Stuffed Shells With Ricotta and Ground Beef
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05/10/2009
This is a good, solid recipe. I made just a few minor changes: sauteed fresh garlic with the meat instead of using garlic powder, added a few extra seasonings, and cut the meat down to one pound. As always, I used a little Ziploc baggy with the corner cut out to pipe the filling into the shells. Hassle free! I prepared this early in the day, refrigerated, then baked for dinner. Turned out great. Thanks :)
05/07/2009
the recipe is solid but... the cottage cheese has got to go us ricotta
02/23/2016
I used ricotta cheese to replace the cottage cheese. I suggest you use jarred spaghetti sauce and not tomato sauce. Lastly, a quick tip I suggest to all even professional chefs, do NOT par boil your pasta first. If you are making this or manicotti, it is easier to stuff if you do it raw, then add a little watered down sauce to the bottom of the dish and seal it with tin foil. This will a help it cook in much better stuff than boiling water. You can also substitute wine to dilute your sauce.
06/22/2012
Absolutely LOVED, LOVED, LOVED this recipe! I made it for my family last night for the very first time - what can I say, it'll definitely be added to the rotation on cooler days! The only things I did differently was substitute spaghetti sauce for the tomato paste and sauce, in addition to substituting ricotta cheese for the cottage cheese. Piping the cheese mixture into the shells by using a baggie with the corner cut off was a brilliant suggestion.
08/23/2012
I didn't follow this recipe to exact, I did my own version. I didn't use jumbo shells, I used smaller sized shells. I didn't stuff the shells with any cheese. I layered the ground beef at the bottom of the pan and then cheese and then the shells, and topped it off with more of the sauce with the ground beef and some mozzarella cheese.
04/16/2016
This was delicious and I will definitely make it again! Something I did to make it easier on me, I stuffed the UNCOOKED shells and placed them on top of the sauce mixture stuffed to overflowing with the cheese mixture, put the 2nd half of the sauce layer on top of that. Then I poured 1 cup of water over the top of the sauce and added the cheese last. I covered tightly with foil and cooked for an hour and then turned off the oven and let it sit in the oven for 10 min afterwards. The shells were cooked perfectly and I didn't have an extra pot to clean! I did make this with 24 jumbo shells in a 13x9.
04/16/2011
This is just what I was looking for in stuffed shells! I love that it uses cottage cheese - healthier! Everyone loved it. It's a keeper! Thanks for posting this recipe.
01/15/2011
Good basic recipe. I used ricotta instead of cottage cheese. Also used Kraft Italian blend cheese instead of mozzerella. Used a can of tomato sauce, can of diced tomatoes with sauteed onions and garlic with ground beef. Put all into blender to make an awesome meat sauce. Hubby loved it. We'll be having leftovers for lunch.
07/31/2014
A good stuffed shell recipes that you can easily change to your likes. I made as written, only I got a lot more shells than 18. I made a small pan for our dinner and flash froze the leftover cheese-filled shells. To make filling the shells super-easy, I filled my pastry tube with the cheese filling and used the largest tip I own. I will never again fill the shells with a spoon. Served this delicious meal with a tossed salad and 'Jimmbo's Garlic Knots' from AR.
01/21/2011
I liked this recipe, but it needed just a little more sauce. The sauce itself needed more kick....kind of plain
05/02/2012
Had to tweak a little since I didn't have the tomato paste and sauce on hand. I did have 3/4 of a jar of spaghetti sauce, so I substituted that instead. I also only used 1 egg, and in the cottage cheese mix I used shredded parmesan and romano cheese. Turned out really cheesey, but that's way hubby and I like it. Turned out really good. Definitely will be making again.
03/30/2011
LET ME START BY SAYING THIS IS A REALLY GREAT IDEA. IT'S ALSO SUMTHEN THE KIDS COULD HELP WITH. I ALSO MADE SOME CHANGES BY USING RICOTTA AND ADDING SHRIMP TO THE DISH. ALL I HAVE SAY IS THAT IT WAS GREAT. THANKS ALOT
03/25/2012
Great recipe! I used ground turkey breast and adjusted the seasonings to meet my toddlers needs. Everyone enjoyed this dish and it will be a regular in our house.
