Rich, cozy, and total comfort-food vibes 🍝🧀
Here’s a classic Beef-Stuffed Shells with Creamy Ricotta Filling recipe that’s hearty and family-friendly.
Beef-Stuffed Shells with Creamy Ricotta Filling
Ingredients
Pasta
- 20–24 jumbo pasta shells
- Salted water for boiling
Beef Filling
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1 small onion, finely diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tsp Italian seasoning
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp black pepper
Ricotta Mixture
- 15 oz ricotta cheese
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella
- ½ cup grated Parmesan
- 1 large egg
- 2 tbsp fresh parsley or basil, chopped
Sauce
- 3 cups marinara sauce
- Extra mozzarella or Parmesan for topping
Instructions
- Cook the shells
- Boil shells in salted water until just al dente.
- Drain and lay flat to cool (so they don’t tear).
- Make the beef filling
- Brown ground beef in a skillet over medium heat.
- Add onion and cook until soft.
- Stir in garlic, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper.
- Drain excess fat and let cool slightly.
- Mix the ricotta filling
- In a bowl, combine ricotta, mozzarella, Parmesan, egg, and herbs.
- Fold in the cooked beef mixture.
- Assemble
- Preheat oven to 190°C / 375°F.
- Spread 1 cup marinara in the bottom of a baking dish.
- Stuff each shell generously and place in dish.
- Spoon remaining marinara over shells.
- Sprinkle with extra cheese.
- Bake
- Cover with foil and bake 25 minutes.
- Uncover and bake 10–15 minutes more until bubbly and golden.
- Rest & serve
- Let rest 5 minutes before serving.
Tips & Variations
- Extra creamy: Add 2–3 tbsp heavy cream to ricotta
- Spicy: Add red pepper flakes
- Make-ahead: Assemble and refrigerate up to 24 hours
- Freeze-friendly: Freeze unbaked shells up to 2 months
If you want, I can also give you:
- A spinach & beef version
- A white-sauce (Alfredo) version
- Or a lighter ricotta-Greek yogurt blend
Just say the word 😌
