Italian Sausage and Ricotta Stuffed Pasta Shells with Creamy Marinara

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Well, here’s your brand new crowd pleaser. Get ready to share this recipe for Italian Sausage and Ricotta Stuffed Pasta Shells with Marinara – you shall have lots of requests….count on it.

When you set a pan full of this delicious, cheesy pasta into the center of the dinner table for your family or guests, be prepared for their eyes to glaze over in anticipation.

Italian Stuffed Shells with Meat Recipeย 

Serve yourself some Italian Stuffed Shell Pasta with Creamy Marinara.

Howdy! Chef Alli Here. Letโ€™s Get You Cookinโ€™โ€ฆ. Shall We?? ๐Ÿ™‚ย 

You can probably already tell from the recipes here on my blog that we are huge pasta fans.ย  Is there anything more rich and comforting? I think not!

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If it’s the same way at your house, I hope you’ll give some of my other pasta recipes a try – such as Instant Pot 5-Minute Pepperoni Pizza Pasta or Instant Pot Fiesta Beef and Spaghetti.

If you’re visiting here during the hot months of summer, you may like to indulge in a few pasta salads, too….such as BLT Pasta Salad….Orzo Pasta Salad with Grilled Steak, or even Chipotle Pasta Salad with Shredded Chicken and Smoked Gouda.

What to love about this stuffed shells with meat recipe –

  1. Comfort food like no other.
  2. Great food gift for a new baby or any friend in need – they will fall at your feet.
  3. Stuffed shells are a fun hands-on recipe – get your kiddos in the kitchen!

Ingredients You Need to Make This Easy Baked Pasta Recipe –ย 

  • Italian pork sausage
  • Yellow onion (may sub dehydrated onion flakes)
  • Red wine
  • Whipping cream
  • Canned tomatoes, with juice
  • Fresh basil (may sub dried basil leaves)
  • Jumbo pasta shells
  • Cottage cheese
  • Ricotta
  • Garlic
  • Eggs
  • Sandwich bread
  • Mozzarella
  • Parmesan

How to Make Stuffed Shells with Creamy Meat and Marinara Sauce

**Full, printable recipe card below โ€“ just scroll on down within this post to find it!ย 

  1. Cook the jumbo pasta shells as directed on the package; drain and reserve; keep warm.
  2. Make the creamy marinara sauce by browning the sausage with the with the onion until the sausage is fully cooked and the onions are tender; stir in the wine to de-glaze the pan, then add the whipping cream, tomatoes and basil; season to taste with salt and pepper.
  3. Meanwhile, make the ricotta filling by combining the ricotta, cottage cheese, spinach, garlic, salt, red pepper flakes, eggs, and crumbled bread in a large mixing bowl.
  4. Stuff each cooked pasta shell with the prepared ricotta filling, placing them into a greased 9×13 pan or a greased 12-inch cast iron skillet.
  5. Pour the reserved creamy marinara sauce over the top of the stuffed shells, then sprinkle the sauce with mozzarella.ย  Cover, bake, serve, eat!

Stuffed Pasta Shells ready for the oven and already baked - all bubbly and hot.

Easy Recipe Tips for Making Stuffed Shell Pasta with Meatย 

  • Don’t overcook the pasta shells or they will fall apart as you are trying to stuff them.ย  It’s better for them to be a bit under cooked since they will continue to cook in the sauce as they bake.
  • If you prefer, you can leave the cream out of the sauce to have straight-up marinara sauce instead.ย  Still delicious.
  • I recommend using fresh basil in this recipe if you can.ย  It really makes a difference in this dish!
  • If you can’t find ground Italian sausage, you can always buy Italian sausage links, cutting open the casing to let the sausage out and into your skillet. Sometimes I have trouble finding ground Italian sausage, for whatever reason.

Which tools are helpful for making stuffed shell pasta recipes?ย 

Cast iron skillet – I love cooking lots of my pasta recipes in a big cast iron skillet.ย  Something about a cast iron skillet that’s loaded to the brim with hot, bubbly, cheesy pasta is just soooo appealing.

Casserole dish – If you don’t want to use a cast iron skillet for baking the pasta, a glass 9×13-inch pan works great as well.ย  I like glass baking dishes since you can put them into the dish washer for easy clean up.

Cookie dough scoop – Here’s the cookie dough scoop I use to put the filling into the shells – it works slick as a whistle. I keep multiple sizes of cookie dough scoops in my utensil jar at all times.

Meat chopper/crumbler – If you like to finer texture when cooking up ground meats, use a meat chopper when you cook it.ย  This tool makes short work of crumbling a hunk of ground meat as you cook it in the skillet.