01/29/2010
this recipe is wonderful...even better on the second day. I did change a few things...instead of the tomato paste, etc. I used a jar of my favorite spaghetti sauce and I used Ricotta cheese instead of cottage cheese. WONDERFUL....and my son had to helpings.
11/04/2010
I used racotta cheese Instead of cottage cheese i also added sausage without the caseings, and fresh garlic to the hamburger and ased two of my favorit jars of sauce, I mixed the cheeses first and placed it in the fridge wich made it alot eseir to put in the shells...
05/19/2009
The kids loved it, even requesting it for their school lunch the next day. The only changes I did was saute garlic with the meat and onions; and the tomato paste I used was a tomato basil blend. Thanks for the suggestion of using a ziploc bag to fill the shells. It made for a quick job.
07/30/2011
Great recipe made for my boyfriend and his neighbors and they loved it! Even left out the onion cause I didn't have one around the house! Awesome recipe
05/29/2010
a convenient way to serve as a buffet dish. Great taste, and unusual with the cottage cheese filling. Thank you for including us in this new idea for an old recipe.
11/13/2011
Very good! Everyone in my family gave it 5 stars. I followed the recipe exactly. Love this dish!
04/02/2015
had to cook 2 days in a row. excellent.
07/22/2015
The last time I made this I used Ricotta,this time the cottage cheese. Using my own homemade sauce,I chopped up the meatballs,and added a box of cooked spinach to the cottage part. Since I dipped for taste I know this is another winner tonite! My hubby is going to be so haappppy! Awesome shells! thanks!
02/18/2022
Perfect as written. I've made it according to directions and it's superb. My rating is based on the recipe as written.
I make both the egg/cheese mixture and the beef/sauce mixtures ahead of time (a day ahead, even), and I always add crushed garlic, because ... garlic! To make things a little easier on myself, I often use a jar of pasta sauce instead of the tomato paste/sauce combo the recipe calls for. I put the cheese mixture in a gallon Ziploc and pipe it into the shells that way.
Super amazing. I make it often for guests and people LOVE it and beg for the recipe. This is my go-to heavy pasta dish.
11/19/2009
AWESOME & VERY EASY!! I made the exact same way (only left out onions) and it was great. We had friends over and they all raved about it. Will definitely be doing again!
11/10/2011
This Recipe was great! I didn't make any changes except I made up half of the sauce with the ground beef, and half of the sauce with vegetarian crumbles. My boyfriend and I both loved this recipe, it was very flavorful and filling. I will be making this again!
01/14/2010
I had a bunch of ingredients I needed to get rid of, and this recipe suited them well. I used jarred sauce, 2 cups of ricotta instead of the cottage cheese, extra mozz. since I was low on ricotta, and 1/4 cup onion to use it up. Lastly, I added 1/4 tsp fennel seeds to the meat sauce for a more authentic lasagna taste. I have to agree with others that there is too much meat, which is why I deducted 1 star. I really enjoyed this, and will make again closer to the recipe.
02/09/2011
Great recipe, will add more sauce next time tho.
05/12/2009
Loved this recipe! I preferred the cottage cheese mixture to a riccota. It had a perfect blend of flavors. I used the Cabot brand, which was nice and thick, as other cottage cheeses can be loose or watery. The result was a very tasty but not heavy filling. I did use my own sauce instead of the one given. Will definately make again!
05/18/2009
This recipe was really good! I used ricotta cheese instead of cottage cheese per personal preference and I added basil and oregano to the pasta sauce. I will definitely make this again!
12/23/2013
This is truly a recipe for life! As a newly wed, I try to experiment but not enough to come off as an amateur. I really dislike when someone rates a recipe and add or remove a ton of ingredients, it's not the same recipe anymore. I tried this exactly as it was and it was almost perfect. I added a cup of ricotta cheese which made it perfect which is why I only gave it 4 stars. Out of all the recipes I'm so glad I chose this one because it was really simple and even better than I imagined. Thank you.
