With a little advance prep this Make-Ahead Manicotti will be ready to pop in the oven when you’re ready for dinner. This no-boil, make-ahead method is a real lifesaver on busy days!
Long before the scores of one-pot pasta dishes started hitting all the recipe sites, I came across this make-ahead method for preparing manicotti. It was the first pasta dish I ever cooked that skipped the step of boiling the pasta and it was truly a revelation to this busy mom of four.
Once I discovered this method, this super satisfying, meatless meal appeared frequently on our table when my guys were involved in high school sports.
During water polo season, I was spending my early evening hours on the pool deck and needed dinner, pronto, when we walked in the door. The guys were hungry and tired and Make-Ahead Manicotti was always a happy thing to come home to.
Table of contents
Easy Make-Ahead Manicotti
Walk in the door, pop it in the oven, and while it’s baking you can get to work on a salad or veggie side. A warm, satisfying pasta meal is on your table in under an hour. Fabulous!
I’m sharing the base recipe for a vegetarian 3-cheese and spinach filling, but you could really change things up here and add or substitute a variety of ingredients to suit your taste. See the recipe below for my suggestions. I’ve done this recipe lots of different ways and they’ve all been delicious.
Ingredient Notes
- Pasta – You will need 12 uncooked manicotti shells for this recipe.
- Sauce – Use your favorite store-bought or homemade marinara sauce. Look for a reduced sodium sauce to significantly reduce the amount of sodium in this recipe.
- Cheese Keep things light by using part-skim mozzarella and ricotta cheese. Or go for the full-fat variety – your choice!
- Spinach – Look for a box of chopped frozen spinach in the frozen veggie section of your grocery store.
Prep the Ingredients
- Wring out and drain the excess liquid from the completely thawed spinach by wrapping it in a double layer of paper towels and squeeze it tightly with your hands over the sink. Squeeze out as much of the excess liquid as you can to prevent the spinach from watering down the filling.
- Shred the mozzarella and Parmesan cheese.
- Mince your garlic, if using fresh.
Make the Spinach and Cheese Filling
- In a medium bowl, combine the ricotta cheese and eggs until blended.
- Stir in the drained spinach, mozzarella cheese, Parmesan cheese, minced garlic, onion powder, salt and pepper.
Fill the Manicotti
- Spoon the filling into a gallon-size plastic storage bag to create a disposable makeshift pastry bag.
- Grab some kitchen shears and snip off the corner from one of the bottom edges of the bag.
You can now quickly and easily squeeze the filling into the uncooked manicotti shells and toss the bag when you’re finished
- Coat the bottom of a 13- x 9-inch baking dish with marinara sauce and placed the uncooked, filled manicotti shells on top of the sauce.
- Pour the remaining sauce over the top of the filled pasta, being sure it is covered completely.
Refrigerate the Manicotti
- Cover the dish with foil and pop it in the fridge. You can assemble the casserole the day before and refrigerate it overnight or you can prepare it to this point in the morning and bake it that same evening for dinner.
Bake the Manicotti
- Transfer the foil-covered dish to a preheated 400 degree F oven for 40 minutes.
- Remove the foil and sprinkle the manicotti with the remaining mozzarella and Parmesan cheese.
- Return it to the oven, uncovered, and bake until the cheese has melted.
FAQ and Valerie’s Tips
I recommend you bake the manicotti within 24 to 32 hours for the best result.
Topping the uncooked manicotti with marinara will begin the process of slightly softening it before baking. I recommend you refrigerate it for at least 8 hours so the pasta can soften slightly in advance and become perfectly tender when it is baked.
Yes! Assemble the dish as directed in a freezer-safe dish. Cover it tightly with a double layer of foil and freeze it for up to two months. To cook, safely thaw it in the refrigerator overnight. Allow it to rest on the counter for about 30 minutes before baking to take the chill off. Baking time may need to be increased a bit to fully cook the manicotti. An instant read thermometer inserted in the center of the filling should read 165 degrees F before removing it from the oven.
An 8 ounce box should include at least 12 shells but this can very depending on the brand.
Filling Variations
You can customize the filling with a variety of different ingredients to suit your taste. If you add substantial ingredients like ground meat or chunky vegetables you might need to use a spoon to fill the manicotti shells instead of a pastry bag.
