Baked Manicotti with Marinara Sauce Recipe

Measure and prep all ingredients. Place the stockpot half filled with salted water over medium heat. Cover and bring to a boil.

While the water comes to a boil, prepare the marinara sauce. In a medium saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the diced garlic, shallot and onion. Cook for a few minutes, until the vegetables soften. 

Transfer half of the sautéed vegetables into a medium bowl. Add the tomatoes, red wine, sea salt, balsamic vinegar, black pepper, red pepper flakes, dried oregano and water to the remaining half of the sautéed vegetables. 

Increase the heat to high. Stir frequently and smash the cherry tomatoes with a wooden spoon as they soften. Season to taste.

While the tomato sauce cooks, make the filling. In the bowl with the reserved sautéed vegetables, add the mozzarella, ricotta, ½ cup of shredded Parmesan, eggs, spinach, kale and scallions (or chives).

When the pasta water boils, add the pasta and cook for about 6 minutes. Using kitchen tongs, transfer the cooked pasta into a 9x13-inch baking dish. Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Use a pastry bag (or a gallon-sized plastic bag with one corner cut off to use as a pastry bag) and transfer the filling into the pastry bag. Fill each pasta tube by squeezing the filling in. Reserve any leftover filling. 

Spoon some marinara sauce into the baking dish and spread to cover the bottom of the dish. Place the stuffed pasta shells over the sauce. 

Pour the remaining marinara sauce over the center of the dish over the stuffed pasta shells. Leftover filling can be spooned into the corners of the baking dish.

Sprinkle the reserved ½ cup of Parmesan cheese over the whole dish, and bake until the sauce is bubbling and the cheese on top starts to brown, about 30 minutes. 

Serve hot with a green salad and crusty Italian bread. Enjoy!