06/25/2010
Very good, but I altered it a lot, only because I realized last minute that I didn't have all the ingredients. I used half ground turkey and half ground beef. I went to substitute ricotta for cottage cheese (since I didn't have any) and realized I didn't have enough of that either, so I substituted one cup of Ricotta for one package of cream cheese. Also only had half the mozzarella so I used Monterrey/Colby jack and oops since I was in a rush forgot to mix the salt, pepper and parsley in to the cheese so it topped the shells before the meat sauce was added. It was still good enough for both my 4 year old and my man to want more!
10/20/2013
This is a very easy recipe to make. I did not use the sauce in the recipe, but used a jar of spaghetti sauce. It was easier and tasted great. I used oregano instead of parsley in the cheese blend. The recipe makes 30 shells, so add a little extra sauce.
01/19/2016
Everyone loved it! Made it for Christmas Eve party. Actually I made it a few days ahead of time and froze it and it came out perfect. I just set it out for a several hours to thaw then followed the rest of the directions.
03/25/2013
Too salty, and needed a lot of seasoning.
11/07/2012
I didn't follow the recipe exactly like I should have. (Bad habit of mine!) So, my cheese mixture was way too soft for me to stuff the shells. Therefore, I had to add bread crumbs to the cheese to give it more texture, and it turned out really great! I highly recommend this recipe to everyone! Just make it easier on yourself and actually follow the recipe! LOL
02/10/2013
I did make modifications, but this was really good. I boiled the shells to al dente insted of only 5 minutes. I used 1 c cottage cheese and 2 c ricotta. I poured store bought sauce in the bottom of the pan since other reviews said there wasn't enough sauce and I put all of the homemade sauce on top of th shells. I used ground turkey instead of beef, and in addition to the onion I cooked it with minced garlic and red pepper flakes. Super delicious and everyone loved it! (Oh, and based on other reviews I squeezed the cheese mixture through the corner of a ziplock which is SO much easier than spooning it into the shells)
03/03/2015
This was a great recipe.
09/27/2010
This is a great new way to look at lasagna. I always make two batches; one for now and one for the freezer. My kids ask for this constantly and will eat leftovers for this one.
09/27/2010
I loved this recipe and so did my family.
08/09/2009
I really liked this, but naturally I made some changes to fit my tastes better. For one I substituted the tomato paste and the tomato sauce with actual (chopped) tomatoes plus maybe 1/2 cup of water, just because it's healthier that way (I don't eat things that come in a can). And two, I substituted all the cheeses for Feta cheese, which I LOVE, and it turned out great. I made two dinners and one breakfast out of it. All in all, a great recipe.
03/18/2012
Used extra sauce and ricotta cheese instead of cottage cheese. Serve with garlic bread and its a hit!
01/22/2010
This recipe was so good! I had to make a few changes for my taste, I substituted ricotta cheese for the cottage cheese, used fresh garlic instead of the garlic powder and added italian seasoning to the meat mixture instead of just dried oregano. It turned out wonderful and I will be making this again. Thanks!
05/14/2009
This was a good dish but I made some changes. I added my jar sauce as well as a small can of tomato sauce. I added carrots and fresh garlic, minced. The shells were filled with the cottage cheese, eggs and parm as directed but I did not like it as much. I used cottage cheese for the mostacciolli bake and that turned out well. I think the next time I make it will be with ricotta cheese instead. Other than that it was a tasty pasta dish. A decent variation of lasagna.
10/19/2019
Really liked this dish. I made it easier with pasta sauce and used hot Italian sausage sautéed with onion and bell and a bit of red pepper flakes, then wilted chopped fresh spinach. I added just a little sauce to the meat/cheese mix and just dumped the rest of the jar on top. I see now where I did it backwards, but it worked out really well because I didn't want to have just a cheese filled shell.
08/26/2016
I substituted ricotta for the cottage cheese as a personal preference. It was delicious. Will definitely keep this recipe in circulation.
10/02/2019
I substituted ricotta for the cottage cheese. It was fabulous. My friends went wild. They said it was the best thing they ever ate! A grand slam recipe!
