Baked Million Dollar Manicotti – loaded with tons of cheese and tastes as good as any restaurant! Ready to eat in about an hour. Manicotti shells, cottage cheese, sour cream, cream cheese, egg, Italian sausage, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, spaghetti sauce, mozzarella, and parmesan cheese. SO much amazing flavor! Serve with some garlic bread and a salad for a meal the whole family will enjoy!
Preheat oven to 350ºF. Spray a 9x13-inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over medium-high heat. Add pasta shells and cook for 3 to 4 minutes. Drain and cool.
Cook sausage in a large skillet over medium heat until no longer pink. Drain excess grease. Stir in a jar of marinara sauce. Spread ½ cup of meat sauce on the bottom of the prepared pan. Set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, combine cottage cheese, cream cheese, sour cream, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, 1 cup mozzarella cheese, and an egg.
Transfer the cheese mixture to a pastry bag. Pipe filling into partially cooked shells. Place shells into the prepared pan.
Spread the remaining meat sauce over the stuffed shells.
Bake uncovered for 50 minutes.
Top pasta with the remaining 1 cup of mozzarella cheese and grated parmesan cheese. Bake an additional 5 to 10 minutes, until the cheese is melted.
Notes:
I only cook the pasta for about half of the time listed on the box. It is a little more than al dente, but it finishes cooking in the oven perfectly.
If you don’t have a pastry bag, you can use a plastic bag or freezer bag and cut the tip off of a corner. You can also spoon the filling into the pasta shells.
Can substitute ground beef.
Can substitute turkey sauce for a lower-calorie dish.
Omit sausage for a vegetarian dish.
Can add fresh spinach and mushrooms to the cheese filling.
My favorite jars of store-bought spaghetti sauces are Trader Joe’s Roasted Garlic Marinara (green label), Rao’s, Carbone, and La Famiglia DelGrosso.
Can I use ricotta cheese? I haven’t made this recipe with ricotta, but it should be just fine.
Can I make manicotti in advance? Yes! You can assemble the pasta and refrigerate it until you are ready to bake.
You may need to add an extra 10-15 minutes to the cooking time if baking cold straight from the fridge.
Can I freeze manicotti? Yes. Assemble the pasta. Cover the casserole dish with plastic wrap and aluminum foil and freeze for up to 3 months.
When ready to bake, thaw the pan in the refrigerator and bake as directed.