Sausage, Spinach and Ricotta Manicotti

09

I’ve mentioned a few times since starting my new(ish) job that I’m a big fan of make-ahead meals. Trying to cook during the week is hard enough as it is, but when you get home later than you’d like and have a toddler who starts getting ready for bed by 7:30, it becomes much more difficult.

There are few things that work better for make-ahead meals than baked pasta dishes. Generally, baked pasta dishes aren’t that difficult to make, but because they tend to have a few components, they can take some time. They’re usually not meant for a weeknight – or, at least, they can’t be a part of my weeknight meal repertoire – unless I’ve assembled them the day before.

This cannelloni/manicotti is a great make ahead meal. You can just assemble it and keep it covered in the fridge until you’re ready to bake it. The most time-consuming part of this for me was waiting for a large pot of water to boil. Is it just me (and my stovetop) or do you feel like you spend half your life waiting for water to boil?!

Anyway, I browned the sausage while the pasta was cooking, and then just added it to the rest of the filling. I did spread the manicotti noodles out on a lightly greased baking dish as I mixed the filling (and as I stuffed each piece) to make sure they didn’t get stuck together or tear.

I used manicotti noodles but you can use cannelloni or jumbo shells. Or, you can even just mix everything up with your favorite short pasta if you don’t feel like stuffing pasta. I used turkey sausage and part skim ricotta and mozzarella to keep this a bit lighter.

When I pre-make a meal like this, I don’t even bother preheating the oven. I actually think it works a little better, particularly if you’re going from fridge to oven, for the baking dish to warm up slowly, anyway.

Do you have any favorite make-ahead recipes?

Here are a few of our favorite make-ahead and crockpot meals:

Quinoa and Chicken Parmesan
Chicken, Mushroom, and Wild Rice Casserole
Short Ribs in Chipotle and Green Chile Sauce
Baked Burritos with Sour Cream-Poblano Sauce
Baked Ziti
Pasta with Chicken-Mushroom Ragout
Slowcooker Asian Pork (also great with chicken thighs or beef)
Slowcooker Smoky Pork Tinga Tacos with Avocado and Cheese
Slowcooker Mexican Shredded Beef for Tacos/Burritos
Slowcooker Italian Beef Sandwiches

 


This post is made possible by BlogHer’s Make Ahead Meals editorial series, made possible by Bank of America.

Sausage, Spinach and Ricotta Manicotti

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9 thoughts on “Sausage, Spinach and Ricotta Manicotti

  1. I generally don’t bother boiling pasta for baked pastas: I add extra water to the sauce (I probably use about half the water as I do the sauce [for example: 2 cups sauce diluted with 1 cup water], but you’ll figure it out.)

    The things stuff easier and, particularly if you’re going to refrigerate them over night or so, the pasta will soften. Especially good for lasagna. Regular lasagna noodles (don’t even bother with the no-boil kinds, although I love them too) work just fine.

  2. I tend to make most things ahead but that’s really just because I don’t tend to mind eating anything cold! Baked pasta dishes are definitely high on my list though. Always so comforting!

  3. Hi, It looks yummy and mouthwatering.i tried this at home , my family and lid loved it. Thanks for this good posting.Your description is very nice any one can follow easily.
    All the best keep posting……….

  4. Very good recipe. I used a ziplock bag cut at the corner to squeeze the stuffing in. I only boiled the pasta for a little bit so it was easier to get the cheese-spinach stuffing in there.

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