08/05/2016
8 5 16 ... http://allrecipes.com/recipe/170463/lasagna-stuffed-shells/ ... Using 18 shells, they are quite full - overflow when cut. I don't mind that, but the kids did. :/ I'd try 20. No meat, upped onion to a quarter cup or so & added fresh garlic, too; no powdered garlic I only used 15oz t sauce, no paste, 1t basil, 1/2t oregano & sugar, 1/16t cayenne. Simple & good. I suppose adding the salt & pepper in there would be good, but I didn't. Watch the pepper though, if you're adding cayenne.
01/17/2014
I made as directed,felt the cheese mixture was tad bland for my liking, but addng salt helped after meal was pulled out of the oven helped. would double the tomato sauce next time to make it more saucy. all and all, good, but not the best ive ever had.
02/05/2015
It was ok. Too much cheese, I had extra cheese filling. Used ricotta cheese instead which is a great substitute. The sauce was just way too thick and could use more oregano or other seasonings.
01/21/2019
I made exactly as directed, wasnt sure about the cottage cheese, but went for it anyway! it turned out decent, but next time I am def going to tweak it to my own liking, by making my own sauce that isnt so bland, substituting the cottage cheese for most likely ricotta, as well as adding some italian sausage and a few other special ingredients.
08/27/2016
good
06/01/2009
This was good. I used crumbled hot italian sausage instead of ground beef. The only downside to stuffed shells is that it was really messy for me to get the cheese mixture into the shells.
01/04/2010
We love,love,loved it!!! I did add about 2 teaspoons of brown sugar to remove any sour taste from tomatoes. Also I prefer regotta cheese over cottage cheese. But all in all they want more next week. Thanks
12/27/2015
My family likes more garlic flavor so I used real garlic and more of it instead of the powder. I added it to the beef while it cooked. Also I added basil (same amount as oregano) and water along with the tomato sauce and paste, maybe a cup, because it seemed way too thick. That made it more of a sauce consistency. I really liked the shell filling, and there was enough left to fill another 5 shells and then some. I just spooned the rest over the top before the sauce. I'll probably use it the next time I make lasagna! That being said I don't think I'll go through the extra work of the shells, I'll just use noodles.
12/09/2016
DELIZIOSO. EASY. I doubled recipe, also used 2 and a bit jars of basil spaghetti sauce instead of tomato sauce. Very good, lots of meat and can generously fill shells with cheese. I felt it needed a bit more sauce as it was cooking I just opened a jar and sprinkled more over top to mix in a bit. Perfect. Will freeze well. Iloveit 2nd time I used all the tomato sauce instead of the jars ,,still very good, needs more Italian spice this way. Both ways good,,but less work with jars , so going for that.
08/10/2019
I make this frequently. I like the portion sizes so you don't have to cut a lasagna. The only difference I make is I mix the hamburger into the cheese mixture and stuff the shells with that mixture. Everyone thinks it is better when you do't have a mouth full of cheese. I also use ricotta cheese instead of cottage cheese. I have been making it this way for years and I get requests from family to make it.
07/14/2019
I gave this review 4 stars since I had to make changes. I made the changes based ona couple of the reviews. With the changes this receipe was AMAZING. I used fresh onions and minced garlic. I added season salt, basil, oregano, and fresh parsley to my ground turkey. I used 1.5lbs of ground turkey because I don't eat beef. I used part skim Ricotta Cheese instead of cottage cheese. I also didn't boil my shells like others suggested. I stuffed my shells using a ziploc bag to pipe the Ricotta Cheese mixture into the shells then topped the shells with the meat sauce. Also, note that I diluted the meat sauce with dry white cooking wine instead of using water. Topped with remaining Mozzarella and parmsean cheese and covered tightly with foil and baked on 375 for an hour. After the cooking time I turned the stove off and let it sit in the stove for an additional 10 minutes. Came out delicious and perfect. My picky eaters loved it!!!!
03/06/2016
I love this recipe only thing I changed cottage cheese for ricotta cheese. Great variation to traditional lasagna.
