Stuffed shells are a delicious Italian comfort food that are great any time of the year. This version of stuffed shells features a soufflé-life three cheese and spinach filling stuffed in jumbo pasta shells, and the sauce is a rich and slightly spicy Italian sausage sauce. This recipe for stuffed shells is super flavorful and is the best pasta dish to enjoy as leftovers as well! Add this Three Cheese Stuffed Shells recipe to your menu this week and it will quickly become one of your family favorites!

Looking for more dishes like this? Try out our Four Cheese and Vegetable Baked Ziti (No Meat) or Baked Rigatoni with Tomato Herb Meat Sauce.
Why You’ll Love this Recipe
- Simple to make
- Super flavorful
- Not exceptionally spicy, but just the right amount of heat
- Great as leftovers!
Jump to:
- Why You’ll Love this Recipe
- What are Stuffed Shells?
- Ingredients
- Substitutions
- How to Make Three Cheese Stuffed Shells
- Equipment
- Step-by-Step Instructions
- Variations
- Storage
- Top Tip
- Troubleshooting
- What to serve with Three Cheese Stuffed Shells?
- What Wines To Drink with Three Cheese Stuffed Shells
- Mangiamo Cookbook
- FAQ
- Related
- Pairing
- 📖 Recipe
What are Stuffed Shells?
Filled pasta is commonplace in Italy, although these jumbo shells used in this recipe are more regional to Southern Italy. Called Conchiglie, or seashell, they come in various sizes as well as variations on the shape. The large ones we use here are store-bought and par-cooked prior to stuffing and baking.
We chose a stuffing that is three-cheese based with the addition of some spices, spinach, and basil.
Pairing the cheesy filling with a tomato sauce is common, but a richer meat-based sauce gives this dish something a bit more special. The spicy sausage sauce brings the meat and a little heat to make a unique and delicious al forno baked pasta dish.

Ingredients
Here is what you need to make this recipe:
- Spicy Sausage Sauce: This can be made ahead of time if desired and can be found HERE. This sauce uses hot Italian sausage and Calabrian chili paste to give it a nice kick without being too spicy.
- Large Shell Pasta: The large or jumbo pasta shells can be found in your local grocery store. We used Lumaconi (snail shell) in this recipe, but any large shell will work.
- Ricotta Cheese: This creamy, delicious cheese is the basis for the filling.
- Asiago Cheese: This beautiful cheese from Northern Italy in Veneto has a great flavor that compliments the ricotta and parmesan.
- Parmesan Cheese: Parmigiano-Reggiano is the king of cheeses and, of course, works perfectly in this filling. We highly recommend that you purchase the real-deal Parmesan cheese from Italy with the DOP label and grate it fresh for this recipe.
- Spinach: Fresh, wilted spinach adds a subtle flavor and a nice color to the filling.
- Basil: A perfect addition to the filling, basil has a quintessential Italian flavor.
- Nutmeg: A pinch of nutmeg rounds out the flavor as it works perfectly with ricotta.
- Kosher Salt and Black Pepper: Just a pinch of both is all that is needed
- Egg: The egg adds richness but at the same time lightens the filling up due to the egg white giving it that soufflé-like texture.
See recipe card below for quantities.
Substitutions
Here are a couple of common substitutions for the ingredients in this recipe:
- Cheese mixture: Ricotta is a perfect base and should not be replaced in this recipe. For the other cheeses, you can substitute pecorino (Italian sheep's milk cheese) for Parmesan and aged provolone, fontina, or a number of other cheeses can be used instead of asiago. Or use them all! We don't use mozzarella in this recipe to keep the filling on the lighter side, but mozzarella cheese can be used in the filling if deisred.
- Shells: If you can’t find jumbo shells, a large tube can be used as well to make manicotti. You can also make fresh pasta sheets and roll the filling up to make cannelloni.
- Sausage: You could use mild Italian sausage or sweet Italian sausage if desired.
- Sauce: The spicy sausage sauce is fantastic here, but if you prefer a different sauce, you can make our Italian tomato sauce or sugo di pomodoro or a tomato herb meat sauce like this one.You can also used a store-bought tomato sauce, although we feel that homemade is always a better option.

