Easy Stuffed Shells Recipe
Stuffed Shells filled with four cheeses and spinach are a delicious homemade meal that will satisfy any craving for melty, cheesy comfort food. This easy Spinach and Cheese Stuffed Shells recipe is make-ahead and freezer friendly. Make a big batch to enjoy stuffed pasta shells today and freeze the rest for later.

I’m all for getting the most out of my cooking. I love it when I find a recipe that not only feeds my family for two nights in a row, but also freezes well. Investing time in the kitchen is even more rewarding when there is a big payoff, and a quick meal that just needs heating up on a busy weeknight is a pretty big payoff.
Like my best Lasagna Recipe, this stuffed shells recipe makes enough to serve a crowd or freeze portions for later.
If you love cheese, then these stuffed pasta shells are for you. They are filled with a mixture of four kinds of cheese and spinach, and then topped with marinara sauce and grated mozzarella. These baked stuffed shells are cheesy, oven-fresh comfort food that you’ll be glad to have on your table.
Why You’ll Love this Stuffed Shells Recipe
- The 4 cheese filling is ultra cheesy, yet lighter thanks to cottage cheese which balances out the mozzarella and ricotta cheese. Use part-skim cheese to lighten the meal even further.
- Spinach adds a healthy dose of vegetables to this pasta dish.
- This recipe saves you time because it makes a lot of shells and it freezes well.
These Butternut Squash Stuffed Shells are another favorite stuffed shells recipe. Spinach Lasagna Roll Ups are another pasta dish with a spinach and cheese filling. Need more ideas for your dinner table? Browse all of my easy dinner ideas for inspiration!
How to Make Stuffed Shells
Here is an overview of the simple steps to make this recipe. You can find the full recipe with ingredient amounts and full instructions in the recipe card at the end of this post.
- Cook the pasta shells.
- Stir together the spinach and cheese filling ingredients.
- Add 1 cup of marinara sauce to the bottom of a baking dish. (Not pictured because I’ve updated the recipe since taking these photos.)
- Spoon the filling into the shells and put them in the baking dish.
- Top the shells with more marinara sauce and mozzarella cheese.
- Bake until the shells are hot and the cheese is melted.
Freezer Instructions and Make Ahead
This pasta dish freezes wonderfully. Place the shells in a baking dish and top with the marinara sauce and mozzarella cheese. Once completely cool, cover the dish with a lid or foil and freeze. The unbaked shells can be frozen for up to 2 months.
How to cook frozen stuffed shells
You can thaw the shells overnight in the refrigerator and then bake as directed in the recipe card below, adding about 5 minutes to the bake time. Or, you can bake the shells frozen, directly from the freezer. Frozen shells will take about 15-20 additional minutes to bake in the oven. They are done when they are hot and bubbly.
If you are baking shells straight from the freezer, you may want to add some additional sauce to keep the shells from drying out during the longer bake time. The sauce can be poured on the shells before or after freezing.
To Refrigerate
You can prepare the shells in advance and refrigerate them in a covered baking dish for one day before baking. You may have to bake the shells for 5 additional minutes if they are cold from the refrigerator.
Stuffed Shells Recipe Variations
- To make stuffed shells with meat, cook 1 pound of ground beef or sausage in a skillet. Add half of the meat to the filling and the other half to the marinara sauce. You may want to reduce the amount of ricotta cheese and/or cottage cheese so that you won’t have too much filling.
- If you prefer, you can substitute more ricotta cheese for the cottage cheese.
- If you don’t care for spinach you can leave it out of the recipe.
- To make this recipe with fresh spinach, first wilt the spinach in a skillet with a little olive oil over low heat. Then squeeze out any excess moisture before adding the spinach to the filling.
Recipe Tips
- When boiling the pasta shells, be careful to not over-cook them or they may fall apart when you fill them. Cook them just to al dente, following the minimum cook time listed on the package.
- The easiest way to thaw frozen spinach is to leave it in the refrigerator for 24 hours to thaw. You can place it in a bowl to catch any drips. If you forget to plan ahead (I often do!), you can remove the spinach from the package, place it in a microwave-safe bowl, and thaw it in the microwave using low power or the defrost setting.
- Squeeze out as much moisture as you can from the thawed spinach by wrapping it in a clean kitchen towel and squeezing.
- You can add chopped fresh parsley or basil to the filling or on top of the dish after baking, if desired.