03/22/2016
This recipe was a shot in the dark for me, as I have zero experience with italian dishes. It was a fairly involved recipe for my skill level, but I gave it a shot. It turned out fantastic! I really enjoyed this dish. I served it with Baked Garlic Bread and a ceasar salad. My girlfriend and I had a bunch of leftovers and I just threw them back in the oven when we were ready to eat them. Very good, plan on making again soon. Forgot to mention, that we used fresh Ricotta cheese instead of cottage!
03/17/2016
After making this I've decided it doesn't stack up to regular lasagna and seems to be close to the same amount of work. Not used to the flavor of the cottage cheese.
03/22/2016
This recipe was a great find. It was simple to prepare and was in the oven in no time. Quicker bake time over a pan of Lasagna and was just as good. I added a cup of cooked spinach to the cottage cheese mixture before stuffing the shells. I would make this again in a heartbeat!
04/27/2016
It was very good!
02/04/2017
I used ricotta like others suggested and did. Also, I cooked the shells for about 3 min and used a freezer bag with the corner cut to stuff the shells (also as suggested). To my sauce I added green pepper and onion, next time I will use clove garlic instead of powder. Wonderful recipe!
08/30/2018
Will absolutely make it again!
01/27/2019
classic recipe, delicious
06/26/2016
I will make this again. I used 2 lbs. of hamburger so I increased the tomato paste to an extra 6 oz. increased the tomato sauce to an extra 14 oz. can. I also used the whole box of shells so I had to increase the filling. With that I doubled the ingredients for the filling. It was very meaty, the way my family likes it. I will definitely make this a regular for my family. It is very cheesy and saucy.
03/22/2016
because it looks so good right now and just by looking it will look good once you have made it
06/30/2016
I loved this pasta dish. I followed the recipe exactly with the exception of using fresh garlic instead of garlic powder. I made the full amount but since we only ate two portions divided the rest into servings and froze them.I love dishes that I only cook once and get several meals out of.
12/22/2019
Easy to make. My husband enjoyed very much.
07/26/2016
This was a delicious, hearty meal! The sauce was a little bland and too thick for my taste though. If I make it again, I think I would definitely cut back on the meat and probably just use a lighter spaghetti sauce instead of the tomato sauce and paste.
04/04/2016
I didn't like this recipe. 12oz of tomato paste is too much with only a 14oz can of tomato sauce. Sauce needed more spices in it. Will not make again
04/30/2017
This was great. I used Ricotta instead of cottage cheese. I used a whole box of jumbo shells. Wish I would have doubled the cheese mixture. Also doubled the tomotae sauce mixture.
03/18/2017
This was great! I did add some fresh chopped spinach to the cheese mixture.. My 6 year old son loved this! will definitely make again.
03/12/2019
OUTSTANDING Recipe! Thank you for sharing it! We used 1/2 cottage cheese & the other 1/2 ricotta cheese. Delish!
10/06/2016
This recipe caught my eye as a interesting twist on lasagna. It does take a while to put together, but the result is great. The 1st time I made this I followed the recipie and the 2nd time, I did change a few things. 1) I used fresh chopped garlic instead of garlic powder 2) I used 2 jars of spaghetti sauce instead of the tomato sauce & paste 3) I used a combination of smoked & regular mozzarella. My dish ended up with 25 shells and the small changes made a big difference. I will make this again for sure. Thanks for the great base recipe!
07/25/2016
Only made slight spice modification, and added extra cheese because I love cheese. My roommate and I devoured the entire pan.
11/21/2016
I added mushrooms, green peppers and onions to my meat sauce. It was very delicious! Whole family loved it! Thank you!
03/10/2017
Made it with the ricotta cheese and garlic as suggested by others (I would have used garlic anyway; Garlic on everything - I'm not dating ) ; I loved the zip lock corner of the bag tip!! Delicious and will definitely make again.
02/12/2017
If I were to make it again I would cut down on the meat in the sauce. Otherwise tasty.
