the bottom of the dish. Save the rest of the sauce for later.
- Prepare pasta according to package instructions; drain and rinse under cold water.
- Squeeze all of the liquid out of the spinach. I like to use a dish towel for this, and just keep squeezing until you wring out as much water as possible. Place spinach in a large bowl.
- Add ricotta, 1 ½ cups of the mozzarella, Parmesan, egg, basil, salt and garlic powder to the bowl with the spinach and stir really well with a fork to combine. Add a pinch of optional nutmeg, if desired. Stuff each shell with about 2 tablespoons of the spinach mixture.
- Arrange stuffed shells in the prepared baking dish, open side up. Pour remaining half of the marinara sauce over top. Sprinkle with remaining ½ cup of mozzarella.
- Cover with foil and bake for about 30 minutes, or until heated through. Remove the foil cover during the final 5-10 minutes to allow the cheese to get a little bit crispy on top.
Video
Notes
- You will only need to use about half of the box of pasta shells (about 20 shells total); however, I recommend cooking the entire box because you will find that many of the shells break during the cooking process and will not be useable for stuffing.
- To prep ahead: Assemble the stuffed shells in the baking dish as instructed. Cover and refrigerate for up to 24 hours.
- Can you freeze Spinach Stuffed Shells? Yes! Assemble the stuffed shells in the baking dish as instructed and freeze before baking. Wrapped tightly, the shells will keep in the freezer for up to 3 months. When ready to bake, you can either thaw the stuffed shells in the refrigerator overnight (and bake according to the recipe instructions); or you can bake the frozen casserole at 350 degrees for about 50-60 minutes (or until heated through). Don’t forget to remove the foil during the final 5-10 minutes of baking to allow the cheese to brown on top!
- How many stuffed shells per person? I generally assume about 2-3 shells per person. Larger appetites might like 4, while smaller eaters may prefer 2. This recipe yields about 22 stuffed shells, and it typically feeds about 6-8 people.
- This recipe yields a large batch to serve 8, so it's perfect for entertaining. If you're feeding a smaller family, you can divide the stuffed shells between two smaller 8-inch baking dishes and freeze one for later.
- If you'd like to make the Spinach Stuffed Shells with Meat Sauce, simply add ½ pound of cooked ground beef or ground Italian sausage to the marinara sauce.
- To make these Spinach Stuffed Shells without ricotta, you can substitute with cottage cheese instead. If using cottage cheese, I recommend straining off some of the liquid first or using a whipped cottage cheese so that you don't end up with a watery filling.
Amy
Definitely the most fiddly SM recipe I've tried but worth the effort for two dinners! Love that half can be eaten one night, and half frozen for another night. I cooked the whole box of shells as instructed but it was unnecessary as actually only a couple broke so I'll have to think of a way to use up all the extra ones. Definitely an effort to prepare (took more like 50 minutes than 20), but tasty and satisfying!
Blair
Glad you enjoyed it, Amy! Yes -- it's definitely more "involved" than most of my recipes, but it's one that I consider worth the effort when I have the time. 🙂
Annette Burdick
Hi Blair, I hope everything is well with you and your family during this crazy time. I am getting cabin fever, going on my 6th week working from home!! We are in the cold & rainy season here in MA which makes it difficult to go out walking.
I decided to make your Spinach Stuffed Shells Recipe. It was fantastic!!! My husband and I enjoyed them very much!! I took your suggestion and made 2 smaller pans, one to freeze for a another time.
Thank you for another great recipe!!
Blair
Hi, Annette! Good to hear from you! I'm so glad that you enjoyed the stuffed shells. My parents just made them for dinner last night, too. 🙂 You'll really appreciate the extra pan in your freezer later, as well. Take care and stay healthy!
Mel
Delicious! We didn’t have any of our shells break before stuffing—maybe that’s due to slightly less than al dente cooking time. They were perfectly soft/al dente after they baked! I think next time we’ll make more stuffing to use all the shells.
Prep definitely was not 10 minutes, but it was an easy/straightforward recipe. The stuffing took the longest.
The whole family loved them, especially our one year old 😉
Blair
Great! So glad that even the baby approved, Mel! 🙂
Krista
This was a super easy and incredibly delicious meal. I’m kids and husband loved them. I prepped the filling and cooked the noodles early then was able to stuff them and cook. We had leftovers and I will make this again for sure. Thanks!
Krista
Sorry. Typo in the comment above.
