This stuffed manicotti with sausage is the gooey kind of dinner that everyone in my house looks forward to. It’s packed full of Italian flavors my family loves and yours will too. If you’re hoping everyone comes to the table excited, this is the perfect kind of cozy Sunday dinner to try.

Three stuffed manicotti pasta shells full of italian, sausage and cheese, topped with tomato sauce and melted cheese on a plate.

*This is a sponsored post in partnership with the Utah Pork Producers Association. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Why We Love Manicotti With Sausage

Cozy Dinner That Feels Special – This is the type of dinner you put on the table, and you just might get some ooo’s and ahh’s. My kid was so excited for “those pasta tubes with sausage we had for dinner” that she had some of the leftovers for breakfast.
Freezes Well For Later – I have made this recipe as a single batch, but I almost always make a double batch and freeze half. That saves me time later to have a dinner already ready to just pop right in the oven. Make this when you have a little extra time, and you’ll thank yourself later.
Budget Friendly – This recipe is a great way to help keep your budget in place, and still have a dinner that really brings everyone to the table. The Italian Sausage is really flavorful, and pops through in this recipe. Plus buying pork from any grocery store helps support small farmers right here in the US.
Great For Picky Eaters Who Love Pasta – One of the tricks to encouraging my kid to eat more variety was to try recipes or flavors she was familiar with and just change it up a little. If you have a kid who loves spaghetti, lasagna or even meatballs, this recipe is worth the try to mix it up.

Kristy’s Manicotti Tips For Success

A gallon-size zip-top bag is your secret for stuffing manicotti. Just fill it with your sausage ricotta mixture, snip a small corner off the end, and gently pipe it right into the noodle. Slow and steady wins here and don’t skip undercooking the noodles no matter what the package says. They’ll finish cooking in the oven, and your shells won’t split.

Ingredients For Manicotti With Sausage

Find the full printable recipe with specific measurements and directions below in the recipe card.

marinara – or your favorite pasta sauce – divided, some in the bottom of the casserole dish, some over top of the noodles
manicotti pasta shells – packages come with 12-14 shells, see notes
Italian sausage – I used sweet italian sausage, but a spicy Italian sausage works great too
ricotta cheese – whole milk, if you use part skim ricotta, add an extra egg to the mixture or it may be too dry
mozzarella cheese – shredded, used in the filling and on top
Parmesan cheese – grated
fresh spinach – chopped, frozen spinach can be used but it must be defrosted and any water well drained with paper towels or the dish will become watery.
large egg – cracked and beaten lightly with a fork
oregano – dried, you could also swap any Italian seasoning for the oregano and the basil both
basil – dried
minced garlic – you can use fresh garlic cloves if you prefer
salt and pepper
large lemon – zest only (optional), this adds a brightness to the filling but can be skipped in a pinch

How To Make Manicotti With Sausage

Prepping Before You Start

Preheat your oven to 375°F. Spray a rimmed sheet pan and a 9×13 casserole dish lightly with cooking spray, then spread about a cup of pasta sauce evenly across the bottom of the casserole dish. Set the remaining pasta sauce to the side. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.

Cooking The Noodles

Add the manicotti pasta to the boiling water and cook until al dente, closer to 6-7 minutes.
Drain the pasta and use tongs to lay the noodles in rows on the oiled sheet pan without touching. Set aside.

Cooked manicotti pasta tubes in rows on a metal baking sheet for making manicotti with sausage.

Cooked ground sausage in a skllet for manicotti with sausage.

Browning The Sausage

While the noodles are boiling, heat a large skillet on medium high heat sprayed lightly with spray cooking oil. Add the Italian sausage to the pan, breaking it into larger chunks and letting it cook for about two minutes. Continue breaking the sausage up into pieces as it cooks until you have small crumble sized pieces no bigger than about ¼ inch so it is easier to pipe into the manicotti noodles. Cook all the way through until brown, stirring as needed, about 8-10 minutes total.
Remove from heat, drain any excess oil with a paper towel, and set aside.

Making The Filling

In a large mixing bowl, add the ricotta cheese, 1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese, parmesan cheese, spinach, egg, oregano, basil, minced garlic, salt, pepper and lemon zest (if using.) Mix the filling until smooth, then fold in the sausage crumbles and mix until combined. Set the remaining 1 cup of mozzarella cheese to the side.

A glass bowl containing a mixture of ground sausage, spinach, and other ingredients for the filling of manicotti with sausage and cheese.

A gallon size clear plastic zip-top bag filled with a mixture of sausage, cheese and spinach for the filling for manicotti with sausage and cheese.

Fill a gallon size zip top freezer bag with the ricotta and sausage mixture. Push any extra air out of the bag, then make sure it is zipped closed tight. Carefully snip the end off the corner of the bag, keeping in mind you can also cut more if you need to but you can’t make it smaller.

Filling The Manicotti Noodles

Insert the tip of the bag into one end of the noodle and gently squeeze to fill half the shell. Flip the noodle around and fill the second half from the other end. You can use a spoon or your finger to gently poke in any filling that escapes.
Repeat with the remaining noodles, arranging them in rows over the sauce. Top with the remaining marinara and mozzarella.

A white baking dish filled with cooked manicotti pasta stuffed with sausage and cheese, arranged over marinara.

A baking dish filled with uncooked manicotti pasta stuffed with sausage and cheese and topped with sauce and cheese.

Baking The Manicotti

Cover the dish with aluminum foil sprayed lightly with spray cooking oil. Bake on the center rack for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for another 8-10 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and the sauce is bubbly. Serve and enjoy!

Three baked manicotti pasta shells stuffed with sausage, cheese, and spinach, topped with tomato sauce and melted cheese, served on a white plate.

Can You Make Stuffed Manicotti Ahead Of Time?

Yes, in fact sometimes it’s easier to prep this recipe ahead. Make and fill the manicotti up to 24 hours in advance, then stop before baking, cover and place in the fridge. Then when you are ready to bake, just expect that it may take 5-10 minutes longer because everything starts colder from the fridge.

Can You Freeze Manicotti?

You can freeze manicotti before you bake it, just expect it will take approximately 10-15 minutes longer when baking from frozen.

One thing I do differently when freezing this dish is I pour the sauce over the entire noodle instead of just down the center. This helps ensure the noodles cook evenly when frozen and don’t dry out. Do make sure you have a good layer of sauce on the bottom of the pan also.

How Long Will Manicotti With Sausage Last?

Expect this manicotti will last for three days after you make it if stored in a covered container in the refrigerator. Cover the pan with aluminum foil when reheating in the oven, or reheat by the plate in the microwave.

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Why We Love Manicotti With Sausage

Kristy’s Manicotti Tips For Success

Ingredients For Manicotti With Sausage