- Add chopped fresh mushrooms.
- Substitute half of the mozzarella with shredded provolone for some really nice flavor.
- A little (about one-third to a half pound) cooked, crumbled Italian sausage – I like to use turkey or chicken sausage to reduce fat and calories.
- Finely chopped rotisserie chicken (fully-cooked chicken) is also a great choice.
- Omit the spinach and add some fresh basil for a simply luscious cheese manicotti.
- If adding substantial ingredients, you may end up with enough filling to fill more than one box of shells.
What to Serve with Make-Ahead Manicotti
Toss a simple green salad and pop some Cheater Garlic Bread in the oven to round out this meal.
More great side dish choices include my Butter Lettuce Salad with Grapes and Gorgonzola, Zucchini and Sweet Corn with Feta, or Balsamic Grilled Zucchini.
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Make-Ahead Manicotti
Ingredients
- 15 ounces ricotta cheese, (part-skim or regular)
- 2 eggs
- 9 ounces frozen chopped spinach, thawed (squeeze out excess liquid)
- 3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided (part-skim or whole milk)
- ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 8 ounces uncooked manicotti shells, (12 shells)
- 36 ounces marinara sauce, (I used 1 ½ (24 ounce) jars)
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, combine the ricotta cheese and eggs until blended. Stir in spinach, 2 cups mozzarella cheese, ¼ cup Parmesan cheese, minced garlic, onion powder, salt and pepper.
- Transfer mixture to a gallon sized sealable plastic storage bag. Use scissors to cut off the tip from one of the bottom corners of the bag.
- Spread about 1 ½ cups of marinara sauce over the bottom of a baking dish, spreading it out evenly. Use the makeshift pastry bag to squeeze the spinach and cheese mixture into the uncooked manicotti shells. Arrange the stuffed shells on top of the marinara sauce in a single layer. Pour remaining sauce over the top, being sure that all of the pasta is covered well. Cover the dish with foil and refrigerate for at least 8 hours or overnight.
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Bake covered for 40 minutes. Remove foil, sprinkle with remaining mozzarella and Parmesan cheese, and bake uncovered for another 7 to 10 minutes or until the cheese has melted and is beginning to get light golden brown.
Notes
- Add chopped fresh mushrooms.
- Substitute half of the mozzarella with shredded provolone for some really nice flavor.
- A little (about 1/3 to 1/2 pound) cooked, crumbled Italian sausage – I like to use turkey or chicken sausage to reduce fat and calories.
- Finely chopped rotisserie chicken (fully-cooked chicken) is also a great choice.
- Omit the spinach and add some fresh basil for a simply luscious cheese manicotti.
- Assemble the dish as directed in a freezer-safe dish. Cover it tightly with a double layer of foil and freeze it for up to two months. To cook, safely thaw it in the refrigerator overnight. Allow it to rest on the counter for about 30 minutes before baking to take the chill off. Baking time may need to be increased a bit to fully cook the manicotti. An instant read thermometer inserted in the center of the filling should read 165 degrees F before removing it from the oven.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated using generic ingredients, and is an estimate not a guarantee. For more accurate results, please refer to the labels on your ingredients at home.
This post was originally published on December 8, 2015. It has been updated with new text and images.
Adapted from Allrecipes.com
Love your process of filling the manicotti! I put manicotti on my meal plan for next week earlier today and I definitely want to try your recipe!
This time I tried preparing manicotti it the way exactly as you did and it came awesome!! Everyone in my family liked it 🙂 Thanks Valerie!
I do exactly the same with my spinach!
This sounds perfect for a crazy weeknight! I love easy meals that are still hearty and delicious, so this will be great! 🙂
Oh Valerie this looks incredible! I’ve never even thought about the paper towel method with the spinach… great idea! 🙂
I love make ahead meals! And this manicotti looks scrumptious! Can’t wait to try this!!
We would love making and eating this for dinner!!
I love Italian food, and I love even more that this is make-ahead!
Yum! We had manicotti all the time when I was growing up, but I haven’t made it in years. This would be great to make ahead for busy weeknights!
Oh My Gosh you are a genius! I always struggle with getting the filling in the manicotti. Thanks so much for sharing!
Oh, how yummy! Looks really easy and delish at the same time.
Love this idea to make ahead especially during the holiday season!