02/26/2016
I was very disappointed with this receipt, I followed it and made no changes, the sauce is too thick and too bitter, you couldn't even spread it over the shells. I did not care for the cottage cheese either, disappointed it was a lot of work and was not good. Unfortunately will not be making this again. I will go back to my own receipt. I can see why so many people changed this receipt.
04/19/2017
4/18/17 Followed the recipe except used spaghetti sauce instead of tomato sauce. added 1 clove chopped garlic to meat and onions . used 1 lb meat instead of 1 1/2. Added filling to zip lock and piped it into shells. baked for 30 min...could have baked for a bit longer.
05/20/2009
These were good! I will cut back on the amount of tomato paste next time and substitute sauce - it was a little too thick. I also added in more seasonings into the tomato sauce and a few cloves of chopped garlic in wtih the onions.
10/23/2016
I made it exactly as the recipes calls and I think it was amazing! My husband liked it a lot too which says a lot because he is a picky eater!
05/08/2016
It tasted good, but either my jumbo shells weren't as jumbo, or there was just too much stuffing. I would need to cut back by about a third, and would like it is the meat sauce was less meat and more sauce.
01/28/2020
I didn't make the sauce, I just used jarred instead. With that being said... YUM! Perfect as written, I added a little granulated garlic to the cheese, just because I like the taste. Yummy, solid recipe as written.
03/02/2018
I used ground turkey instead and made my meat sauce very meaty but I love this recipe
11/26/2015
Great recipe I used turkey and ricotta and it turned out great thanks.will make again
04/27/2020
So delicious! The filling for the shells made a lot more than I needed for 18 shells. I literally counted out 18 shells, but next time, I'll just make more shells! The sauce was great, but would definitely need to increase for more shells. I was skeptical of the cottage cheese because I'm not a fan, but figured it might be ok melted. Y'all, this was seriously amazing! I doubt I'll be making lasagna ever again! Even my pickiest eaters ate it and asked for more! Definitely throwing this in the regular rotation of dinners!
10/11/2015
My husband loved it! I added sauté mushrooms and used minced garlic. I also used spaghetti sauce and ricotta cheese.
09/01/2014
Amazing!!!! My fam loves it!!!
02/26/2019
This was an awesome recipe! I took the tips of a couple other reviewers and it came out great. I used ricotta instead of the cottage cheese and jarred spaghetti sauce. I chopped some fresh parsley to put it in the filling and to top it off.
02/11/2018
We liked these, but made a few changes. I sautèed minced garlic with the meat instead of using garlic powder, and cut the meat down to one pound. I also used my own homemade marinara and completely omitted the cottage cheese because we do not like it. I added extra mozzarella and parmesan to compensate.
01/12/2021
I made it but I had to modify I could not find the shells at our local grocery. So I just use regular lasagna sheets add at the Cheese ingredients. Rolled it up and placed it on the top of the bed of the meat and pasta sauce and then added the rest of the meat and pasta sauce on top then added the cheese it was delicious
01/30/2021
Followed the directions and my family loved it. I asked them to rate it 1-5 stars and they all gave it a 5. Will make again. I cut the corner out of a ziplock bag to stuff my shells with.
07/21/2021
I substituted the cottage cheese for ricotta and used jar marinara. I prefer it with the changes that I made. (I did make it previously by the directions.) This is a quick and easy recipe that the whole family loved.
06/19/2009
Delicious! Passed this recipe on to my daughter in Germany and she and her husband also loved it! Making it again tonight!
05/12/2009
Really good!! My family loved it! I used a can of spaghetti sauce (faster) and it was great! Thanks for the recipe!
03/19/2016
We really enjoyed this. Used ricotta instead of cottage cheese. I would recommend cooking some extra shells in case a couple tear when cooking or filling. I may cook even more shells next time as I had about a cup of filling leftover. I might would have preferred the sauce just a bit thinner, so I may thin it out a little next time. But so enjoyable as-is I had to give it five stars.
06/25/2013
This was a big success. My picky eater even went back for seconds. I did tweak the recipe by substituting ricotta for the cottage cheese. We'll be making this one again for sure.
03/03/2016
Excellent
Source: https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/170463/lasagna-stuffed-shells/