More Favorite Pasta Recipes
Easy Stuffed Shells Recipe
Ingredients
- 6 ounces frozen chopped spinach, thawed
- 24 jumbo pasta shells
- 15 ounces part-skim ricotta cheese
- ¾ cup cottage cheese, full fat or low fat
- 1 ½ cups shredded mozzarella cheese, 6 ounces, divided
- ⅓ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ⅛ teaspoon black pepper
- 25 ounce jar marinara sauce
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add ½ teaspoon salt and the jumbo shells. Cook according to package directions for al dente. Be careful not to overcook the shells or they may fall apart as you fill them. Drain and place on a rimmed baking sheet to cool.
- Using a clean kitchen towel, squeeze out all excess liquid from the thawed spinach. Set aside.
- Preheat oven to 350° F.
- In a medium bowl stir together the ricotta, cottage cheese, half of the mozzarella, the Parmesan, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Stir in the spinach.
- Spread 1 cup of the marinara sauce over the bottom of a 9×13-inch baking dish.
- Spoon the filling into the pasta shells and place in the baking dish.
- Pour the remaining marinara sauce over the top, and sprinkle with the remaining mozzarella cheese. Cover with foil (spray the underside of the foil with cooking spray to prevent it from sticking to the cheese) and bake for 25 minutes, then uncover and bake for 10 minutes more until cheese is melted and shells are hot. Serve immediately.
Make Ahead Instructions:
- Shells can be prepared up to the baking step a day in advance. Cover and refrigerate until ready to bake and serve. You may have to add 5 minutes to the baking time for refrigerated shells.
- Alternatively, you can freeze unbaked shells for up to 2 months. Cover the dish with a lid or foil and then place in freezer. Thaw in the refrigerator for a day before baking as directed above.
- Or, you can bake the shells frozen, directly from the freezer. Frozen shells will take about 15-20 additional minutes of covered bake time. They are done when they are hot and bubbly. If you are baking shells straight from the freezer, you may want to add some additional sauce to keep the shells from drying out during the longer bake time. The sauce can be poured on the shells before or after freezing.
Notes
- To thaw frozen spinach: Place it in a bowl and thaw in 1-2 minute increments using the defrost setting of a microwave, stirring after each increment. Alternatively, you can put the spinach in the refrigerator the day before to thaw. Put the spinach in a bowl to catch any liquid.
- To make stuffed shells with meat, cook 1 pound of ground beef or sausage in a skillet. Add half of the meat to the filling and the other half to the marinara sauce. You may want to reduce the amount of ricotta cheese and/or cottage cheese so that you won’t have too much filling.
- If you prefer, you can substitute ricotta cheese for the cottage cheese.
- If you don’t care for spinach you can leave it out of the recipe.
Recipe updated 8/27/23 to make a smaller quantity of shells.
These stuffed shells look delicious! I’ve got some ricotta lying around that I’ve gotta use, so maybe I’ll make a small batch of these for dinner this week 🙂
I’m all about the easy cooking too, especially in the summer! I definitely need to start freezing more foods, though. These stuffed shells look so good, Kristine! I’ve never made them with spinach before…I’m definitely missing out and need to try this!
I agree, it’s awesome to be able to get a couple of meals out of one prep session! These look so cheesy and delicious! Yum!
Yum! These look so cheesy and delicious. I love the photos!
I love that your recipe makes enough to have for another meal — having something in the freezer for busy nights is so helpful! These shells look like they would be a hit here and I can’t wait to try them!
I love making meals like this that can easily be heated up and enjoyed all week long! I haven’t had stuffed shells in so long, but I love all that cheese and spinach in there! I’ve been wanting to make some food to freeze for when the baby comes and these would be perfect 🙂
Oh my gosh, I made these for the first time, and they are so good! I bought Barilla brand pasta shells, and Barilla Marinara Sauce. In fact, I love spaghetti sauce so much, I used two jars, and because I made these just for me, I used separate covered glass dishes with lids, and froze more meals. I just poured the extra jar of spaghetti sauce over the top of each prepared dish, and then I froze them. Then, before baking, I used a little extra Mozzarella cheese over the added sauce I put on top. As I ate them for the first time, if I didn’t know better, I’d have believed they came from a restaurant. I never thought I could make anything that delicious! Thank you so much for this recipe! I passed it on to my son and his family. They are vegetarians,and I’m sure they will love this dish too. Thanks again for the great recipe!
Sharon, your comment just put a big smile on my face! I’m so glad you enjoyed these stuffed shells. I made them again for my family this week, as well! I agree, these freeze really well and sometimes I add some extra sauce too. 🙂
What would you substitute if you don’t like cottage cheese? All ricotta? Thanks!
Yes, I’d use all ricotta. Let me know how you like the stuffed shells!