How to Make Three Cheese Stuffed Shells
This is a great recipe that is flexible as many components can be made in advance. Once the shells are par-cooked, they can be stuffed with the filling, and added to the baking dish. It only cooks for about 40 minutes and the result will have you making more over and over again!
Equipment
Here is what you need to make this dish
- Large baking/casserole dish to bake the pasta
- Large pot to par-cook the pasta
- Large skillet (deep sided) or oven proof braising dish to make the sauce
- Piping bag (optional)
Step-by-Step Instructions
Make the Sauce
- The sauce recipe can be found HERE. Make it and let it cool somewhat while you prepare everything else. If using a large braising dish like we have pictured here, you could make the sauce then add the stuffed pasta to the same dish to bake.
Par-cook the Shells
- Bring a large pot of salted water (about 2 tablespoon per 6 qts of water) to a boil. Add the shells to the boiling water and cook for 70% of the cooking time indicated on the package. Gently remove the shells to an ice bath of cold water to stop the cooking and cool down. They can sit in the ice bath for up to 15 minutes, then remove them to a towel to dry before stuffing. The shells will fully cook to al dente in the oven once stuffed.
Make the Filling
- In a large bowl, combine all of the filling ingredients and mix with a gloved hand or a large fork to ensure the filling is well combined. The filling can be transferred to a piping bag if desired to make stuffing the shells easier.
Stuff the Shells and Assemble the Baking Dish
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Using a piping bag or simply a spoon and your fingers, stuff shells completely with the creamy ricotta filling, being careful not to split the pasta. Put a thin layer of the sauce on the bottom of the baking dish, then assemble the shells in the dish. They can be as close together as you need to fit them in the dish. Cover the stuffed pasta shells with the remaining sauce and sprinkle with a little parmesan cheese on top.
Bake and Serve
- Place the dish in the oven uncovered and bake for 40 minutes or until the sauce is bubbling around the sides of the dish. Remove and serve. Garnish with fresh basil, more Parmesan cheese, and extra crushed red pepper flakes at the dinner table if desired.

Variations
Here are a couple ways to change up this recipe:
- You can use any sauce instead of the sausage sauce if desired. From a simple marinara sauce to a ragù or meat sauce with ground beef, to a white sauce or cream based sauce.
- Make homemade pasta sheets and make manicotti instead of shells. You wouldn’t have to par-cook the pasta and homemade pasta is delicious.
- Change up the cheeses. You can experiment with the three cheese filling to find a combination that suits your preferences.
Storage
How to store leftover stuffed shells:
- Simply store them in the refrigerator for up to 4 days in an airtight container
How to reheat leftover stuffed shells:
- The oven is the best way to reheat stuffed shells at 350°F until warmed through, but you could even microwave the shells as well. We prefer to place the shells and sauce in a baking dish, cover with aluminum foil and reheat in the oven for about 20 minutes or until heated through.
Can you freeze leftover stuffed shells?
Yes you can! They will lose a little of the beautiful texture, but they will still taste great. Defrost completely then reheat in the oven at 350°F for best results.
Top Tip
The shells can be delicate, depending on the brand you use. If they tear a little while par-cooking, you can still make it work when stuffing. If they break into pieces, it’s better to just use the ones that did not break. Pay attention when buying to make sure there aren’t already several broken shells in the box you buy.
Troubleshooting
The main issue we run into is shells being broken or tearing while par-cooking. Often we will buy an extra box just in case, but if the box you see in the store sounds like there are a lot of broken pieces in it, don’t buy it!
Another issue may be that the sauce needs a bit of extra liquid because it has reduced to much. If your sauce seems a bit dry, simply add some of the pasta cooking water to it and stir to combine before adding it to your baking dish with the stuffed shells.
What to serve with Three Cheese Stuffed Shells?
This dish stands alone, just like lasagna does. But a side salad or some type of green vegetable, such as asparagus or green beans, can be served alongside or beforehand if desired.

