It's time to impress your family and friends with this super easy Vegetarian Stuffed Shells recipe! Take ricotta cheese, spinach, and chopped mushrooms and stuff them inside jumbo pasta shells with tons of Italian-inspired seasonings. Then, bake everything in a ton of marinara sauce with extra mozzarella on top until it's hot and bubbly!
I love making veggie stuffed shells because they feel and look so fancy, even though they require the smallest effort. Sometimes I add Italian sausage or even make a seafood stuffed shells dish.
The best part - and y'all know I get hype over this - is they are so freezer-friendly! Double the recipe and freeze the extras to pull out on nights you don't feel like doing a lot in the kitchen.
The Coined Breakdown
- Total Cost per serving: $2.17
- Total Cost (4 servings): $8.69
- Those Other Guys: $16.99 per serving
Ingredients
- Ricotta Cheese - The ricotta cheese is going to give us a traditional taste to this flavor profile, plus it's extra creamy and good. If you don't like ricotta cheese, I suggest cream cheese as a substitute.
- Spinach & Mushrooms - For these meatless stuffed shells, we're going to use spinach and mushrooms as our vegetables of choice. The great thing is you can customize this to your personal tastes; try some sundried tomatoes or a pea puree filling - the choice is yours!
- Jumbo Pasta Shells - I've never had trouble finding these in my local Kroger, but you can always order from Amazon if you can't find them. We need the really big shells so it's easy to stuff everything inside.
- Marinara Sauce - So I typically just make my own marinara sauce because it tastes so much better... and I've left instructions for that in the recipe card below! However, if you are super short on time, a jar of your favorite sauce will work.
- Mozzarella - Shredded mozzarella is sprinkled on top for that cheesy crust.
- Spice Blend - Season the filling with a classic mix of salt, garlic powder, onion powder, and Italian seasoning.
- Egg - To stir into the filling for extra structure.
Variations and Substitutions
Cajun Seafood Stuffed Shells: Stuff the shells with a mixture of crawfish and shrimp!
Seafood Stuffed Shells: I also have a recipe for seafood stuffed shells that is really popular! Jumbo shells are stuffed with a crab and shrimp mixture and served in a white sauce.
Chicken Alfredo Stuffed Shells: Fill the jumbo shells with juicy, diced chicken and cheese. Top with a creamy Alfredo sauce!
How to Make Stuffed Shells Vegetarian
Step 1: In a large bowl, mix together your ingredients for the filling.
I add everything except the egg, then taste (so I can adjust any seasonings to preference), then mix in the egg last.
Step 2: Take your cooked and drained jumbo shells, and stuff each one with the filling mixture. You can use your hands and a spoon or a piping bag.
Step 3: Add some marinara sauce to the bottom of a baking pan. Top with the stuffed shells, then cover with extra marinara on top.
Step 4: Finally, sprinkle some shredded mozzarella on top and bake for 15 minutes.
At the end, turn your oven to broil and cook for an additional 2-3 minutes to get the top nice and golden brown. That's it!
Recipe Pro Tips
- Taste test when you can. We stir in a raw egg in the filling before baking. shrimp inside. So you want to mix together all filling ingredients besides the your egg, then taste the mixture in case you want to add anything extra. Once you're satisfied, stir in the egg.
- Undercook the pasta. If you cook the pasta fully before baking, the shells will fall apart either during the stuffing phase or the cooking phase. Undercook your shells by a few minutes!
- Make extras and freeze. This makes a really impressive dish for family and friends. Make an extra batch so you can easily pull off a quick dinner that everyone will love!
Recipe FAQs
Of course! I explain in detail in the recipe card below, but can briefly summarize here as well.
There are two ways to freeze this dish:
1.) Freeze the filled shells without any sauce, and store for up to 3 months. When you're ready to bake, add the shells and marinara to a baking pan and bake uncovered.
2.) Freeze the baked shells and marinara sauce, and store for up to 2.5 months. When you're ready to reheat, add the shells and sauce to a saucepan with a bit of water and cook, covered, until warmed through.
I would suggest cream cheese, or blended cottage cheese as a substitute.
I normally use the Barilla brand, called "Jumbo Shells". I've also seen store-brand versions at Target.
Other Pasta Dinner Recipes You'll Crave!
If you tried this Vegetarian Stuffed Shells Recipe, or any other recipe on my website, please leave a star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. I love hearing from you! Thanks for visiting!
Vegetarian Stuffed Shells
Equipment
- Sauce Pot
- Chef's Knife
- Mixing Bowl
- Serving Spoon
- Piping Bag optional
- 9x13 Glass Baking Dish
Ingredients
- 5 ounces jumbo pasta shells
- 4.5 ounces white mushrooms finely chopped
- 2 ounces frozen chopped spinach thawed
- 12 ounces ricotta cheese
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 count egg large
- ½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese for garnish
- 6 - 8 ounces marinara sauce
Instructions
- Boil a large pot of water and salt until it is at a rolling boil.
- Add pasta shells and cook for about 2 minutes less than the directions on the package - these will fully cook in the oven.
- Once the shells are done, drain the water and blanch them with an ice bath to stop the cooking process. Drain once more, and set aside.
- In a medium-sized bowl, mix together the chopped mushrooms, spinach, ricotta cheese, and seasonings.
- Taste, adjust any seasonings to your preference, then mix in your egg thoroughly.
- Preheat oven to 375°F. In a 9x13 baking dish, spread the marinara sauce on the bottom of the pan.
- Take your ricotta mixture and stuff the shells. You can use piping bags or a regular serving spoon and (washed) hands.
- Layer the stuffed shells on top of the marinara sauce. Top with any remaining marinara sauce and extra cheese.
- Bake for 15 minutes, uncovered. Then, turn your oven to low broil and cook for another 2-4 minutes until the top is golden brown.
- Sprinkle freshly chopped parsley on top and serve hot. Enjoy!
Notes
- Stuff the shells as written above and then layer on a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
- Place shells in the freezer for an hour to ensure that they will not stick together.
- After an hour, remove and add the shells to a large freezer-safe bag. Store for up to 3 months.
- To reheat, bake frozen shells and sauce uncovered at 375°F for 20-30 minutes until fully heated through.
- Add the baked shells and sauce to a freezer-safe container. I suggest portioning up the shells into serving sizes to make it easier to reheat.
- Store for up to 2.5 months.
- To reheat, add the shells and sauce to a saucepan with a little bit of water. Cook, covered, until fully heated through.
Sarah Smith says
Made two batches of these (one with ground beef) for my sister and brother-in-law who are expecting! I used your freezing instructions so they won’t have to cook dinner during those sleep deprived days. Very easy recipe to follow.
Shani W. says
That's such a sweet gesture! Thank you for using my recipe and leaving a great review 🙂