Spinach Stuffed Shells - The Seasoned Mom (2024)

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Spinach stuffed shells is an easy and healthy vegetarian dinner recipe that can be prepared in advance! With three types of cheese, the ultimate cozy, family-friendly meal is a hearty and satisfying meatless dish that’s perfect for hungry appetites.

Looking for even more stuffed shells recipes? Be sure to try these classic stuffed pasta shells, a pan of taco stuffed shells, and these chicken stuffed shells, too!

How to Make Spinach Stuffed Shells | 1-Minute Video

​​​​​​​​​​​​​​If you’re trying to eat less meat, or if you’re serving supper to a vegetarian guest, it helps to have a few good go-to recipes that you know everyone will enjoy. These easy spinach stuffed shells do not disappoint!

Is manicotti the same as shells?

While these two Italian stuffed pasta dishes are quite similar, there are a few specific differences.Manicotti, which literally translates to “little muffs,” are large tubes of pasta designed for stuffing.

By contrast, stuffed shells are made withconchiglioni pasta, the larger version ofconchiglie, which means “conch shells.”The jumbo shells have thin ridges set close together, and are typically stuffed with a combination of meat, cheeses, and vegetables. Unlike the tubes of manicotti, jumbo pasta shells can hold an amount of stuffing equal to the size and shape of an egg.

Good Sides for Stuffed Shells

Here are some easy sides that go well with spinach stuffed shells for dinner:

• Garlic BreadorBreadsticks
• 3-Ingredient Buttermilk Biscuits,Flaky Biscuits,Cheese Biscuits,orDrop Biscuits
• Crusty French Baguette,Cheddar Chive Beer Bread,Soft Dinner Rolls, orHomemade Crescent Rolls
• 3-Ingredient Sour Cream Muffins,Pumpkin Muffins,orPumpkin Bread
• Green Salad with Red Wine Vinaigrette,Mixed Greens with Dijon Vinaigrette,Wedge Salad with Homemade Buttermilk Ranch Dressing,Caesar Salad, or our favoriteHouse Salad with Candied Pecans
• Southern Fried ApplesorBaked Apple Slices
• Parmesan Roasted Cauliflower
• Roasted BroccoliorBroccoli and Cheese
• Roasted AsparagusorSauteed Asparagus
• Amish Green Beans with Brown Butter,Arkansas Green Beans with Bacon, orSouthern-Style Green Beans
• Brown Sugar Glazed Carrots
• Sauteed ZucchiniorRoasted Yellow Squash
• Fennel salad with apples and creamy cider dressing
• Balsamic Roasted Root Vegetables

How Many Stuffed Shells Per Person?

I generally assume about2-3 shells per person. Larger appetites might like 4, while smaller eaters may prefer 2. This recipe yields about 20-22 stuffed shells, and it typically feeds about 6-8 people.

Recipe Variations

• For spinach stuffed shells with meat sauce, simply add ½ lb. of cooked ground beef or ground Italian sausage to the marinara sauce.
• To make these spinach stuffed shells without ricotta, you can substitute with cottage cheese instead. If using cottage cheese, I recommend straining off some of the liquid first or using a whipped cottage cheese so that you don’t end up with a watery filling.
• Spinach stuffed shells with white sauce:substitute Alfredo sauce for the marinara sauce, or try this recipe.
• If you prefer, you can use fresh spinach for this recipe in lieu of the frozen chopped spinach — but you will needa lotof fresh baby spinach! The beauty of frozen chopped spinach is that it’s already condensed, so you get a large amount of spinach at a very inexpensive price — and you don’t need to cook it before adding it to the ricotta mixture.A 10 oz package of frozen spinach is the equivalent of about a1 pound bunchof fresh spinach.So, for this recipe, you’ll need about 2 lbs. of fresh spinach.If you’re buying fresh spinach, it’s wise to buy more than you think you’ll need because some bunches will need the stalks trimmed off and that will decrease the weight before cooking. You’ll also need to cook the fresh spinach, drain it, and squeeze out the excess liquid before adding it to the cheese mixture.