What Wines To Drink with Three Cheese Stuffed Shells
Any bold red wine works perfectly. Our favorite Italian wine to drink with this dish is Chianti Classico! Other options are Barolo or Barbaresco which we love with similar Italian food dishes like this.

Mangiamo Cookbook
Get your copy of our cookbook, Mangiamo, with 60 Italian recipes with drool-worthy images inspired by our Italian roots and travels!
FAQ
Manicotti are large tubed-shaped pasta that is generally stuffed with a cheese and/or meat filling and baked. The filling can be similar this this three cheese and spinach filling, but the shape is the main difference between these pasta dishes.
As a general rule, we boil the pasta 65-70% of the normal time if it is to be stuffed and baked. This allows the pasta to finish cooking in the oven instead of over-cooking and becoming mushy.
This is normal with ricotta cheese since there is generally a good amount of moisture in the cheese. A little liquid isn’t a big deal in this recipe, but if there is quite a bit in your container of ricotta, go ahead and drain it off by placing the ricotta in a fine sieve or a cheese cloth over a bowl to drain before making the filling.
Related
Looking for other pasta al forno recipes like this? Try these:
Pairing
These are my favorite meat dishes to serve with Stuffed Shells:
📖 Recipe

Three Cheese Stuffed Shells with Spicy Italian Sausage Sauce
Equipment
- Large baking/casserole dish to bake the pasta
- Large pot to par-cook the pasta
- Large skillet (deep sided) or oven proof braising dish to make the sauce
- Piping bag (optional)
Ingredients
- 1 recipe of spicy sausage sauce
- 1 pound dried jumbo pasta shells
For the Three Cheese Filling:
- 5 ounces spinach
- 16 ounces ricotta cheese whole milk
- 7 ounces grated asiago cheese
- 4 ounces grated parmesan cheese
- 10 basil leaves chopped
- Pinch ground nutmeg
- Pinch kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 large whole egg
- Additional Parmesan cheese to sprinkle on top before baking
Instructions
- The sauce recipe is linked in the ingredients list above. Make it and let it cool slightly while you prepare everything else. If using a large braising dish like we have pictured here, you could make the sauce then add the stuffed pasta to the same dish to bake.1 recipe of spicy sausage sauce
- Bring a large pot of salted water (about 2 tablespoon per 6 qts of water) to a boil. Add the shells to the boiling water and cook for 70% of the cooking time indicated on the package. Gently remove the shells to an ice bath of cold water to stop the cooking and cool down. They can sit in the ice bath for up to 15 minutes, then remove them to a towel to dry before stuffing. The shells will fully cook to al dente in the oven once stuffed.1 pound dried jumbo pasta shells
- In a large bowl, combine all of the filling ingredients and mix with a gloved hand or a large fork to ensure the filling is well combined. The filling can be transferred to a piping bag if desired to make stuffing the shells easier.5 ounces spinach, 16 ounces ricotta cheese, 7 ounces grated asiago cheese, 4 ounces grated parmesan cheese, 10 basil leaves, Pinch ground nutmeg, Pinch kosher salt, ½ teaspoon ground black pepper, 1 large whole egg
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Using a piping bag or simply a spoon and your fingers, stuff shells completely with the creamy ricotta filling, being careful not to split the pasta. Put a thin layer of the sauce on the bottom of the baking dish, then assemble the shells in the dish. They can be as close together as you need to fit them in the dish. Cover the stuffed pasta shells with the remaining sauce and sprinkle with a little parmesan cheese on top.Additional Parmesan cheese to sprinkle on top before baking
- Place the dish in the oven uncovered and bake for 40 minutes or until the sauce is bubbling around the sides of the dish. Remove and serve. Garnish with fresh basil, more Parmesan cheese, and extra crushed red pepper flakes at the dinner table if desired.
Nutrition

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