Skip to main content

Baked Manicotti

This manicotti recipe is FAB, and I will never stuff a tube of pasta EVER again when I can do it this way.  It's also meatless, which a nice thing to throw into the mix whenever you can.  This dish is great for serving a crowd if you're willing to roll a lot of manicotti, and it freezes great. 

Baked Manicotti
Serves 6 to 8

Tomato Sauce
• 2 28-ounce cans diced tomatoes (in juice)
• 2tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 3medium cloves garlic , minced or pressed through garlic press (about 1 tablespoon)
• 1/2teaspoon hot red pepper flakes , optional
• Table salt
• 2tablespoons chopped fresh basil

Cheese Filling and Pasta
• 3 cups part-skim ricotta cheese
• 4 ounces grated Parmesan cheese (about 2 cups)
• 8 ounces shredded mozzarella cheese (about 2 cups)
• 2 large eggs , lightly beaten
• 3/4teaspoon table salt
• 1/2teaspoon ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
• 16 no-boil lasagna noodles (see note above)

For the sauce: 
Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 375 degrees. Use an immersion blender if you have one (and if you don't, get one), or pulse 1 can tomatoes with their juice in food processor until coarsely chopped, 3 or 4 pulses. Transfer to bowl. Repeat with remaining can of tomatoes. 

Heat oil, garlic, and pepper flakes in large saucepan over medium heat until fragrant but not brown, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in tomatoes and 1/2 teaspoon salt and simmer until thickened slightly, about 15 minutes. Stir in basil; adjust seasoning with salt.

For the cheese filling: 
Combine ricotta, 1 cup Parmesan, mozzarella, eggs, salt, pepper, and herbs in medium bowl; set aside.

To assemble: 
Pour 1 inch boiling water into 9" x 13" broiler-safe baking dish, then add noodles one at a time. Let noodles soak until pliable, about 5 minutes, gently separating noodles with tongs or the tip of a knife to prevent sticking. Remove noodles from water and place in a single layer on clean kitchen towels; discard water in baking dish and dry baking dish.

Spread bottom of baking dish evenly with 1 1/2 cups sauce. Spread 1/4 cup cheese mixture evenly onto bottom three-quarters of each noodle (with short side facing you), leaving top quarter of noodle uncovered. Roll into tube shape and arrange in baking dish seam side down. Top evenly with remaining sauce, making certain that pasta is completely covered.

Cover manicotti with aluminum foil. Bake until bubbling, about 40 minutes, then remove foil. Remove baking dish, adjust oven rack to uppermost position (about 6 inches from heating element), and heat broiler. Sprinkle manicotti evenly with remaining 1 cup Parmesan. Broil until cheese starts to brown, 4 to 6 minutes.  Remove from oven, and let set about 10 minutes, then serve.
Labels:

Popular posts from this blog

Layered Mexican Trifle Salad

So this is awesome.  It's a lot of work, but it is awesome.  Feeds a crowd, looks cool, tastes great.  What more can you ask for?  I first had this at a party, and then tracked down the recipe - I believe it was originally from Pampered Chef.  You can mix it up, but I really like this combo.  It's easy to double or whatever is needed, based on the serving dish.  The one pictured was MASSIVE, and was basically a triple batch - so much work, and at the last minute! Layered Mexican Trifle Salad I ngredients: Beans: drain, rinse and mix together 1 15 oz. can pinto beans and 1 15 oz. can black beans 1 15 oz. can whole kernel corn, drained (I've also used fresh) 1 large tomato, diced (I usually use several Roma tomatoes) 2 green bell peppers, diced 3 ripe avocadoes, diced and mashed with the juice of 1 lime and salt and pepper to taste 1 large onion, diced (red or white) 2 cups cooked chicken, diced or shredded 2 cups cheddar or jack cheese, shredded
Read more

Skillet Chicken, Broccoli, Ziti & Asiago Cheese

We ALL really love this recipe. This is based on a recipe from the good people at Cooks Illustrated - I am grateful to them for getting my kids to happily eat sundried tomatoes and broccoli!  I've also made this in a huge batch and served it family-style for a dinner party (and got to use my giant Pampered Chef Simple Additions square pasta bowl (it's really big), and it was AWESOME).  If people could have licked the bowl clean, they might have - there was NOTHING left. Try this, and love it: Chicken, Broccoli, Penne and Asiago Cheese  Skillet 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch squares 2 tbsp. vegetable oil (or olive oil - just don't heat that to smoking) 1 medium onion, minced (about 1 cup) 3 medium cloves garlic, minced (about 1 tbsp.) 1/4 tsp. dried oregano 1/8 tsp. red pepper flakes 8 oz. ziti or penne (2 /12 cups) 3 c. water 2 c. low-sodium chicken broth 3-4 c. broccoli florets 1/4 c. sun-dried tomatoes in oil, rinsed and choppe
Read more

Another Take on Comfort Food

Sometimes there's nothing you can do but cook. I've had the displeasure of seeing 2 young moms in our school community recieve cancer diagnoses in the last 18 months.  If you're like me, when someone you know is hurting, you want to help, but lots of times, there's not much you can do. If you can cook, you can take away some of the stress of getting the family fed and bring a meal or two. In fact, even if you can't cook, you can pick up a meal at a restaurant or a bag of groceries, or even a gift card for a local restaurant. I think it comes naturally to some - the church and school communities I grew up in always loved with food - church potlucks, school spaghetti dinners, and of course lots of meals for people who needed them.  But not everyone has done this before, so it might be overwhelming.  As in my "feeding a crowd" blurb, there are a few things to keep in mind.   Don't try to impress - don't try new recipes.  Find out if you're
Read more