“My husband and kids...”.
Blair
Thanks so much, Krista!
Micah
Hi Blair, thanks for the recipe! Any issue with using fresh spinach? Looking forward to making this week!
Blair
Hi, Micah! Yes -- you can substitute with fresh spinach. The only issue with fresh spinach is that you need A LOT of the fresh leaves to equal the same amount of frozen spinach. Plus, the fresh leaves need to be cooked before straining and combining with the ricotta mixture, while the frozen spinach can just be thawed and squeezed dry. So the fresh spinach adds a step. Again, fresh will work -- just keep those things in mind. Hope that helps, and enjoy!
Cynthia
Made this today. It was by far the best shell recipe for this veggie lover. Made half, froze half.
Blair
Perfect! I'm so glad that you'll be able to enjoy it again without any work next time. 🙂 Thanks, Cynthia!
Susan
Great recipe! I’m always looking for vegetarian meals my daughter will like. I had some issues with stuffing the shells, I put too much in them and had to redo that step, but they came out great. I undercooked the shells a bit to keep them from tearing, so I only used half the box. I baked half and froze half in 8x8 pans and halved the sauce prior to assembling the dish. I also used parchment paper to line the frozen pan so I could lift it out and cook it in a glass dish. Thanks so much!
Blair
Sounds perfect, Susan! Thanks for taking the time to come back here and let me know. 🙂
Jackie
Made this dish tonight as I need to expand my vegetarian main dishes. There were a lot of “moving parts” to the prep but I’m sure it’ll go faster next time. I made it early in the day and took it out of the fridge about 30 minutes before baking it. Has anyone tried to use fresh garlic? If so, how many cloves did you use? Next time, I will increase the amount of basil and garlic powder as I like it with a bit more of a kick. My family liked it so it’s a keeper.
Blair
Glad your family enjoyed it, Jackie! Yes, you could use about 1 clove of garlic (about 1 1/2 teaspoons minced).
Kristin
Delicious! Thank you for the recipe.
Blair
Thanks for your note, Kristin! I'm so glad that you liked the meal! 🙂
Ashley
Hi! I have an egg allergy and wonder if the egg is an essential ingredient or if I could use something in its place?
Thank you!
Blair
Hi, Ashley! I don't think that there's another ingredient that you can use in lieu of the egg. I would just omit it entirely. The egg helps to hold the filling together and give it structure, so you might find that the cheese filling oozes out a bit more without the egg in the mix, but it will still taste great!
Martha
Hello, I recently made the Easy Lentil soup recipe that our family enjoyed. I changed the servings to five servings, however, the calculated ingredients were confusing. Is there a conversion chart to that you use that you can share. For example, the recipe shows to use 0.19 teaspoon of cumin. How do I know how much to use? I have a 1/8 tsp measuring spoon but nothing smaller. Thanks in advance.
Blair
Hi, Martha! The conversions are definitely not perfect since they're automatically calculated by a computer program. I don't have a specific conversion chart that I use, so I typically just round up or down to the next closest size or estimate. For example, I would just use 1/4 teaspoon of cumin when it says 0.19. Unless you're baking when exact measurements are important, you typically won't ruin a recipe by estimating or erring up or down slightly. Hope that helps!
Martha
Thank you for replying. I figured the best advice is to just start with the smallest amount and to add accordingly to your preferred taste. I look forward to trying out more of your recipes.
Blair
Exactly! No problem, Martha. 🙂
Suzanne McSpadden
Delicious. This was not difficult to do, and totally worth any effort. I appreciated the tips (like cook all the shells in case some break), the make-ahead feature, and the freeze and reheat info. I used a purchased ricotta (Classic- only 3 ingredients, not gummy and thick), a purchased high-quality marinara, and fresh basil. I also used a 3-cheese shredded Italian blend for topping the shells. All made this a wonderful meal. The whole family enjoyed it!
Blair
I'm so happy to hear that, Suzanne! Thanks for taking the time to come back here and leave a note. 🙂
Michelle Margules
Would this spinach filling work with no-boil lasagna noodles and marinara sauce for lasagna?
Blair Lonergan
Hi, Michelle! Yes, I think it would! 🙂
Rachel
Very fast and easy dinner to make. Next time I plan to add a tin of minced oysters to the filling, I think that would be great! I've tried that with similar recipes and it was very tasty.
Blair Lonergan
Thanks, Rachel. I love that idea!