I am meal prepping for a friend that is expecting a baby. Do you cover with marinara and cheese before freezing or do you freeze them plain and add the marinara and cheese right before baking. Looks yummy! I am making them today.
I freeze them with the marinara and cheese. Good luck with your meal prepping!
When freezing these, did you just put plastic wrap on a pan and place in the freezer? Could i place in a freezer bag, do you think?
Thanks! Making them tonight! I’m starting to make recipes and double them so I can freeze half 🙂
I usually put them in a pan, add some sauce and a sprinkle of cheese, and then wrap them tightly in plastic wrap. I think a zip-top freezer bag would work and then you could just add some more sauce and cheese on top right before baking. Freezing extra meals for later is so helpful when life is busy!! 🙂
There had not been any comments left since 2017, so I hope you still check this. I came across your recipe for the spinach and cheese stuffed shells and it sounded like something my family would love. They were all done except for the baking which I will do tonight for dinner, but it didn’t say what size spoon Or how full to put into the shells. I guess I really overstaffed them because I ended up with 12 leftover shells LOL could you please let me know how full or what size phone I should use so that doesn’t happen again because I think we’re gonna love this dish! The leftover shells won’t go to waste As I will feed them as treats for my dog over the next several days. Thank you so very much, Abby
I usually just divide the filling evenly between the shells. I would guess that I use about 2 tablespoons of filling per shell? I hope you love them!
If I have cooked shells leftover I just put them in a freezer bag and freeze them for when I make this dish again.
Can I use fresh spinach?
Yes, you can. I would recommend wilting it in a skillet with a little olive oil and then squeezing out any excess moisture.
In the ingredients it says 1 1/2 cups 6 oz grated mozzarella. Is that the exact amount, or is that a typo of some sort?
Heading to grocery later in week for ingredients; just need to know exact amount as I cook.
TY! Can’t wait to try these!
1 1/2 cups of shredded mozzarella should weigh 6 ounces, so it’s an either/or measurement. You can measure 1 1/2 cups by volume, or 6 ounces by weight. I’ll add in parentheses in the recipe to make it more clear. 🙂
Perfect recipe! Made this for family, everyone loved it.
Kristina, I’ve just found your site and am making many of your recipes and enjoying them greatly! We especially love cheese, pasta AND spinach, so I can’t wait to try this one. But because there’s just the two of us, I need to understand the freezing directions better. Do you freeze the completed dish before baking or after? Thanks for some great ideas! We just had your chicken taco burrito bowls, and loved the combination of flavors!
I’m so glad you are enjoying my recipes! You should freeze the completed dish before baking. Then follow the directions to bake them when you are ready to eat them. I recommend freezing them in portions for one meal. Enjoy!
These Stuffed Shells sound & look scrumptious! I’m loving the idea of adding spinach (we love) into the cheese filling, & also love that the Nutr. Value is so reasonable for 4 shells! I plan to make these over the weekend. I’m sure my family will enjoy. If I said this before, I’ll say it again, “Your recipes are the greatest, Kristine!” Thank you very much, for helping me to keep my family well fed, with delicious & healthy meals. ?
I want to use protein plus Barilla pasta but they don’t have stuffing shells at least that I can find. Can use elbow pasta? And make it into a casserole?
Hi Megan, That would be a completely different recipe, and I can’t advise on how it would turn out as a casserole without testing it myself. This one is best made as stuffed shells. 🙂
Made this last night and my family loved it!! So easy to make! I added extra marinara sauce ( I used 1 1/2 jars) and I also added raw mushrooms before baking it. The only thing for us, next time I need to cut the recipe in half. We have a lot left over. ? But I’m going to freeze it for another dinner. Thank you for the recipe!!
I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe! These freeze well, so you’ll have a yummy meal to enjoy later on. 🙂
Second time I have made this recipe and the whole family loves it. So easy and delicious. Love all your recipes!
Hello!
I’m so excited to make these! My daughter’s about to have her first baby (SO EXCITING!) and her favorite meals are anything Italian, so I’m busy making frozen meals they can just put in the oven after baby girl is born.
SO, my question is this: Can I make these using Cottage Cheese, and everything else needed to prepare these, then COVER them with aluminum foil, and put directly into the freezer?? I’m hoping so? I would rather not have to cook them before freezing…..and I’m using the “Freezer to Oven” 8 inch x 5 inch containers.
Thank you for the recipe & any help you can give! 🤗
Hi Suzanne, Congratulations on the new addition to your family! Yes, you can freeze the unbaked shells. That’s what I usually do. See the section in the post about freezer instructions for more details on freezing and baking after freezing. 🙂