Silicone Spatula Spoonsย โ€“ Of all the tools in my kitchen,ย silicone spatula spoonsย are what I use the most. They make stirring and sautรฉing a breeze and I love all the pretty silicone colors available.ย Silicone spatula spoonsย are completely heat-proof so they wonโ€™t melt, even when used over high temperatures. I like to haveย different sizesย on hand for different kitchen tasks โ€“ soooo handy!

Other Family Favorite Recipes to Enjoy –

Loaded BBQ Pulled Pork Sweet Potatoesย 

Twisted Mexican Hot Tot Skilletย 

Beef and Cheese Mexican Sanchiladasย 

Cheeseburger-Stuffed Pasta Shellsย 

How to Make Perfect Fool-Proof Prime Rib!ย 

Instant Pot Cuban Pork Tenderloin with Black Beans and Riceย 

Sausage, Apple, and Rosemary Sheet Pan Mealย 

Instant Pot Buffalo Chicken Slidersย 

Instant Pot Lazy-Butt Beef Subs with Caramelized Onions and BBQ Mayoย 

Creamy Tortellini Pasta Skillet – Just 6 Ingredientsย 

Cheesy Stuffed Pasta Shells baked in a cast iron skillet.

Printable Stuffed Shells with Meat and Ricotta Recipe –ย 

Italian Sausage and Ricotta Stuffed Pasta Shells with Creamy Marinara

Well, here's your brand new crowd pleaser.ย  When you set a skillet or pan full of this delicious, cheesy pasta into the center of the dinner table for your family or guests, you will see their eyes glass over in anticipation. Get ready to share the recipe - you shall have lots of requests!ย 
Servings: 8 servings
Chef Alli
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 15 minutes

Ingredients
 

  • 1 lb. Italian pork or beef sausage
  • 1 sweet yellow onion, diced, may substitute 1 Tbs. dehydrated onion, if desired
  • 1/3 cup red wine
  • 1/3 cup whipping cream
  • 14 oz crushed tomatoes, with juice
  • 2-3 Tbs. freshly chopped basil, may substitute 1 tsp. dried basil, if desired
  • Salt and pepper, to taste
  • 16-18 jumbo pasta shells, cooked until tender according to package directions (I cook mine in my Instant Pot for 1 minute under high pressure)
  • 16 oz small curd cottage cheese
  • 8 oz ricotta cheese
  • 2 handfuls baby spinach, chopped, optional
  • 2 cloves garlic, crushed
  • 1/2 tsp kosher salt
  • 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
  • 2 eggs, beaten
  • 2 slices white sandwich bread, crumbled finely with your fingers or in the food processor
  • 1 cup shredded mozzarella
  • 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, for topping to serve

Instructions
 

Make the Creamy Marinara Sauce

  • In a large skillet over medium high heat, cook the Italian sausage with the onions until no pink remains and the onions are translucent; de-glaze the skillet with the red wine, stirring up any browned bits from the bottom of the skillet into the sausage.
    Stir in the tomatoes with juice, whipping cream, and the basil. Season to taste with salt and pepper; set the sauce aside and keep warm.

Make the Ricotta Filling

  • In a large mixing bowl, combine the cottage cheese with the ricotta, spinach, garlic, salt, red pepper flakes, eggs and crumbled bread. Place approx. 2 Tbs of this mixture into each cooked jumbo pasta shell, then place shells into a greased 9 x 13 baking dish or a 12-inch cast iron skillet. (Love this dish served in a cast iron skillet - it looks super rustic!)

Stuff the Shells and Bake the Pasta

  • When all pasta shells are filled and placed into the baking dish or skillet, pour the prepared creamy marinara sauce over the shells; sprinkle mozzarella over the sauce and cover with foil.
    Bake the pasta, covered, for 30-35 minutes; remove the foil and bake an additional 10 minutes until the pasta and sauce are hot and bubbly throughout (160 degrees F. at the center). Let the pasta stand for 10 minutes before serving. Magnifico!

Notes

ย 
  • Don't overcook the pasta shells or they will fall apart as you are trying to stuff them.ย  It's better for them to be a bit under cooked since they will continue to cook in the sauce as they bake.
  • If you prefer, you can leave the cream out of the sauce to have straight-up marinara sauce instead.ย  Still delicious.
  • I recommend using fresh basil in this recipe if you can.ย  It really makes a difference in this dish!
  • If you can't find ground Italian sausage, you can always buy Italian sausage links, cutting open the casing to let the sausage out and into your skillet. Sometimes I have trouble finding ground Italian sausage, for whatever reason.

Nutrition

Calories: 440kcalCarbohydrates: 14gProtein: 28gFat: 29gSaturated Fat: 13gCholesterol: 129mgSodium: 1065mgPotassium: 475mgFiber: 2gSugar: 7gVitamin A: 739IUVitamin C: 7mgCalcium: 294mgIron: 2mg
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Letโ€™s Get You Cookinโ€™,
Chef Alli

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